Undercutters Ep3: F1 2024 Top 10 Memorable Moments (transcript)
If you want to get in touch with feedback then you can find me on Twitter at MorrisF1 or you can comment at morrisf1.blogspot.com. The blog is where I’ll put up any graphics related to the various podcasts, but as there will be fewer stats and more opinion here than previously there will be fewer graphs for this particular episode.
I want to stress that these moments are not in any sort of order, and include both good and bad examples of things that really stuck in my mind. We’ve been lucky with F1 in 2024, and there were plenty of contenders for the top 10. We’re going to kick off in Italy.
Moment 1
Ferrari Outwit McLaren in Monza
Ferrari strategy can often lead to weary groans from the Tifosi, well aware that the Prancing Horse can sometimes be its own worst enemy. However, this year they’ve mostly been sharp. Yes, they’ve had some iffy calls, such as sending Leclerc out on hard tyres in the Canadian rain, or not pitting Sainz at the final race in Abu Dhabi to try and pressurise Norris into an error, but in 2024 they’ve generally been good at extracting the best possible results from weekends.
Monza saw a return to smart Ferrari strategy and their first win since Monaco, which was just over three months earlier. McLaren, their rival for the win that weekend, followed the approach most of the field took and had a pair of pit stops. Ferrari put both their drivers on a single stop. For Sainz, this didn’t work out. The McLarens were very quick late on and his tyres were too worn to hold onto their pace, putting him down in 4th. However, Leclerc managed his tyres to perfection, enabling the Monegasque to hold onto 1st and win a great victory in front of Ferrari’s home crowd. By the flag he was just 2.6s ahead of Piastri.
This wasn’t just a combination of strategic cunning and driving excellence, it also highlights why Norris found it so hard to narrow the gap to Verstappen. The Dutchman finished a few places lower down, in 6th to Norris’ 3rd, but it could’ve been much worse for the reigning champion. Norris had been passed by Piastri early on and the loss of momentum also allowed Leclerc to get ahead. In the end, these two finished in front of Norris at a race he might easily have won. A strong team mate and competition from Ferrari made life harder than it might have been.
Moment 2
McLaren’s Radio Pleading in Hungary
Ferrari’s strategic cunning in Monza can be nicely contrasted with the bad call McLaren made in Budapest in July. The Hungarian Grand Prix was psychologically fascinating as it involved somehow turning a McLaren 1-2 into a needlessly stressful situation.
How did they do this?
Well, Piastri was leading with Norris a few seconds behind. The team was worried about Norris losing out to Verstappen and pitted him first. This meant they undercut Piastri, who came out of the pits in 2nd. Cue much pleading and guilt-tripping on the radio to Norris, practically begging him to let Piastri through. McLaren’s strategic approach had led to this bizarre, awkward situation.
In the end, he did let Piastri through for the Australian’s first win. But it still felt very uncomfortable, a strange outcome entirely down to McLaren’s defensive approach and a self-inflicted problem.
Moment 3
Verstappen’s Brazil Masterclass
No prizes for guessing this was going to make an appearance. Verstappen’s wet weather victory was a champion’s drive and effectively won him the title. Brazil was incredibly wet this year, causing numerous crashes and errors from even experienced drivers.
Verstappen was flying throughout the race, passing with ease even drivers like Piastri who had every incentive to make life difficult for the Red Bull. It is true he had a little good luck when the red flag came out when it did, but in conditions like that such a turn of events was always possible. His win at Interlagos in November was his first since June and between Norris’ 6th place finish and the extra point for fastest lap, of which he set numerous in a row, Verstappen increased his title lead by 18 points. The championship would be formally concluded at the next race in Las Vegas, but it was Brazil that really sealed the deal.
Going from 17th to win is a rare thing, and doing it in atrocious weather is even more impressive. Visibility is dire, and the necessity to pass multiple cars meant Verstappen was repeatedly in close contact with others in treacherous conditions. For many people, this will be the single most memorable moment of the 2024 F1 season.
