Originally Posted by
mknight
ATM with the info available (see first part above), I see the options as relatively open for all 3 "free" top drivers (Ogier, Tanak, Mikkelsen). (Technically Lavala is also free)
Ogier is probably most limited in his choices cause Hyundai prbly can't afford/doesn't want him with Neuville as n1, for Toyota it might create issues if they want to keep Latvala and he might hesitate to go to Citroen due to past issues and recent C3 performance.
From manu side we have:
M-Sport - likely to loose Ogier and have 1-2 free seats if Ford doesn't come, unlikely to go full "paydrivers" (aka. 2005), when it's only the 2nd year of this car, would want at least 1 very good driver.
Toyota - very likely to drop Hanninen and would want a chance for manu title so need one that can secure good results on most events
Citroen - 2 drivers with limited experience/unsure performance (Lefevbre especially), Meeke with unstable results. Car that needs development with input from other drivers than the 3 that developed it so far. (doesn't matter if they give right feedback if engineers don't trust their experience, none of the 3 have any experience with other cars from last 4 years)
Hyundai - prbly not 100% satisfied with Sordo and Paddon, after all the point gap from Neuville is huge relative to point gap Ogier vs Tanak and they are not leading manu champ, even with probably the fastest car atm. Trying to help Paddon improve his tarmac pace, is an indicator that he is still wanted, but then they also expect that the tarmac speed really improves.