Formula One 2024 Season Motor Sport

[Tom]

Formula 1 will scale new heights in 2024 with a record schedule length of 24 races for the first time.

China returns for the first time since 2019.

There will again be six Sprint weekends, at the Chinese, Miami, Austrian, United States, Sao Paulo and Qatar Grands Prix.

The 2024 Formula 1 schedule

February 21-23	Pre-season testing (Bahrain)
February 29-March 2	Bahrain Grand Prix
March 7-9	Saudi Arabian Grand Prix
March 22-24	Australian Grand Prix
April 5-7	Japanese Grand Prix
April 19-21	Chinese Grand Prix*
May 3-5	Miami Grand Prix*
May 17-19	Emilia Romagna Grand Prix
May 24-26	Monaco Grand Prix
June 7-9	Canadian Grand Prix
June 21-23	Spanish Grand Prix
June 28-30	Austrian Grand Prix*
July 5-7	British Grand Prix
July 19-21	Hungarian Grand Prix
July 26-28	Belgian Grand Prix
August 23-25	Dutch Grand Prix
August 30 – September 1	Italian Grand Prix
September 13-15	Azerbaijan Grand Prix
September 20-22	Singapore Grand Prix
October 18-20	United States Grand Prix*
October 25-27	Mexico City Grand Prix
November 1-3	Sao Paulo Grand Prix*
November 21-23	Las Vegas Grand Prix
November 29 – December 1	Qatar Grand Prix*
December 6-8	Abu Dhabi Grand Prix

2024 F1 Sprint events

Grand Prix	Venue	Date
China	Shanghai	April 19-21
Miami	Miami	May 3-5
Austria	Spielberg	June 28-30
United States	Austin	October 18-20
Brazil	Sao Paulo	November 1-3
Qatar	Lusail	November 29 - December 1

 

[Tom]

2024 field looks familiar, then that's because it is. The 20-driver grid that lines up in Bahrain on March 2 will be exactly the same as the one that finished the 2023 campaign in Abu Dhabi.
While such winter stability is highly unusual, don't expect that to last long-term given as many as 15 of the field are out of contract at the end of 2024.

Only Lewis Hamilton, George Russell, Lando Norris (all 2025), Oscar Piastri (2026) and Max Verstappen (2028) officially have deals in place beyond 2024 so far.

Red Bull
Max Verstappen (Contract until end of 2028)
Perhaps the most secure of all drivers on the grid as Verstappen and Red Bull's partnership currently looks like a match made in heaven.

With a title-winning car beneath him, the Dutchman has looked unstoppable and put pen to paper on a five-year extension in March 2022.

Sergio Perez (Contract until end of 2024)
With AlphaTauri confirming their line up, Perez's place is now as secure as Verstappen's, with rumours having swirled over his future despite his long-contracted status until the end of 2024.

Red Bull are sticking with their man having handed him a new contract shortly before the 2022 Monaco Grand Prix, which was won by the Mexican.

Mercedes
Lewis Hamilton (Contract until end of 2025)
Hamilton and Mercedes sure made us wait for it, but on the eve of the 2023 Italian Grand Prix, finally the announcement came that Hamilton will race on with the team under a deal running until the end of 2025.

George Russell (Contract until end of 2025)
In the same announcement, Mercedes also confirmed a contract extension of the same length for Hamilton's compatriot and team-mate Russell, meaning their line-up for F1 2024 and beyond is set.

Ferrari
Charles Leclerc (Contract until end of 2024)
Charles Leclerc committed his future to the Italian outfit in December 2019 with a staggering five-year deal that also tripled his pay, in what was the longest ever contract ever given to a Ferrari driver.

Leclerc and Ferrari will be hoping the Monégasque has at least one title come the end of his current deal.

Carlos Sainz (Contract until end of 2024)
The future of Ferrari is secured with Sainz having signed a new contract in the 2022 season following an impressive debut campaign with the team.

The deal, which the Spaniard signed in April 2022, is set to expire at the end of the 2024 season.

McLaren
Lando Norris (Contract until end of 2025)
After significant improvement year-on-year, Norris decided to commit his future to McLaren.

While others doubted his faith given McLaren's current standing, Norris was confident they were on course to achieve the goal he had set himself – winning races and fighting for World Championships.

Oscar Piastri (Contract until end of 2026)
Perhaps not wanting to have a repeat of the Alpine fiasco involving Piastri, McLaren gave him an initial two-year deal despite him being a rookie in the sport.

Having impressed on his first year in F1, the team gave him a new multi-year deal that will see him stay with McLaren until at least the end of 2026.

Aston Martin
Fernando Alonso (Contract until end of 2024)
In what could be the final contract of Alonso's incredible career, the Spaniard is set to race his final season in 2024 – but he may want to be put his retirement on hold if Aston Martin can continue to make great strides forward.

Lance Stroll (Rolling contract)
In regards to his Aston Martin stay, it's hard to say much more about Stroll than his dad owns the team but, well, his dad does own the team so expect to see the Canadian on the grid again in 2024.

Alpine
Esteban Ocon (Contract until end of 2024)
Ocon was rewarded for his upturn in form in 2021 when he was handed a three-year deal by Alpine with the French team showing their faith in him.

The security of Ocon has been a welcome tonic given the nature of the other seat at the team.

Pierre Gasly (Contract until end of 2024 season with option of one-year extension)
Gasly made the move from AlphaTauri to Alpine in 2022 after weeks of speculation and has secured his short-term future in the sport with a two-year deal.

There is also the option for a one-year extension should Gasly impress with the French outfit.