Moment 4
Stroll Drives into a Gravel Trap
Sticking with Brazil, we come to Lance Stroll’s magical moment. Going off on the formation lap is always embarrassing but in torrential rain it is a forgiveable error. It hadn’t been a great season for Stroll anyway, being outclassed by Alonso again and driving into the back of Ricciardo under the safety car in China.
But it was very wet in Brazil so a spin on the formation lap can be forgiven. Except he then decided to drive into a gravel trap. These gravel traps are pretty tough to escape from, so going into one is not a good idea. Stroll’s tomfoolery led to an aborted start, delaying the race by 17 minutes.
This isn’t his first rodeo. Stroll has competed in 167 races, at the time of writing. A rookie would feel a bit silly making such a mistake. For a veteran, it’s unbelievably stupid. This year, Aston Martin were able to achieve 5th in the Constructors’ as best of the rest, thanks to Alonso and the car’s early performances. If things get more competitive in 2025 then having Stroll in the second car could cost them.
Moment 5
Hamilton Returns to Winning Ways
Lewis Hamilton has more podium finishes than Stroll has races, with 202 top 3 results for the Briton. It’s not so long ago he was winning race after race, and with 105 wins he’s the most successful driver of all time. Hamilton winning in the UK might seem pretty humdrum but it was the first one for a little while.
He qualified on the front row, right behind Russell, who had won the previous race. Russell was passed by Hamilton and then the younger man’s hopes were later dashed by a reliability failure. In the varying wet conditions it seemed at times the Mercedes was faster and other times the McLaren had the edge. As the rain intensified, Hamilton was passed by both McLarens. Heavier rain meant new tyres were needed, and the Briton was helped by McLaren keeping Piastri out rather than double-stacking, putting the Aussie out of contention for the win or podium.
Norris was leading, Hamilton behind, and the rain was easing. It was Hamilton who pitted first for soft tyres, and his smart call gave him the edge. When Norris boxed, he emerged to find himself behind Hamilton. Verstappen passed Norris, and was closing but could not catch Hamilton.
It was Hamilton’s 9th win in the UK, but his first victory since 2021. It also made it back-to-back wins for Mercedes in a highly competitive 2024 season.
Moment 6
The Qatar Wing Mirror Incident
From an epic high to a farcical low, we come to Qatar. The race was fairly mediocre due to the shortened DRS making passing pretty difficult and there being only one real overtaking spot on the circuit. This changed when Albon’s wing mirror fell, broke away and landed on the straight. It was technically off the racing line but was right where a car would be if it were attempting an overtake.
This was a major problem. The fact it was by the pit exit wasn’t ideal either. The officials decided double waved yellows was the right move. Just about everyone in the world disagreed, but they’re the ones who get to decide. Naturally, this led to disaster, with Bottas going over the mirror and spreading debris all over the track. Punctures were suffered by Sainz and Hamilton, while Norris earned himself a stop-and-go penalty for speeding under double waved yellows.
The decision seemed inexplicable at the time, and still does. A VSC would’ve disadvantaged very few, maybe only Russell. While this did make a somewhat tedious race far more interesting, the choice officials made won’t exactly bolster flagging faith in their abilities to make the right call.
Moment 7
Belgium’s Fantastic Finale
For a neutral, one of the most exciting race finales was at the Belgian Grand Prix. Three drivers were covered by a couple of seconds, with Russell desperately trying to fend off the clearly faster Hamilton, and Piastri right behind the pair of them. On the track, less than 1.2s covered the whole podium as they crossed the line.
In a move similar to Leclerc at Monza, Russell was the only one of the top runners who attempted to make a one stop work. This gave him track position at the expense of less pace late on, and Spa is a track where passing is eminently possible. He defended brilliantly to keep the very fast Hamilton behind, while Hamilton had his work cut out, chasing down Russell while also having to be very aware that Piastri was hunting both Mercedes.
While it’s true Russell was subsequently disqualified for being underweight on fuel, at the time the finish was fantastic. Even with his disqualification, Mercedes racked up another win in this mid-season purple patch for the Silver Arrows.
