The third round of the 2024 Formula 1 World Championship kicked off on Sunday with the Australian Grand Prix, a race in which Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen for once was not the dominant driver.
It started like any other race, with Verstappen leading from the start, but then his car suffered some glitches and Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz, who missed the drive in Saudi Arabia due to appendicitis surgery, was able to take advantage. First to cross the baseline and followed strongly by his teammate Charles Leclerc.
Despite withdrawing from the Australian round, Verstappen remains at the top of the standings and is still by far the reason to beat. The young Dutchman, who is aiming for his fourth consecutive title, set two records last season: the most wins in a single season with 19 and the most consecutive wins in a season with 10. While the 2024 season will host a record 24 races, more records are possible to fall if Verstappen’s dominance resumes.
His Red Bull teammate Sergio Pérez finished second in the first two races, but fifth in Australia, partly due to a qualifying grid penalty that caused him to start in the middle of the pack.
Like Perez, Sainz and Leclerc have been fighting for the podium, but they are still Verstappen. McLaren is close to Ferrari in terms of performance. Drivers Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris also battled for the podium.
On the other hand, Mercedes-Benz AMG failed to deliver on its promises. The team, consisting of drivers George Russell and Lewis Hamilton, struggled with the car in high-speed corners. In Australia, Hamilton was forced to retire due to powertrain problems. and Russell also couldn’t finish due to an accident.
Below is the 2024 F1 Constructors’ Championship standings:
Below are the race winners of the 2024 F1 season: