5 biggest 'what if' moments in F1 history

The F1 world is a strange one where small things change the dynamics for the future. One decision here, another there, and we have a chain of events that can be linked to that one particular moment.

This leads to quite a few 'what-if' moments in F1 that would have changed history if they had happened. Most importantly, they leave us with what could have been a more enticing prospect for the sport in general.

We will look at five biggest 'what-if' moments in this feature, that would have changed how we know Formula 1.

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#1 If Max Verstappen chose Mercedes instead of Red Bull

Before Max Verstappen entered F1, he had a choice of going with Mercedes or Red Bull. While the German team could only offer a promotion to F2, the Austrian offered an F1 seat with Torro Rosso.

Max eventually went with Red Bull and made his debut with the brand. However, what if he went with Mercedes? He would compete in F2 in 2015 for the title against Stoffel Vandoorne.

Assuming he wins, by 2016, Max would force Mercedes to put him alongside Lewis Hamilton. How would the young Max fare against the prime Lewis in 2016 and years after that? We'd never know, but an enticing prospect that would have been.

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#2 If Lewis Hamilton never moved to Mercedes

Lewis Hamilton shocked everyone in 2012 when he announced his departure from McLaren. The move to Mercedes was looked at by surprise, but soon everyone realized it was a masterstroke.

But what if Lewis did not take the plunge? Michael Schumacher had already decided that he was leaving the sport by the time, and as Ross Brawn has revealed years later if Lewis had not agreed, the alternative was Nico Hulkenberg.

How would the F1 ecosystem have evolved if Hulkenberg and Nico Rosberg went to fight for the title in a Mercedes in 2014? And what happened afterward? And how would the rest of the field have evolved from that point onwards? Would that have led to a move for Sebastian Vettel at Mercedes? Unfortunately, we'd never know what would happen in that parallel universe.

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#3 If Fernando Alonso chose Red Bull in 2008

Fernando Alonso had a call to make in 2008 with Renault, a team rapidly declining. The driver had offers from Honda, Red Bull, and Ferrari. As it turns out, he would take what appeared to be an obvious call to sign with Ferrari for 2010 and reject the offers from Red Bull and Honda at the time.

As fate would have it, with the new regulations in play, Red Bull surged as the top team in F1. It went on a four-year dominant run with Sebastian Vettel at the time.

What if Fernando took the bait and went to Red Bull? He would be teamed with Sebastian on that team. How would that impact the dynamics within the squad? How does Fernando's career look 15 years later? Would he even be racing in F1 in 2024 in that case? The answer to some of these questions we'll never find out.

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#4 If Michael Schumacher went to McLaren in 1996

Near the end of the 1995 F1 season, Michael Schumacher looked to decide his future. He didn't want to continue with Benetton and was looking for where he could go next. McLaren and Ferrari were the two teams that emerged as the frontrunners, with the Italian ultimately taking the win.

The decision was made after a very public meeting between Ron Dennis and Michael, where the McLaren boss didn't take kindly to the German's lack of interest. What if Michael didn't go to Ferrari and instead went to McLaren? How does that change things?

McLaren started winning in F1 in 1998 as Adrian Newey joined the team. Would that have reduced the time Michael took to win again? How would he have fared against Mika Hakkinen? We might have ended up with an alternative reality with Ferrari never experiencing the revival that it had in F1.

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#5 If the Ayrton Senna F1 crash didn't happen

Finally, something that tends to split the fandom right in the middle is what happens if the fateful crash that ended Ayrton Senna's life doesn't happen. He was embroiled in a title battle with Michael Schumacher at the time, even though Michael had won the first three races.

As fate would have it, the German would win the title by just one point from Ayrton's teammate Damon Hill, who was nowhere close to the level the Brazilian operated. At the time, what kind of rivalry would Ayrton have with Michael and what would that mean for F1? Unfortunately, the sport lost what could have potentially been the biggest-ever rivalry.