Moment 8
Alpine’s Surge to 6th
Ok, this isn’t actually a single moment, but Alpine rising from 9th to 6th in the Constructors’, overtaking Williams, RB, and Haas in the process, happened in just four races. The graph showing RB, Haas, and Alpine’s points at various stages in the season is one that shows just how remarkable the late surge of Alpine was.
There were a few key parts to this success, some good fortune but also great performances. In Brazil, in the soaking rain, neither Ocon nor Gasly put a foot wrong to secure the unlikeliest of double podium results. Vegas was pointless for the team, but in Qatar Gasly was able to hold onto 5th to earn a crucial 10 more points. Abu Dhabi saw the Hulkenberg penalty put the Haas driver behind rather than ahead of the Alpine of Gasly, and this may have been enough to make the difference. Gasly finished ahead of Hulkenberg, confirming Alpine as 6th.
The close competition made the development race more critical than ever this year. Red Bull lost their early advantage first to Ferrari and McLaren, then to Mercedes at some circuits. Aston Martin went from clearly top of the midfield to hanging onto their early points advantage. RB started well but lost out to Haas and then Alpine. Alpine’s dreadful form suddenly turning around near the end of the season was very unexpected and added another contest that went down to the wire in Abu Dhabi.
Moment 9
Sainz’s Australian Victory
The Australian Grand Prix was unusual for a few things. It was the only race in the first five which didn’t see a Red Bull double podium, it saw a rare Verstappen DNF, and it saw Carlos Sainz return after missing the previous race weekend for surgery to remove his appendix.
The Spaniard was evidently full of beans, because even when Verstappen was in the race Sainz looked fast enough to win on merit anyway. When Verstappen entered the pits to retire his car, it seemed Sainz was destined for victory. And so it proved, with the rejuvenated Ferrari driver leading Leclerc to a 1-2 for the Prancing Horse, with Norris in 3rd.
Sainz did his prospects of landing a good seat next year a lot of good, or so it seemed at the time. But in the end, even with Perez leaving Red Bull and a vacant seat at Mercedes, there was no room at the inn for the Spanish driver. I think he’s underrated, and hopefully either Williams can return to the sharp end sooner than expected, or Sainz gets picked up by a top team, because he should not be driving a car that finished 9th in 2024.
And, as many have observed, this will make the 2025 Williams driver lineup the first in F1 history to have no appendices at all.
And just before the final moment here are some honourable mentions:
Bearman the Super Sub in Saudi Arabia (and then Azerbaijan)
Hulkenberg’s 6th in Austria and the UK
Qatar: Zhou points and Perez burning out his clutch after spinning to DNF himself
Moment 10
Leclerc’s Lap 1 in Abu Dhabi
Leclerc started in 19th at Abu Dhabi, thanks to a combination of poor qualifying and a 10 place grid penalty. This initially made it seem like the Constructors’ was guaranteed for McLaren, who had secured a 1-2 on the grid, but his amazing 11 overtakes on lap 1 combined with Piastri being sent down the order courtesy of Verstappen’s clumsy lunge meant the title race became awfully close.
Off the line he started well and had made three overtakes by the time the first corner arrived. Naturally, Leclerc then cruised past Verstappen and Piastri for another couple of places, and Zhou Guanyu went off-track for another easy gain. Hamilton had a faceful of dirty air, compromising his speed and enabling Leclerc to make an early pass on someone who might’ve been trickier to overtake. At turn 5, Leclerc passed Stroll, and he overtook four squabbling cars at the end of first straight to pass Perez, Bottas, Magnussen, and Lawson. This put him into 8th by the middle of the first lap.
Yes, he benefited from some others making errors, but most of this was down to skill, not luck. Leclerc’s opening lap was the most impressive of the entire season and he eventually dragged himself from 19th to 3rd, making the title race rather tenser for McLaren fans than it might have been.
And that wraps up this podcast, the F1 2024 season content, and the year. Thank you all for listening. In the New Year I’ll be looking at the driver pairings for F1 in 2025 and predicting who will come out on top in every team. If you enjoyed this podcast please leave a review, it’s really helpful, and any comments on social media, whether at MorrisF1 on Twitter or morrisf1.blogspot.com, are great too.
I hope you all have a very happy New Year.
Morris
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