(Image via marca.com)
Staff Writer: Akshit Bagga
Email: abagga@umassd.edu
Formula 1 is vrooming towards its final triple header of the 2024 season, and boy, oh, boy, looking back at the races, they have been one of the most dramatic, competitive, exciting seasons in recent years.
“Highs,” “lows,” “no domination,” “crazy,” “expecting a new winner every race,” and “championships cliffhanger” are some of the words that can be used to describe this season.
Tune in to the races at any time, and you will expect a shock. The same has been the case for the drivers market.
While the hype is real among F1 enthusiasts, let’s take a look at how it is for every team.
ALPINE
The French team has had a string of misfortunes this season. Key changes in team management with three different team principles in the last 18 months have definitely affected the stability of the team.
The former Renault team hasn’t been strong this year. While one lap pace on qualifying Saturdays was something that gave sponsors relief, none of their performance packages suited the on-track conditions on racing Sundays.
Disputes between both their French drivers added to their worries, with Esteban Ocon having a dramatic collision with teammate Pierre Gasly at the Monaco Grand Prix.
While that did add to the Alpine management parting ways with Ocon for the 2025 season, both their drivers only added 16 points to their Constructors’ title tally for the first 20 rounds.
However, the 21st round in the Sao Paulo Grand Prix in Brazil brought hope and shine back to the team. With the rain interfering during the weekend, both Ocon and Gasly could capsize on the showers and finish second place (P2) and third place (P3), adding 33 points to their tally.
The big point haul from Brazil has helped the team jump from P8 in the Constructors’ to P6 with 49 points. The team still needs strong results in the next three races to retain their position in the Constructors’ Title.
Looking ahead, Pierre Gasly and rookie driver Jack Doohan from the Alpine Drivers Program have been confirmed as the 2025 lineup.
ASTON MARTIN
Aston Martin’s 2024 season has been like sailing in windy weather: you just try to balance, avoiding any capsizes, and the only wish you have is to make it to the end.
The team has been working hard to try and break it to the top tier while staying away from the ones fighting as midfielders. Fernando Alonso has yet again given a justification on why he deserves to be the lead driver in the team and drive in F1 at the age of 43, while Lance Stroll has played a good B-driver for the team.
With all the points they have brought in the last 21 rounds, it is very safe to say that they have sealed P5 in the Constructors’.
Both Lance and Alonso have long-term contracts at Aston Martin and will be driving for the team in 2025.
HAAS
Ayao Komatsu’s takeover as a team principal in March 2024 can be termed a successful transition. Compared to last year, the car has made significant improvements, which can be seen in its on-track performance.
Nico Hulkenberg has constantly qualified for Q3 sessions, and Kevin Magnussen has had some strong runs on Sundays.
Haas is the smallest team on the grid, with only a 300-person workforce constituting people back at the factory, and grid professionals make it a much more impressive team among F1 bandits. The updates they bring every weekend are working, and it only looks like an upward trajectory from here.
The Rookie Driver Oliver Bearman had his fair chances when substituting for an injured Kevin Magnussen and has shown a return on investment for 2025.
Haas is currently P7 in the standings, three points behind Alpine.
Ocon and Bearman complete their 2025 lineup.
FERRARI
The red horses started the season with highs, then looked tired for a while, and came back rejuvenated after the summer break.
It was the third race of the season when Carlos Sainz got that brilliant victory in Australia. Charles Leclerc continued the triumphs with a phenomenal home race win at the iconic street circuit in Monaco, which even brought tears of joy to the eyes of Monaco’s Prince Albert II.
The summer evening called for a celebration when one of their own won it for the first time in almost a decade.
Some struggling weekends followed before the team could get a victory again at their home race in Italy. Two more wins at Austin and Mexico brought the team back in contention for the Constructors’ Title, and they are currently P2 in the standings.
With three more rounds to go, they have a shot at winning the Constructors’ Title for the 17th time after a wait of 16 years, reiterating their glory as the most successful team in the history of F1.
The seven-time world champion and one of the best drivers in the sport, Lewis Hamilton, takes over Sainz’s drive and joins forces with Leclerc in 2025.
MCLAREN
The papaya cars are shining brighter than the sun this season. McLaren is showing one of the strongest performances in 2024. They are the top contenders for the Constructors’ Championship, with Lando Norris having a chance to win his first Drivers’ Championship.
Everything on these orange cars seems to be working phenomenally well. All updates get them results, and weekend after weekend, they just add to their opponents’ troubles.
Both Norris and Oscar Piastri got their first wins this season and have gone ahead to show that the team has a great future with these two.
Critics might talk about one or two weekends where better performances were expected from the British and Australian colleagues, but come on! That isn’t going to matter once and if they win it all.
With a strong contention to Max Verstappen’s Drivers’ Title and Red Bull’s Constructors’ Title, they have successfully challenged the Austrian bull’s rage for the top of the table.
Lando and Oscar will continue to steer the McLaren in 2025.
RED BULL RACING
The end of this season cannot come soon enough for Red Bull Racing. Dominating almost every race in the last season, this one is probably like a bad dream for them. Something has not worked out for them.
