F1. Australia 2024 Review

By Aiden McLaughlin, Gavin Huet and Chelsea Wintle

Driver of the day

Aiden – It may have looked relatively comfortable, but when you consider Carlos Sainz had surgery for appendicitis a little over two weeks ago, his determination to get back in the seat in Melbourne was one thing, but to go ahead and end up winning was another. Have Ferrari kept the wrong driver in Charles Leclerc for 2025? Too early to say, but Sainz shouldn’t be struggling to get a seat elsewhere next year.

Gavin – Carlos Sainz of course. We all know he had his appendix out and had to miss Saudi Arabia with Oliver Bearman taking his place, but he was on fire all Saturday and put his car on the front row in P2 behind Max Verstappen who was looking out of sorts only to take P1 out of nowhere. And then he took advantage of a rare retirement for Max in the Red Bull, and by the end of the race had pulled out an almost 10 second gap before the George Russell crash in the second last lap effectively ended the race. For a driver looking for a new seat next year he is doing everything in his power to promote himself.

Chelsea – Carlos Sainz appeared to make a pretty smart overtake on Max Verstappen before it was revealed that Max’s car was literally on fire. That being said, he drove a cracker of a race, with his own teammate barely getting a look in, and finishing 2.6 seconds behind him. It was obviously refreshing to see a new face on the top step of the podium, but that shouldn’t take away from Sainz’s performance as it was – slick, consistent, and injury-defying. Who needs an appendix?

 

Moment of the weekend

Aiden – When smoke starting spilling from the rear of Max Verstappen’s Red Bull, all apart from the most ardent Max/Red Bull fans will have sat up in the realisation that it was game on. As impressive as their dominance has been over the last two years, it’s always good to have a new name on top of the podium, even if it’s only as a one off. The irony was that with Verstappen out, Sainz wasn’t seriously challenged during the race, with team-mate Charles Leclerc unable to find the pace to mount a meaningful challenge for top spot.

Gavin – The Red Bull of Max Verstappen bowing out to cheers from the Australian crowd. The first anyone knew of an issue was with Carlos suddenly taking the lead on lap 2 before a little bit of smoke from the rear of the Red Bull as Max desperately tried to get back into the pits. The crowd erupted (no doubt thinking hometown driver Oscar Piastri could get onto that podium) and suddenly the race came to life with the organisers probably having to scramble to find something other than the Dutch national anthem to play at the end. Apparently his right rear brakes were locked on right from the start of the race which ended with the flames and the very early retirement.

Chelsea – The roars that arose when Max Verstappen retired from the race were deafening. “We’ve got ourselves a race!” I messaged my compadres, and whether you’d argue we did or not, it showed just how desperately the fans have been wanting some variety. Second place goes to George Russell’s alarming final lap tumble, when he ramped up on his own loose tyre after being (seemingly) brake-checked by a cheeky Fernando Alonso. The desperation at which he called for a red flag was quite harrowing, and the six-second delay between impact and flag must have seemed like an eternity.

 

Hot take of the weekend

Aiden – Haas are on the way back! Kevin Magnussen started in P14 and Nico Hulkenberg P16 and they finished P10 and P9 respectively. It was the first time since the 2022 Austrian Grand Prix that the team have secured a double points-finish to put them seventh in the constructors’ championship. Maybe Guenther Steiner is better at the tv presenting stuff than being team principal.

Gavin – There have been so many false dawns over the last few years, and there will still be bad weekends to come, but Ferrari look like they are finally on the right path. No weird strategy calls, just cool and calm – reminded me of the current Red Bull team. Near the end of the race Carlos had pulled out a nearly 10 second gap (which did make me think maybe these cars really just do favour the driver out front more and Max has taken advantage of that) and was in total control with teammate Charles Leclerc in second place and not threatening in any way. I fully expect this statement to bite me in Japan.

Chelsea – We all love us a Daniel Ricciardo, but his gradual drop in optimism since joining Renault has been tough to watch. Lurking behind him, brandishing stubbies and a freshly-minted mullet, is Australia’s adopted son Valtteri Bottas, seemingly without a care in the world, having presumably relinquished all thoughts of a championship. We’ve got Valtteri’s gin, Valtteri’s butt, Valtteri making poker-faced larrikin videos with the locals… if Valtteri’s the new Daniel, then who is Daniel?

 

Cold take of the weekend

Aiden – Yuki Tsunoda is not only making life uncomfortable for his more high profile teammate Daniel Ricciardo, he will be ensuring there are more conversations about who sits next to Max Verstappen at Red Bull in 2025. Of course a certain Liam Lawson and now Carlos Saiz will also have something to say on that front but these are worrying times for the Australian.

Gavin – Whilst the Williams gamble of giving Alex Albon his team mates car that did not work is a worthy contender here, I think the biggest thing was that Sergio Perez is clearly not going to be in the Red Bull next season. He has two jobs – ensure Red Bull maximise their points haul, whilst protecting Max out front. With Max out of the race he should be out there at the front with all the points but no, he only managed 5th place after qualifying 3rd (and then being demoted three places for impeding the Haas of Nico Hulkenberg). That is just not good enough and everyone knows it, even team principal Christian Horner made noises about Carlos Sainz joining the team next year.

Chelsea – News agencies this week reported that if Sergio Perez doesn’t pick up his game by the time the teams get to Monaco, Liam Lawson could be suiting up in his place. I don’t see that happening, but Perez’s performance this weekend will be weighing on him – finishing behind both Ferraris and McLarens, and almost a full minute behind Sainz. The time for him to stake a long-term claim on that second Red Bull seat is almost behind him.

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