Two weeks ago, the Formula 1 grid arrived in Montreal with fans and drivers alike hoping for a real title fight. “I don’t think either championship is over by any means,” McLaren driver Oscar Piastri assured me in an exclusive interview after finishing second in the Monaco Grand Prix.
“Constructors” [Championship] “I don’t think it’s decided yet. We’re still a third of the way through the season, so it’s not all decided yet. Of course, being at the back puts you at a bit of a disadvantage, but it’s certainly not impossible,” Piastri continued. “And I think the drivers’ championship is also not decided yet.”
However, Max Verstappen had something to say on the latter point in Montreal.
Verstappen’s victory at the Canadian Grand Prix and the retirement of his closest rival in the drivers’ championship, Charles Leclerc, put the Red Bull driver 25 points behind his nearest rival. Despite Lando Norris coming second in Montreal, Verstappen’s win put him a few more points ahead of the McLaren driver.
Now, the Constructors’ Championship is a different story. With Sergio Pérez also retiring, Verstappen added 25 points to Red Bull with his win, while Norris’ second place and Piastri’s fourth place gave McLaren 28 points at the Canadian Grand Prix. These two results, plus Ferrari’s double retirement, made the fight for the Constructors’ Championship even tighter in Montreal.
As Piastri said, both championships are “not over” yet, and things have become even tougher in the constructors’ championship in recent weeks.
Will things get even tougher in Barcelona? This is undoubtedly the most interesting story this week as the F1 grid heads into the Spanish Grand Prix.
But that’s not all.
What’s in store on the driver market front?
Will the fluid driver transfer market bring any more news this week?
As the F1 world converges on Barcelona, all attention will likely turn to Carlos Sainz Jr. The Spaniard is yet to announce his plans for the 2025 season, when he will slip into the seat currently occupied by Lewis Hamilton at Ferrari.
Since that announcement, there have been rumours linking Sainz with teams such as Mercedes, Sauber (soon to be Audi’s works team) and, more recently, Williams, linking the talented driver.
Reports emerged last weekend that Williams were pursuing Sainz, despite expectations he would move to Sauber before joining Audi. According to these reportsWilliams has offered Sainz a four-year contract, with the option of leaving after two seasons if he feels the team is not progressing enough.
Of course, nothing is official until the paperwork is signed and Sainz himself has denied various reports already this season.
“All I can say is nothing is decided. I’ve seen reports that I’ve signed, I don’t know if it’s in Spain. When I see them I laugh because I remember three months ago I saw reports that I’d signed with Mercedes and reports that I’d signed with Red Bull. Now obviously I’m not going to those places.” Sainz said earlier this month..
“So now it’s funny to see people saying I’ve signed with Williams. It’s funny how some media people are getting away with this. It worries me that people are being allowed to do this,” Sainz added. “If I make any announcements I’ll be the first to let you know and I’ll be open about my future here.”
Currently, Sainz is just one of the drivers who are yet to announce their future plans – Pierre Gasly, Valtteri Bottas and Esteban Ocon are among those waiting – but with the grid being set in Sainz’s home country it would make sense to wait for an announcement from him first.
Barcelona’s F1 future
As the grid arrives in Barcelona for this weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix, the future of the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on the F1 grid is in serious doubt. It was announced earlier this year that the Spanish Grand Prix would move to Madrid’s new street circuit from 2026, with the track serving as the city’s exhibition centre.
The new circuit will be highly accessible for fans, being just five minutes from Madrid-Barajas Adolfo Suarez Airport and close to local metro and train stations. According to the announcement, “90 percent of fans will be able to reach the paddock by public transport, while fans staying in local accommodation will be within a short walking distance of the venue.”
While this may be great news for fans, it also raises questions about the future of the event in Barcelona.
Will there be two races in Spain soon, will the new Madrid circuit remain the only race in the country, or will Barcelona return to hosting F1 pre-season testing as it did until 2023, when pre-season testing moved to Bahrain?
The next step in the never-ending development war
The 2024 F1 season is in full swing and with a real title fight in full swing, every upgrade counts, at least when it comes to the constructors’ championship.
And as you’d expect, the team is bringing a ton of upgrades to Barcelona ahead of the upcoming triple-header (more on that in a moment).
McLaren team principal Andrea Stella recently gave a little tease of the upcoming upgrades for the Woking-based team. “We have a few upgrades planned for the upcoming races, but it’s not a single massive upgrade like we’ve seen over the last 12 months,” Stella said. “These are individual components where we’ve seen a small improvement in performance, and we’ll do them trackside rather than waiting to roll it all out together when it’s ready.”
