After Red Bull cleared the field with F1 Drivers’ and Constructors’ World Championships in 2023, the big question at the start of the 2024 F1 schedule was whether any other team could challenge Red Bull driver Max Verstappen.
After Verstappen won seven of the first ten races of the 24-race Grand Prix calendar, the chances of any other team or driver taking the honors for 2024 didn’t look good. But that’s not how it worked out.
2024 F1 winners and losers
The Drivers
Max Verstappen did indeed win his fourth consecutive Drivers’ World Championship in 2024, but he was seriously challenged this year by McLaren driver Lando Norris. The Drivers’ title was decided at the Las Vegas Grand Prix when it became mathematically impossible for any other driver to beat Verstappen in championship points,
Verstappen’s winning streak faltered after the tenth race of the season, the Spanish Grand Prix, on June 23. Six other drivers, two each from McLaren, Ferrari, and Mercedes, came in first in 15 of this year’s Grand Prix. Notably, Verstappen’s Red Bull teammate, Sergio Perez, was the only driver in the top four teams who did not win a Grand Prix this season.
The table below tells much of the 2024 F1 season story, directly for drivers and indirectly for the top four teams. In addition to their finishing position in individual Grand Prix, drivers can also earn Championship points in Sprint races and for recording the fastest lap during a race (if they also finish in the top ten positions).
| Driver position | Driver | Team | Grand Prix wins | 2nd place finishes | 3rd place finishes | Drivers’ Championship points |
| 1 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | 9 | 4 | 1 | 437 |
| 2 | Lando Norris | McLaren | 4 | 6 | 3 | 374 |
| 3 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 3 | 3 | 7 | 356 |
| 4 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren | 2 | 4 | 2 | 292 |
| 5 | Carlos Sainz | Ferrari | 2 | 2 | 5 | 290 |
| 6 | George Russell | Mercedes | 2 | 0 | 2 | 245 |
| 7 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 2 | 1 | 2 | 223 |
| 8 | Sergio Perez | Red Bull | 0 | 3 | 1 | 152 |
The Teams
Red Bull did not repeat its 2022 and 2023 Constructors’ Championship victories. McLaren won the Constructors’ title, benefitting from strong finishes from both Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri. Ferrari was in second place at the season’s end, Red Bull was third, and Mercedes finished fourth.
The table below lists the Constructors’ World Championship points for all ten F1 teams.
| 2024 Constructor Standings | Team | Points |
| 1 | McLaren | 666 |
| 2 | Ferrari | 652 |
| 3 | Red Bull | 589 |
| 4 | Mercedes | 468 |
| 5 | Aston Martin | 94 |
| 6 | Alpine | 65 |
| 7 | Haas | 58 |
| 8 | RB Honda | 46 |
| 9 | Williams | 17 |
| 10 | Kick Sauber | 4 |
Changes for F1 between seasons
Much of the news after the conclusion of the 2024 season concerned driver changes. Several teams are also changing ownership and their names in at least one case. RB Honda will be called Racing Bulls for the 2025 season.
The following is the F1 team’s driver roster for 2025. The teams are listed in their 2024 finishing position, and the drivers, when applicable, are listed in order of their 2024 points total.
| Team | Driver 1 | Driver 2 |
| McLaren | Lando Norris | Oscar Piastri |
| Ferrari | Charles Leclerc | Lewis Hamilton |
| Red Bull | Max Verstappen | Liam Lawson |
| Mercedes | George Russell | Kimi Antonelli |
| Aston Martin | Fernando Alonso | Lance Stroll |
| Alpine | Pierre Gasly | Jack Doohan |
| Haas | Estaban Ocon | Oliver Bearman |
| Racing Bulls | Yuki Tsunoda | Isack Hadjar |
| Williams | Carlos Sainz | Alex Albon |
| Kick Sauber | Nico Hulkenberg | Gabriel Bortoleto |
F1 outlook for 2025
Every team will update its cars for 2025, a process that happens yearly and multiple times during the season for most teams. Several teams will introduce their new cars early in 2025. However, the FIA F1 Technical Rules and Regulations require much more significant changes in the 2026 cars, the development of which officially starts January 1, 2025.
The competition in F1 will be lively among two groups of teams. McLaren, Ferrari, Red Bull, and Ferrari will continue to duke it out for the top starting and finishing positions in all 24 scheduled Grand Prix and six Sprint races on 2025.
In 2024, there was heated competition among the middle range of F1 teams. Aston Marting, Alpine, Hass, Racing Bulls, and Williams were all fighting to improve their positioning, which will continue in 2025. Kick Sauber is transitioning to an Audi works team (meaning an Audi factory team) in 2026, so it will be interesting to see how the team makes the most of 2025.
F1 in 2026
In 2026 the next generation F1 cars will have smaller tires, engines that run on biofuel and get a higher proportion of their power from electricity. DRS rules, the energy reclamation systems, and active aerodynamics will change.
There will likely be an additional team in 2026, as an F1 General Motors/Cadillac team has received conditional support from the FIA and F1. The new team will use Ferrari engines until it takes over with its engines by or before 2030. F1’s popularity is still growing fast, and additional countries are proposing to host the Grand Prix, which is lucrative for locations both during and after the events.
The 2026 F1 calendar is already set, but 2026 is still unpublished. The complex logistics of moving Formula 1 teams around the globe, including the cars, equipment, and large numbers of personnel, are challenging. F1 plans to cluster Grand Prix races on the same continent so teams don’t have to fly back and forth unnecessarily. The travel consolidation effort will help meet F1’s sustainability goals and lessen the strain on the drivers and teams.
