Max Verstappen made it back-to-back wins by holding off Lando Norris in Barcelona, however the Spanish Grand Prix offered some promising indicators that this season won’t be a one-man present.
Crash.internet F1 editor Lewis Larkam rounds up his takeaways from being on the bottom on the tenth spherical of the 2024 season…
Can self-critical Lando Norris mount title problem?
Norris could have been unable to transform his second-ever pole place into victory in Spain, and suffered his second straight defeat to Verstappen, however the McLaren driver has been a relentless thorn within the Dutchman’s facet of late.
Since beating Verstappen to assert his maiden grand prix win in Miami, Norris has completed second to the Crimson Bull driver on three events previously 4 races. The 24-year-old Briton’s consistency has seen him leapfrog Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc into second place on this planet championship, 69 factors behind Verstappen.
With 14 races nonetheless to run, can Norris problem Verstappen for the F1 world title this yr?
“I believe so,” Norris replied when requested that very query, earlier than conceding: “I ought to have achieved higher in the present day. We must always have gotten some factors again on Max. Probably there was an opportunity to beat him in Canada. Two races that I completed second and he’s received.
Lando Norris was annoyed with himself after failing to win
“However Max must cease successful. Despite the fact that I’ve moved into second within the championship, that doesn’t matter, I couldn’t care if I used to be second or tenth. It’s extra in regards to the hole to what Max is, and he’s nonetheless extending it.
“I can’t afford to let him run away with it. If I simply made some higher selections in Canada, and if I had made a greater begin in the present day, we’d have received two races.
“I do know there’s all the time been a number of shoulda, woulda, coulda’s however we have now what it takes; it’s nearly placing all of it collectively.”
Does McLaren now have the quickest automotive?
Norris fell lower than a second shy of victory at Imola, and trailed Verstappen by simply two seconds in Spain as he mounted one other late cost.
Taking pole on advantage in Barcelona additional underlined the energy of McLaren’s MCL38, which Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz reckons is now the very best bundle in F1.
“I believe actually, probably the most constant automotive proper now could be a McLaren,” Sainz stated.
“I believe Crimson Bull are struggling in sure tracks. Identical as us. McLaren is fast all over the place. They’re fast in low-speed. They’re flat in flip three and 9. They had been quickest in flip 5.
“So I simply do not see McLaren having any weak spot proper now. For me, Crimson Bull remains to be up there. However McLaren is fast all over the place, which is kind of spectacular.”
It’s a view shared by Mercedes boss Toto Wolff, who believes McLaren and Crimson Bull are the 2 groups at the moment setting the benchmark in F1.
“The McLaren appeared very fast. How fast, I don’t know? I believe that Max all the time has a bit bit within the pocket and may make the distinction,” he stated.
“Undoubtedly these two in the intervening time, there may be not quite a bit between them however these two, however they’re positively setting the benchmark.”
Stress brewing at Ferrari?
Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz make contact at Flip 1
Issues bought a bit heated between the Ferrari drivers as they got here to blows in Sunday’s Spanish Grand Prix.
The pair made contact at Flip 1 when Carlos Sainz swooped across the outdoors of Charles Leclerc, whose entrance wing ended up clipping the Spaniard’s rear proper wheel, forcing him to take to the escape street.
Leclerc in the end completed forward of Sainz in fourth however the duo pointed the finger at one another after the race and had been seen having a tense dialogue in parc ferme.
Leclerc instructed Sainz “needed to impress at his house race” together with his F1 future unsure as he continues to seek for a drive after shedding his seat to Lewis Hamilton. Sainz retorted: “it’s too many instances that after the race he [Leclerc] complains about one thing.”
However Ferrari workforce principal Frederic Vasseur was fast to downplay discuss of growing rigidity between Leclerc and Sainz as he pointed to feelings all the time being excessive within the fast aftermath of a race.
“Allow us to talk about and never to attract a conclusion after the primary remark of the driving force when he jumped out of the automotive,” he stated.
The place does Sergio Perez go from right here?
Sergio Perez in parc ferme after one other disappointing race
Sergio Perez arrived in Barcelona acknowledging he wanted a robust efficiency to appropriate his latest kind slide, however he didn’t ship one.
It was one other underwhelming show from the Mexican on a weekend his teammate claimed yet one more win – his seventh from 10 races. Against this, Perez is but to face on the highest step of the rostrum this season, and has solely reached the podium on 4 events.
Whereas Perez did make Q3 for the primary time in 4 appearances, he may solely set the eighth-fastest time and was considerably slower than Verstappen, who took second. That was earlier than a three-place grid drop pushed him again to eleventh on the grid.
Crimson Bull opted for a three-stop technique for Perez, who handed Pierre Gasly’s Alpine late on to salvage eighth, however he nonetheless completed nearly a minute behind Verstappen.
Crimson Bull could have prolonged their benefit in each world championships regardless of Perez’s outcome, as workforce principal Christian Horner was fast to level out, although he did admit that Verstappen is making the distinction on the minute.
“We’d like Checo within the combine. He is aware of that and the workforce is aware of that,” Horner stated. “Checo within the first 4 to 5 races this yr was improbable. We simply must get him again into that headspace.
“I believe that he’s had a few tough races, and issues haven’t gone his means. He’s a confidence pushed driver I believe. He’s again within the factors right here, drove a good race, so hopefully he’ll take some confidence out of that for the approaching races.”
Alpine enhance as Flavio Briatore returns
The controversial Flavio Briatore has returned to workforce Enstone
The return of controversial determine Flavio Briatore to F1 with Alpine was one of many greatest storylines of the weekend in Barcelona.
74-year-old Briatore was handed a lifetime ban from F1 for his function in overseeing the so-called ‘Crashgate’ scandal on the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix, however this was later overturned by the FIA on enchantment.
The appointment positioned the highlight on Alpine and noticed workforce principal Bruno Famin come beneath scrutiny for his unwavering defence of Briatore’s comeback.
On-track, it was a much more encouraging weekend for the struggling French producer following a woeful begin to the season.
Gasly transformed a formidable qualifying lap into ninth place, forward of teammate Esteban Ocon who accomplished a double-points end to elevate Alpine as much as seventh within the constructors’ standings.
