Sebastian Vettel’s retirement from F1 has come as a shock not only to us fans but reportedly to Aston Martin too!

Team owner Lawrence Stroll was apparently confident of contract extension talks with Vettel proceeding smoothly, with team principal Mike Krack having previously revealed that there was no backup plan should the Silverstone-based team not re-sign the German for another season.

So, with no academy programme currently present under Aston Martin, the speculation has already begun regarding who will fill Vettel’s vacant seat in the Aston Martin car next season.

Planet F1 have come up with their shortlist of five candidates who they think are most likely to replace the four-time world champion, so let's take a look!

Fernando Alonso

A pretty straight swap for the retiring Vettel is the fellow racing legend and veteran Fernando Alonso. Another experienced grandmaster of motorsport who could provide a great influence on teammate and owner’s son Lance Stroll with his knowledge of the sport. He was even considered instead of Vettel before the team signed the German.

SPIELBERG, AUSTRIA - JULY 07: Fernando Alonso of Spain and Alpine F1 walks in the Paddock during previews ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Austria at Red Bull Ring on July 07, 2022 in Spielberg, Austria. (Photo by Clive Rose/Getty Images)

Daniel Ricciardo

While not quite boasting the racing portfolio of Fernando Alonso, Ricciardo is another experienced driver and useful marketing tool for any F1 team. The victor of last year’s Italian Grand Prix, however, has not, by his own admission, had the best time to say the least at McLaren.

Pierre Gasly

Vastly different to Alonso and Ricciardo in experience, success and profile, however, it may be the right move for Aston Martin to give Gasly the seat and a chance.

LE CASTELLET, FRANCE - JULY 22: Pierre Gasly of France and Scuderia AlphaTauri walks in the Paddock prior to practice ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of France at Circuit Paul Ricard on July 22, 2022 in Le Castellet, France. (Photo by Dan Mullan/Getty Images)

Furthermore, with Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez seemingly cemented as the Red Bull pairing, getting Gasly out his contract should not be too difficult.

Valtteri Bottas

The Finn seems to be loving life at Alfa Romeo since being relieved of his intense Mercedes duties and so it may be tricky to lure Bottas away from his new team already.

However, with the connections between Aston Martin and his former employers Mercedes, as well as the arguable greater potential that Aston Martin has compared to Alfa Romeo, the 32-year-old may be tempted to jump ship and to become the main man which seeks to challenge for World Championships in the near future.

Mick Schumacher

The Ferrari academy protege may be tricky to lure away from the team due to the commercial ties between ‘Ferrari’ and ‘Schumacher’, however, if Vettel has had any role in influencing Aston Martin or Schumacher himself on the prospect of who should be his replacement, then there’s every possibility that Aston will consider Vettel’s close friend as his replacement.

Out of contract at Haas at the end of the year and being a big commercial scoop with lots of potential, Schumacher is a valid candidate. However, with Aston Martin’s big aspirations in the near future, is the German quite ready to lead the line yet, as opposed to choosing a more experienced driver such as Ricciardo or Bottas?

So there we are, that is Planet F1’s chosen five candidates to potentially replace Sebastian Vettel at Aston Martin.

You may be asking, well what about Nico Hulkenberg, with the 34-year-old being the current reserve driver for Aston Martin and certainly not lacking in experience, having raced for the team from 2011 to 2016 back in its Force India days.

NOIDA, INDIA - OCTOBER 27: Race winner Sebastian Vettel of Germany and Infiniti Red Bull Racing celebrates his fourth consecutive F1 World Championship following the Indian Formula One Grand Prix at Buddh International Circuit on October 27, 2013 in Noida, India. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images)

While it would be the easiest option for Aston Martin to choose, it simply does not match the team’s big aspirations for the next few seasons, and you would expect that he will be kept on as the reserve driver.

It will be an interesting end of the season for Aston Martin to organise the best fit replacement for the legendary Vettel, and it will be exciting for the fans to witness who is signed, with no clear candidate sticking out at this current moment in time.