“So, I can’t say what, but there will be something new in the next few races.”
McLaren’s second place last time out from Lando Norris and fourth place from Oscar Piastri gave them three points as they chased Red Bull at the top of the constructors’ standings, and Ferrari’s double DNF in Canada moved them 28 points closer to the Scuderia. Now they are just 40 points behind Ferrari..
Mercedes are a little further back in the pack, but the Silver Arrows enjoyed their best weekend of the year with George Russell taking a podium in Montreal. The result comes as the team has rolled out a series of upgrades since the Miami Grand Prix. The package includes a new front wing, which Russell used at the Monaco Grand Prix and Lewis Hamilton used in Montreal.
But the Silver Arrows aren’t done yet. New floors arrive in W15.
“I think since Imola we’ve definitely taken the right steps and put parts on the car that work, which is something we’ve struggled with in the last few years,” Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff said recently. “Now the direction seems to be improving our performance every weekend and there are new things coming in. There should be new parts in Barcelona that will help us, so I’m really hopeful we can continue on this positive trajectory.”
The new floor is a big part, and the new front wing is certainly visible to the naked eye, but Wolff explained that Mercedes has introduced a number of new parts in recent weeks, some of which may not be visible to the untrained eye.
“Whenever you introduce something that stands out like bodywork or a front wing, people often talk about how it changes performance,” the Mercedes boss added.
“But the truth is, over the last three races we’ve introduced so many new parts, some visible and some invisible, that have helped improve performance by a few milliseconds, and I think this is where those little improvements have a positive effect. It’s a huge effort from the factory, and I think the wheels are really starting to move.”
Meanwhile, at Ferrari, the Scuderia had planned to introduce its latest upgrades later this season, but reports from Maranello suggest that the team may introduce new components for the Spanish Grand Prix given the disastrous Canadian Grand Prix for the team. according to Form 1a.unoFerrari was aiming for another aggressive package at Silverstone, but the team may be “shortening production times to introduce its most significant innovations already in Barcelona”.
Is that really the case? We’ll know more in the next few days.
And finally Red Bull, will they also upgrade themselves in Barcelona?
Team principal Christian Horner recently hinted that new parts may be on the way for Barcelona. Asked if Red Bull would introduce upgrades there, Horner said: “Yes, that’s a possibility. We’re getting close to the top so there’s the law of diminishing returns, but there will be subtle upgrades over the summer.”
As the F1 schedule moves into summer, the activity heats up on the tracks and inside the factories.
Triple Header Round 1
When the 2024 F1 schedule was released, many noticed that there were three different triple-headers scheduled on the calendar.
The first one is approaching.
This weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix kicks off a three-week series. After the Spanish Grand Prix, the grid heads to the Red Bull Ring for the Austrian Grand Prix. This weekend adds an extra layer as the Austrian Grand Prix is one of six F1 sprint race weekends.
Following Austria, the grid heads to historic Silverstone, home of the British Grand Prix.
On top of the usual challenges that a single F1 week poses for teams and drivers, having three consecutive races over a period of three weeks adds even more hurdles – and potential problems – that the 10 teams will have to endure.
So fasten your seatbelts, there’s plenty of F1 action coming your way over the next three weeks.
Almost 33…?
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Photo: Chris Greisen/Getty Images
A year ago when the grid arrived in Barcelona, Aston Martin and Fernando Alonso were, in more ways than one, the talk of the F1 world. Aston Martin remains in second place In the constructors’ championship standings they are one point behind third-placed Mercedes, while Alonso himself is third, 12 points behind Sergio Pérez. As would be expected from his position, the veteran driver has been in good form, claiming five podiums from six starts.
The start of the 2023 season prompted a conversation: “Almost 33?” It was a rallying cry for Alonso as he desperately chased his 33rd Grand Prix win. As he arrived on the grid in Barcelona, hopes were high that he might claim that inevitable victory in front of his home crowd.
But the result of the 2023 Spanish Grand Prix was indicative of what was to come for Aston Martin in the closing stages a year ago, as Alonso finished seventh behind team-mate Lance Stroll and managed just three more podiums for the remainder of the year.
“I think sixth and seventh were our best results. I think we performed well in the qualifiers, so we need to think about why and try to bounce back for Canada,” A said.Ronso after the race“But we definitely got some points and there was no risk at the end of the race. I’d like to thank all the fans for their passion, energy and support this weekend. It was a very emotional and special experience for me.”
Canada was one of Alonso’s final three podiums in 2023, finishing second to Max Verstappen, but a 33rd victory remains elusive for the veteran driver.
Can he make something magical happen at home this weekend?