Last year, Max Verstappen won almost every race with a considerable gap to the second driver on the podium; however, this year, he is struggling to reduce the gap to the front.
He started on a good note in the first two races, and it looked like Red Bull would have the same story, but then Carlos broke that spell.
There has been some driver or other who has kept Max punching the accelerator every race. Some good performances have kept him on the top of the table, and he has shown that it is the car that has a problem, not the driver.
With a stunning charge from P17 on the grid to winning the Brazilian GP, he has made a firm contention for the Drivers’ Championship.
The Mexican driver Sergio Perez has been struggling all season long. While Red Bull believed at the beginning of the season that Perez would get his mojo back, which even led them to hand him a two-year contract until 2026, that mojo never returned.
He is out of contention in the Drivers’ Championship, and his struggles have almost kicked the Bulls out of the Constructors’ fight.
Out of their garage, one of their technical directors, Adrian Newey, has also left the team for Aston Martin. While Max and Perez complete their grid in 2025 for now, it is almost certain that considering poor performances from Perez that Red Bull will be dropping Perez in the future.
RB
I don’t know how I should perceive RB’s season. The news of dropping Daniel Riccardo after the Singapore GP was maybe more significant than their whole season and gave them more limelight than anything else.
The tag of being Red Bull’s junior team instead of independent operations has probably been stamped even stronger. Drivers in RB compete for a promotion to Red Bull rather than the championship.
Being a mid-field runner, the team competes for P6 in the Constructors’ Championship from their current P8. While Yuki Tsunoda has been the frontrunner on the team for two years now, he still does not seem to have a good chance of being in the top seat at Red Bull.
Daniel Riccardo struggled at the beginning of the season but did bring in strong drives at times when he had to answer the critics. Liam Lawson from Red Bull’s Driver Academy Program was signed after Daniel was dropped, and it will be safe to say that it is an evaluation season for him rather than a racing season.
He is being tough on the grid and giving competition for Perez for the 2025 Red Bull seat.
While Yuki has a seat with RB for 2025, no one has signed up for the second seat, and a huge driver shakedown is expected among Red Bull and RB for 2025.
MERCEDES
“Mercedes is back” is the highlight headline for their season, but are they back?
George Russell capitalized on Lando’s and Max’s crash in Austria and was there in the third position to pick the top step of the podium, bringing Mercedes their first win after Brazil 2022.
In the following race at Silverstone, Lewis Hamilton won the British GP, breaking his winless streak after losing to Max Verstappen in the final lap of the Abu Dhabi GP in 2021.
Three weeks later, Belgium was a statement when George pulled in a one-stop to lead Lewis for a podium finish. While George was disqualified later due to a 1.5 kg weight deficit in the car, and Lewis was promoted to the top step, that drive was still one of the most talked about in the paddock.
Returning from the summer break, Mercedes has been hanging on the rope. They are out there making it a four-way fight but struggling to get to the top. Compared to last year, they have delivered a much better car, but their opponents have had an even better one.
They stand at P4, and both their drivers are out of contention in the Drivers’ Championship.
With Lewis leaving the team for Ferrari beginning in 2025 and this partnership of almost 12 years between him and Mercedes ending in the next three races, George, with solid performances weekend after weekend, has proved he can take the team leader role.
George and Rookie Academy Driver Kimi Antonelli are set to take charge for 2025.
WILLIAMS
Team Principal James Vowel is overhauling the team, bringing in new equipment that will help them develop a better car and try to bring the team back to its victory days.
They have been pretty realistic with their expectations every season. Developing the car, experimenting, and keeping it if it works can describe their season.
Alex Albon has brought points that he can be proud of.
The second seat on the team has been in the talking.
Logan Sargeant drove the second car; however, he couldn’t bring in points for the team or even be competitive. Frequent crashes added to the team’s bill.
The team’s nerves went red after the Netherlands GP, and they eventually decided to axe Logan mid-season and bring in Williams Academy Rookie Driver Franco Colapinto, who was competing in F2.
Starting from the Italian GP, Franco showed the pace and scored more points in six races than Logan did in 36 races. His performances have turned heads because he never drove an F1 car before debuting in F1.
The team and its members know it will be a while before the good times start. One step towards their progression was signing Carlos Sainz from Ferrari for their 2025 season.
Williams currently stands at P9 in the Constructor’s Title. They have sealed Sainz and Albon for 2025.
KICK SAUBER
Nothing is happening at Kick Sauber. Their drivers, Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu haven’t been able to score a single point this season. It seems they are desperately looking to the Audi takeover of the team.
While Audi brightens their future, the present situation is dark.
Mattia Binotto has been announced as the team principal for the future, and both Bottas and Zhou have been dropped for 2025. Nico Hulkenberg and McLaren rookie and current F2 driver Gabriel Bortoleto have been signed for the 2025 season.
This season has brought a lot of entertainment with great racing, and there are still many questions that will be answered in the coming four weeks before we cross the finish line in Abu Dhabi.
We might get a new Drivers’ Champion, we are going to get a new Constructors’ winner, a new driver in Red Bull, a lot of rookies on the 2025 grid, and a dramatic Season 7 of Netflix’s Drive to Survive.