F1 2020: The teams and drivers

The "Silver Arrows" will be sporting black paint this season, taking a stand against racism by supporting the Black Lives Matter movement. Even in black, the six-time defending constructors' champions should be leading the pack. During the coronavirus hiatus, Mercedes technicians worked to make the W11 EQ Performance (pictured) faster and built in a few upgrades.

Defending world champion Hamilton (left) is once again the favorite for the drivers' title, while Bottas is the clear No. 2 driver. If Hamilton secures a seventh title, he will draw level with German great Michael Schumacher for most all-time. During the coronavirus break, the Briton came out in support of Black Lives Matter and branded F1 as a sport for people "who look a certain way."

The Scuderia Ferrari racing team is less harmonious than the "Silver Arrows." The team hierarchy has shifted: four-time champion Vettel (left) is leaving after the season, and 22-year-old Leclerc (right) is the future. The dynamic could lead to conflict. Vettel wants the best possible send-off, but if the team calls him off in favor of Leclerc, that might upset the German driver.

The SF1000 is a further upgrade to the SF90 car of 2019, which spent most of the season behind Mercedes. Whether Ferrari's technicians were able to catch up is yet to be seen. More important will be minimizing tactical mistakes. More than once last season Ferrari lost races with the wrong strategy. Establishing a clear No. 1 driver could help in reclaiming the constructors title.

Verstappen (right) just wants to drive: "That was the longest break in my racing career," the Dutch driver said. The fact that two races this season will take place at the Red Bull Ring in Austria plays into the 22-year-old's hands as he won Red Bull's home race last year. Albon (left) earned new fans when he finished second in the eSports F1 competition.

The historic British team is the only "smaller" F1 outfit that could regularly compete with the three "big" teams. Sainz (right) in particular wants to show that he’s deserving of his switch to Ferrari in 2021. For Norris (left), the goal will be to strengthen his position in the team with good results before Daniel Riccardo joins next season.

Will things finally click into place? Ricciardo (right) is entering his second season with the French outfit. The last campaign was one to forget: he finished in the points only eight times and didn't have a podium finish. He’ll be hoping to fare betterin his final year with Renault before moving to McLaren in 2021. Will Ocon (left), who replaced Nico Hülkenberg, become Renault's top driver?

Drive fast and be quiet. That's the motto the former world champion Raikkonen (front) will have in his 18th season in F1. The 40-year-old is not considering retirement, but will rather try to get the most out of his car. Alfa Romeo finished fifth in the constructors' standings last season. They need the car to perform better than in 2019, and teammate Giovinazzi (right) must be faster.

Is just being there enough? The pink outfit need to strive for more this season. They want to finish in the points regularly and leave the likes of Alpha Tauri and Renault behind. Perez (right) will compete further up the field after easily winning the internal battle with Stroll (left) with 16 points to Stroll's five. Perez should once again show he's the better and more complete driver

These two are not very popular with their colleagues. Magnussen (right) often gets away with his rude and uncompromising driving style. Grosjean (left) is considered a "scrap producer" with many self-inflicted accidents — the French driver failed to finish seven races last year. Generally, the two Haas drivers tended to plow through the rear third of the field. That shouldn't change in 2020.

Team of failures? Both Kvyat (left) and Gasly (right) were once Red Bull drivers but were not convincing enough and were downgraded. Until this season, Alpha Tauri were called Torro Rosso (Italian for "Red Bull") and remains the Austrian outfit's farm team. Both drivers proved last season they deserve a second chance: Kvyat finished third in Hockenheim and Gasly came in second in Sao Paulo.

The two Williams drivers know that they will compete at the back of the pack this season. But Mercedes academy driver Russell (right) can rest easy knowing he will be driving a "Silver Arrow" one day. Until then, he will gain experience with rookie teammate Latifi with Williams. Their cars are usually not fast, but make it across the finish line.