Williams
Logan Sargeant (Contract until end of 2024)
The seat Logan Sargeant occupied was the last to be decided upon, with Williams team principal James Vowles giving him every opportunity to impress for the remainder of 2023. He did enough to keep his seat for another year, meaning the F1 2024 grid will be rookie-free.

Alex Albon (Contract until end of 2024)
The Thai-British driver impressed enough in his first season back in the sport that Williams rewarded him with a new deal through until the end of the 2024 season.

His 2023 team-mate Logan Sargeant will be hoping to join him but currently, his deal is limited to solely his rookie season.

AlphaTauri
Daniel Ricciardo (Contract until end of 2024) Despite his audition being sidetracked by a broken hand, AlphaTauri have confirmed Daniel Ricciardo will be one of their two 2024 drivers, and he's "stoked".

Yuki Tsunoda (Contract until end of 2024)
Yuki Tsunoda is the second car next season, which will mark his fourth year with the Red Bull junior team.

And it's all to play for the teammates with a possible 2025 Red Bull seat up for grabs.

Sauber
Valtteri Bottas (Contract until end of 2024)
In what will be the first season without Alfa Romeo as their partner, Sauber, will have the comforting and familiar presence of Bottas in their car.

It is also a comforting position for the Finn having signed a multi-year deal with the team in 2021 instead of the usual one-year deals he was given at his previous team Mercedes.

Zhou Guanyu (Contract until end of 2024)
Having kept his nose clean during his second season in the sport, as well as providing performances of a similar level to the more experienced Bottas, it's no surprise that Sauber have opted for continuity for 2024 by keeping Zhou Guanyu onboard.

Audi's influence on the team will soon kick in, will things remain as amicable between Zhou and Bottas as the allure of a factory drive with the German marque becomes a more tangible future?

Haas
Kevin Magnussen (contract until end of 2024)
In need of a driver on short notice after the sacking of Nikita Mazepin prior to the start of 2022, Kevin Magnussen was drafted back into Formula 1 – and he has seen his stay extended for a third year, with a new deal until 2024.

Nico Hulkenberg (contract until end of 2024)
Haas have opted to stick with the devils they know and retain both Kevin Magnussen and Nico Hulkenberg for the F1 2024 season. Having trialled two rookies in seasons past with Mick Schumacher and Nikita Mazepin, the American outfit are seeing the true value of working with experienced drivers.

 

[Tom]

The 2024 F1 regulation changes include

• Raising floor edges by 15mm or 25mm
• Raising the diffuser throat height
• Increasing the diffuser edge stiffness
• Mandating an additional sensor to more effectively monitor the porpoising phenomenon
• Applying more stringent lateral floor deflection tests
• Introducing a more accurate sensor to help quantify aerodynamic oscillations and police them more effectively

 

[Tom]

Pirelli have already confirmed their tyre selections for the first races of the F1 2024 season.

Along with it comes the confirmation that they will be dropping back to five dry compounds next season too, with C1-C5 being the choices of slick tyres available to the tyre manufacturer next year.

The C0 tyres – the hardest available in 2023 – were not used at all in the season, so Pirelli have decided to drop the compound for the F1 2024 campaign.

Pirelli confirmed their tyre choices for the first three rounds of the 2024 season.

The Bahrain Grand Prix will use the hardest C1, C2 and C3 compounds as the hard, medium and soft respectively to cope with the higher demands on wear around Sakhir.

A week later, the tyres will get a step softer in Saudi Arabia as the C2, C3 and C4 are used as the hard, medium and soft around Jeddah, before the same happens again and the C3, C4 and C5 tyres are used in Australia.

 

[Son Of Jack]

No new driver for 2024 season. Is that the first time that has happened?

 

[Franco Pinion]

No new driver for 2024 season. Is that the first time that has happened?

I cant remember the last time it happened, if ever, some research is needed

 

[Son Of Jack]

Guenther Steiner has officially left Haas. Unless he gets another F1 job I do hope Sky pick him up. He's very knowledgeable and entertaining.

 

[Tom]

Guenther Steiner has officially left Haas. Unless he gets another F1 job I do hope Sky pick him up. He's very knowledgeable and entertaining.

Seen reports saying he was relieved of duty, so sacked?

 

[Son Of Jack]

Seen reports saying he was relieved of duty, so sacked?

Yeah, apparently he wanted to go in a different direction compared to Gene Haas. I imagine that direction was Guenther wanted to spend money, and Gene didn't.

 

[Black Sheep]

Madrid will replace Barcelona as host of the Spanish Grand Prix from 2026.

The race will run on a new 5.47km (3.399-mile) circuit around the Ifema exhibition centre between the Spanish capital and Barajas airport.

Formula 1, which is aiming to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2030, says it will be "one of the calendar's most accessible races".

A statement said 90% of fans would be able to travel to the race via public transport on metro and train lines.

The deal, which runs until 2035, means Madrid will be host of the country's grand prix for the first time since 1981, when the Jarama circuit, 20 miles north of the capital, last held the event.

It has been held at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya since 1991, and was at Jerez in Andalucia from 1986-1990. The Spanish Grand Prix was first held in 1913, making it one of the oldest races.

F1 remains in discussions with Barcelona about the future and the possibility remains for it to host a race in addition to Madrid, F1 president and chief executive officer Stefano Domenicali said.

The new Madrid track, which will have 20 corners, will incorporate both street-circuit and road-course sections, F1 said.

They are ruining F1 so much. No-one wants street circuits, and it's becoming the standard race setup