Max Verstappen, 2024 World Champion: my prediction for last year that became true this Nov. in Las Vegas. Though my prediction had a high chance of becoming true, it was much more difficult for Verstappen to achieve this title this season, as he and Lando Norris battled all season. In 2023, Verstappen won 19 out of the 22 races while teammate Sergio Perez won two and the only non-Red Bull to win was Carlos Sainz for Ferrari. While this year F1 had seven different winners in Verstappen, Sainz, Norris, Charles Leclerc, Lewis Hamilton, George Russel, and Oscar Piastri.
Another change from 2023, the Constructors Championship. The battle for the title was down to the wire in Abu Dhabi as Ferrari and McLaren were separated by only 21 points before the final race. Unfortunately, Leclerc was given a ten place grid penalty that set him back to P19 and the Tifosi (Ferrari fans) started to lose hope. Leclerc gave one of his best performances of the season by ending P3 but even a P2 for Sainz, meaning a Ferrari double podium, wasn’t enough to stop Norris and McLaren. Due to this, Ferrari has snatched second place two years in a row with the first McLaren constructors championship since 1998. Red Bull Racing finished third, followed by Mercedes, and Alpine made a significant jump to sixth.
Similarly to 2023, crazy driver changes were made throughout the season and for the upcoming year. As expected by many, American driver Logan Sargeant was kicked from the Williams team mid-season and was replaced by Franco Colapinto who managed to score five points to Sargeant’s zero. Additionally fan favorite Daniel Riccardo was replaced by Liam Lawson at VCARB.
F1 said goodbye to one of the most iconic team-driver duos: Hamilton x Mercedes. While with the team Hamilton won seven constructors championships and six drivers championships, becoming tied with Michael Schumacher for most championships and solidifying his all time greatness. Hamilton will be heading off to Ferrari next season to create a never before seen team. Unfortunately, this pairing forces Sainz out of his seat who will be heading to Williams next season, but many speculate he will be an Audi driver when they replace Sauber in 2026. Hamilton will be placed by rookie Kimi Antonelli, who has been brought up through the Mercedes junior driver program. Additionally, Perez will be saying goodbye to his Red Bull seat and is to be replaced by Lawson after a rough season where he barely managed to make it out of Q1 let alone win a race.
The stars of the show in 2024 were undoubtedly the rookies. Oliver Bearman stepped into the Ferrari seat after Sainz needed emergency surgery for appendicitis where he placed seventh on his F1 debut. Bearman also made history by later racing under the Haas team, unfortunately he was not able to score any points with the inferior car. His skills earned him both the Driver of the Day Award, and the Overtake of the Month Award. Colapinto was another standout as he swiftly replaced Sargeant and won the hearts of many fans.
Fans look forward to the upcoming season with car unveilings and the next season of Drive to Survive in the near future. It is likely that the margins between teams will become even thinner than last year, guaranteeing an exciting season to come.
