Leclerc or Sainz could get shown the door if Hamilton joins Ferrari in 2024

Formula 1 is waiting with bated breath over Lewis Hamilton's next career move.

Sources claim that the driver is in talks with Italian giants Ferrari over a shock move to the Scarlet Reds, with Ferrari president John Elkann reportedly telling his troops to fork out £40 million (R957m, estimate) per season to get the driver's signature.

The jury is still out on whether Hamilton would ditch Mercedes-AMG - a team currently ahead of Ferrari in the 2023 championship - but the allure of an eighth F1 Drivers' championship might be too big to pass up on.

If, by some miracle, Hamilton does decide to don the Ferrari overalls, the team would have to let one of its current drivers go. But who?

Carlos Sainz

Carlos Sainz joined Ferrari ahead of the 2021 season, replacing Sebastian Vettel. It was the first time since 2007 that the sport's oldest team fielded two non-champions in its line-up. His first year in red wasn't a walk in the park, but he upped his game in 2022, even winning his first Grand Prix!

But Sainz is not on teammate Charles Leclerc's level. He is struggling to extract performance from the machinery at his disposal, and he is not in a position to challenge for the championship. Some may even suggest he'd never up his game to lead a team.

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If Ferrari does decide to replace Sainz with Hamilton, they could send him to one of the other teams affiliated with them - Alfa Romeo or Haas - given that the driver is under contract for 2024. If he goes to Alfa Romeo, he'd likely replace Valtteri Bottas and be with the team going into 2026 when it becomes Audi.

Sainz's father, rally legend Carlos Sainz Sr, races for Audi in the Dakar