Artem Markelov: One to Watch
2019 will see several new, rookie drivers on the grid with the older generation moving on to other sports or down the grid, like Alonso to Indy and Raikkonen giving up his Ferrari seat to Leclerc to go back to his roots in Sauber. We will see Alexader Albon, Lando Norris and and George Russell, the three main competitors for the F2 championship in 2018, all getting seats. However I believe one driver has been looked over. Artem Markelov. The Russian since being in F2 has shown masterclass performances over and over again with his race craft emulating the likes of LeClerc and Verstappen.
The Russian driver was born in Moscow on 10th September in 1994 and began karting at the fresh age of six. He raced mainly in Russia but worked quickly through into the KF2 category by 2010. This lead him to be in open-wheel racing the following year, competing in ADAC Formel Masters with Motopark Academy, taking eleven podiums in twenty three races. This lead to him making a F3 debut in 2011 at the Hockenheimring round of the Formula Three Euro series. Markelov raced under the Lotus moniker in the F3 2012 series, finishing seventh with three podiums, including two wins at Lausitz and Hockenheim. he stayed for the 2013 season only to see more success with 18 podiums in 23 races finishing only runner up to his team mate Marvin Kirchhofer.
The young Russian thus moved onto GP2 in 2014 with Russian Time, joining Mitch Evans to complete the team. However, he saw little success with one point finish at Spa, causing him to finish 24th in the season. This was 20 points behind his team mate, Evans. The team remained the same for 2015 and this time took his first podium in Spa, where he started 22nd on the grid. He finished 13th place, being more consistent in the points but still 8 points behind Evans. Evans left the team, meaning that Raffaele Marciello joined the team. However, in the 2016 season, Markelov achieved his first win at Monaco after starting from 15th. However, once again he wasn't as stable as Marciello, finished 10th in the championship. However during this time, GP2 went through new marketing and was renamed 'Formula Two' for 2017. Artem stayed with Russian time for a fourth season, being joined by Luca Ghiotto and won the first race in F2 history. He collected wins at Spielberg, Spa, Jerez and Abu Dhabi but he lost to a certain man named Charles LeClerc in the championship. However, his resilience lead to Russian Time winning the Teams' championship. in 2018, Artem finished 5th in the championship with 3 wins, 7 podiums and 186 points.
In Feburary 2018, Markelov became Renault F1's development driver and drove for the team in Free Practice 1 in Russia. The spotlight has come more upon him recently as he got more time in the car at the tyre test sessions at the Yas Marina Circuit. He is being seen as one of the few great drivers in F2 to be refused a seat, possibly due to Ricciardo's astonishing change from Red Bull to Renault.
The Russian arguably didn’t get a seat in F1 this year down to his inconsistently. Looking through his racing career, it is clear that he lacks the consistency to win a chapionship like LeClerc. The one season Markelov could have one, he faced the young Monegasque, who saw a strong run of races, with 7 wins and a number of podiums. In order for Markelov to prove to F1 teams, he needs to show this. F1 teams, especially lower down the grid, need this talent due to the close proximity the teams race in the constructors. The 2018 season saw several teams racing for position in the championship to the line, such as Force India and McLaren being only 10 points different and Sauber only 4 points behind Force India. Their decisions to hire drivers are based upon consistency in lower championships. Norris saw himself as a rookie within the 2018 F2 championship but was able to fight for the championship for the majority of the year, until Russia where Albon came through to overtake him in the points, taking second.
Moreover, Markelov is tied down to Renault, a team that will probably not see a free seat for a while. Ricciardo signed a two year Renault deal, a deal astonishing the whole paddock and fan world due to Ricciardo only ever been a Red Bull driver. However, it is seen by many as a investment deal, following the suits of Alonso with McLaren and Hamilton with Mercedes. This means it is likely he will stay with the team to the 2021 rule changes if the team is able to stay at the top of the midfield through the next two years. This stops Markelov accessing at least one of the seats. The other belongs to Nico Hulkenberg, a man becoming one of the older members of the grid but also the most consistent driver on the grid arguably. The German finished 7th on the driver's championship, putting him at the top of the midfield with a 7 point gap to Sergio Perez. Although Hulkenberg has never won a race, he has proven himself to be one of the best on the grid, especially this year. Renault has seen an extremely erratic season with the car losing in the development battles, meaning teams such as Force india came out by the end of the year with a faster car. His ability to stay in the points majority of the time is a feat that most drivers would be unable to do, proven by his teammate Carlos Sainz. Sainz is said to be one of the best young drivers on the grid but has had, what only be said, as an average season in comparison to Hulkenberg. Sainz finished 10th in the season and was knocked out in Q1 3 times throughout the season. Renault need that consistency of Hulkenberg with Ricciardo in order to stop the advance of other midfield teams of Haas and Force India who will be after that 4th position. Therefore, I believe Markelov should have moved himself away from the team in order to grab one of the free seats. The 2018 driver market has been one of the most chaotic in years and Markelov could have easily grabbed a seat at Toro Rosso, Williams or even possibly Sauber but his ties to Renault have held him and I believe will continue to.
Markelov is an excellent driver, he has proved this several times and his talent to move through the grid to win a race, resembles LeClerc in Bahrain 2016 and Verstappen in Brazil 2016. However, he isn't consistent and has put himself in a deal with the wrong team. Arguably, he wouldn't have known this going into the 2018 season, with Sainz on loan from Toro Rosso but the drivers market caused a Renault seat to be something unlikely before the 2021 rule change. In order to be in an F1 car in modern times, you need to be a fresh new talent and I believe Markelov is this, but he needs to be careful that, like so many others, he isn't skipped over and sunk in the currents of F2 rivals, like the many, making their appearances such as this year.
