Source -
Tyres NorthamptonLando Norris' victory sealed the title for the British team, but the papaya orange and scarlet red podium told how close the Scuderia came to glory.
Norris led an all-McLaren front row, with Oscar Piastri just edging out Carlos Sainz for P2 on the grid in Qualifying. Yet the Australian's hopes to help his team in their fight effectively vanished by the first corner. The P4-starting Max Verstappen attempted to pass Piastri on the inside of Turn 1. He instead collided with the McLaren and sent Piastri into a spin, leaving Piastri facing the wrong way. Verstappen also pirouetted and ended up completing all 360 degrees to minimise his disadvantage.
More Red Bull pain followed halfway around the lap as Sergio Perez's race ended before he could complete a single tour of Yas Marina. In what might be his final race, Perez had his car turned around after Valtteri Bottas collided with the Mexican's left-rear wheel at Turn 6. Unable to get started again, the stranded Red Bull required a Virtual Safety Car's intervention to allow the marshals to clear the track. Bottas and Verstappen both picked up 10-second penalties for their roles in each incident in a busy day for the stewards.
McLaren could relax with one car as Norris was now without any direct challenge from behind aside from the P2-sitting Sainz, who couldn't close in. However, it was a different story for the sister MCL38, as Piastri's disastrous day had further pain. Piastri couldn't slow down fast enough when braking into the Turn 6 chicane when closing in on Franco Colapinto after the VSC ended. He tagged the Williams' rear, puncturing Colapinto's rear-left Pirelli, and Piastri became the third driver to get a 10-second punishment.
There was racecraft as well as crashing in F1's season finale. Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton each had a stunning Sunday drive to advance from the back to challenge the upper positions. Leclerc, in particular, had navigated through the carnage to leap from a P19 start to sit P9 by Lap 1. More passes from the Monegasque quickly followed on Kevin Magnussen, Fernando Alonso, and Nico Hulkenberg, somehow leaving Leclerc looking at the podium positions contested by George Russell and Pierre Gasly by just Lap 12.
A mixture of tyre strategies played out on the Yas Marina Circuit as the Pirelli's life lasted longer than expected. Most had anticipated running the standard two-stopper, but a long stint for Hamilton on the Hard compound had him overcut many in the midfield to face his last laps for Mercedes with the grippier Mediums. It left the seven-time champion as a surprise threat in the race's latter stages.
To find out more about our comprehensive range of services, or to book your vehicle in, contact our friendly team of experts today.
The Mercedes began following Leclerc's footsteps of gaining positions as the laps ticked down. Leclerc's fired-up racing had him reach P3 with an on-track overtake on Gasly and an undercut on Russell, and Hamilton would soon be behind him. Passes on Hulkenberg and Gasly had Hamilton with a 12-second gap to his teammate, but his Pirelli tyres were much faster than the sister Silver Arrow machine. A last-lap pass on Russell around the outside of the long Turn 9 left-hander was a fitting way to end his Mercedes legacy, and Hamilton claimed a P4 finish from his P16 grid slot.
More laps might've allowed Hamilton to challenge Leclerc, too, but his future teammate secured a well-deserved P3. Radio messages between his Ferrari and the pit wall suggested Leclerc was surprisingly invested in helping his team take the title, but it wasn't to be in 2024. Sainz couldn't close in on Norris, who managed the gap through every lap, and just 14 points separated McLaren and Ferrari by the chequered flag.
It was a fitting end to the most competitive season in memory, with multiple teams in with a chance of taking silverware should the cards fall favourable for them. Ferrari might've lost the title, but they'll take heart by their 2025 driver lineup showing they have the pace to win if they started from the front. Next year looks to be a spectacular end to the current era before 2026's regulation change. For 2024, though, McLaren and Verstappen are the victors and will now have time to enjoy their crowns over winter.