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5 things that made 2024 Hungarian Grand Prix worth watching

McLaren achieved the best result in an unsavory manner

Oscar Piastri had a better start than Lando Norris. PHOTO FROM FORMULA 1

It seems like McLaren is the top dog in Formula 1 now that it has the fastest car. After Silverstone, six different drivers have won a race this season. And another one has been added to the list of winners after the race in Budapest. Here are 5 things that made the 2024 Hungarian Grand Prix worth watching.

Qualifying couldn't have been better for McLaren. PHOTO FROM FORMULA 1

1. McLaren locked out the front row in qualifying. One of the things we can learn from qualifying is that it shows who is the fastest over a single lap on the track. In this case, there was no doubt that McLaren had the quickest car with Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri in P1 and P2, respectively. The two drivers were only separated by 0.022 second, while Max Verstappen (Red Bull) was down in P3, 0.046 second off from pole position.

Max Verstappen thought he was intentionally forced off the track. PHOTO FROM FORMULA 1

2. Mad Max had a miserable race. If qualifying wasn’t bad enough for Verstappen, the race only got worse for him as it progressed. Going into the first corner on the first lap, the Red Bull driver had to go off track to avoid contact with Norris, who was also trying to avoid his teammate on the inside. However, he gained an unfair advantage by overtaking Lando outside the circuit. He eventually returned the place on Lap 4, but not without complaining about being forced off the track.

Instead of challenging Norris for P2, Verstappen contended with Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes-AMG) for P3 throughout the race. A failed overtake attempt on Lap 35 resulted in the Red Bull driver understeering and going off the track. He didn’t like the car, nor was he fond of his team’s strategy, and everyone could hear this with his profanity-laced exchanges on the radio.

Had the collision not happened, perhaps Verstappen could have finished on the podium. PHOTO FROM FORMULA 1

The lowest point of his race was on Lap 63 when he collided with Hamilton after carrying too much speed into Turn 1 and locking up. Even his race engineer was fed up at that point. “I’m not even going to get into a radio fight with the other teams, Max,” said Gianpiero Lambiase. “We’ll let the stewards do their thing. It’s childish on the radio. Childish.”

Interestingly, Verstappen wasn’t penalized so he kept his P5 finish behind Hamilton and Charles Leclerc (Ferrari). Although he couldn’t have done anything about his car’s lack of pace, perhaps he wouldn’t have been as cranky if he didn’t stay up all night sim-racing.

Red Bull can't afford any more of Sergio Perez's mistakes. PHOTO FROM FORMULA 1

3. Sergio Perez and George Russell played catch-up. These drivers found themselves out of position after a poor qualifying session. Sergio Perez (Red Bull) crashed in Q1, leaving him with a time good only for P16. Meanwhile, George Russell (Mercedes-AMG) failed to set a proper time amid a drying track, leaving him behind Perez in P17.

The two started on the hard tires and set out on tough recovery drives on a track known for high tire degradation and difficult overtaking. The race ended with Perez in P7 and Russell in P8, ahead of the midfield but behind those on the top teams.

Lewis Hamilton didn't have any drama unlike the drivers around him. PHOTO FROM MERCEDES-AMG

4. Lewis Hamilton got his 200th podium finish. Coming off his victory in the last race, Lewis had a decent weekend. Although he qualified in P5, he got the jump over Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) at the start. After the McLaren drivers sped off into the distance, Verstappen was the closest rival to go racing with.

The Dutchman was hot-headed, yet the seven-time world champion kept his cool throughout the race. Lewis felt that he pitted too early, leaving him vulnerable to Verstappen later on. But the Red Bull driver took himself out in their collision on Lap 63. Hamilton ended the race in P3 with a new record of 200 podium finishes.

McLaren promised Oscar that Lando would give back the position. PHOTO FROM FORMULA 1

5. Things heated up within McLaren. The irony with F1 is that although it is a team sport, there can only be one race winner. And the politics behind this has never been more apparent. With both of its drivers in the front row, it seemed like McLaren had a comfortable win in the bag. However, with everything that ensued, the victory was anything but sweet.

Lando started on pole, but a bad launch resulted in him losing the lead to Oscar, who then proceeded to build a sizable gap from his teammate. That diminished later when Piastri had a minor slipup on Lap 33. To supposedly cover off Hamilton, McLaren had Norris pit on Lap 46 ahead of his teammate, who went in on Lap 48. This conveniently allowed Lando to get ahead of Oscar.

“Okay, Lando, Oscar has just pitted,” said race engineer Will Joseph. “We’d like to reestablish the order at your convenience.”

Lando was seconds ahead of Piastri, and with Max pitting on Lap 50, the McLaren drivers were now 1-2 with Norris ahead. Things began heating up, not just on the track but over the radio as the race engineer pleaded with Lando to give up the lead—something no racing driver would ever gladly do.

Giving up the race win wasn't easy for Lando. PHOTO FROM FORMULA 1

At first, the messages were about tire management as it seemed that Norris was pushing hard to get away from Piastri. But the tone changed, and we heard messages like these:

“Just remember every single Sunday morning meeting we have.”

“I am trying to protect you, mate. I promise, I am trying to protect you.”

“The way to win a championship is not by yourself. It’s with the team. You’re going to need Oscar, and you’re going to need the team.”

On Lap 68 with two laps remaining, Norris backed off and gave the lead back to his teammate. The two then secured a 1-2 finish for McLaren with Piastri now an F1 Grand Prix winner.

Lando and Lewis did not have a pleasant exchange at the cooldown room. PHOTO FROM FORMULA 1

To an ordinary spectator, it looked like McLaren had deprived Norris—who’s trying to challenge for the title—of a well-deserved win. But it seems there’s more than meets the eye. Search around on forum discussions, and the logic is this: To keep things fair and peaceful within the team, the two drivers agreed that whoever was ahead gets priority with the pit strategy.

However, although Oscar was in the lead in the earlier part of the race, he had to concede with the team’s decision to have Lando pit earlier than him (which is the preferable strategy on a track like the Hungaroring).

Once everything was clear, Norris refused to give up the lead. That’s why his race engineer pleaded with him to reconsider, since his long-term relationship with the team and Oscar was at stake. Does this sound plausible to you?

In the end, McLaren achieved the best result in an unsavory manner. The next race will be the 2024 Belgian Grand Prix on July 28 (9pm, Philippine time). Do you think we’ll be seeing more drama at Spa Francorchamps?



Leandro Mangubat

Leandro is our staff writer. Although having a background in mechanical engineering, he enjoys photography and writing more.



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