2024 Formula 1 Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix Highlights

Max Verstappen has returned to winning ways after missing out in Miami by taking victory in the 2024 Formula 1 Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix, with the Dutchman holding off an exciting late charge from Lando Norris.

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After Verstappen built up a solid lead in the early stages following a good launch from the pole position, the Red Bull star enjoyed a mostly serene drive around the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari until Norris’s McLaren began to close the gap from P2 as the race reached its latter stages.

A thrilling end to the event ensued as Norris continued to cut into Verstappen’s advantage, but a snap of oversteer seemed to take further life out of the McLaren driver’s ageing tyres, allowing the Red Bull to hold onto P1 by just 0.725s as the chequered flag was waved.

Despite looking to be on Norris’s tail in the fight for P2 earlier in the event, Charles Leclerc had to settle for the final podium position of third in front of Ferrari’s home fans, while Oscar Piastri claimed P4 in a solid drive for McLaren.

Carlos Sainz added to Ferrari’s points tally by claiming fifth place, ahead of Lewis Hamilton in a lonely sixth for Mercedes, followed by his teammate George Russell in seventh, who had made a surprise late pit stop for medium tyres, allowing him to claim the extra point for fastest lap.

Sergio Perez salvaged P8 for Red Bull after a difficult qualifying saw him start the race in P11, with Lance Stroll taking Aston Martin’s only points in ninth. Yuki Tsunoda rounded out the top 10 after a racy drive in the RB.

The Haas pair of Nico Hulkenberg and Kevin Magnussen followed in 11th and 12th, respectively, despite the former running in the top 10 earlier on and the latter engaging in a few battles to work his way through the field.

RB’s Daniel Ricciardo crossed the line in P13, dropping back from P9 on the grid, with the lead Alpine of Esteban Ocon following in P14 ahead of Kick Sauber’s Zhou Guanyu in P15.

Pierre Gasly ended the day in 16th place for Alpine, having been one of just two drivers to start the race on the soft tyre. Williams’ Logan Sargeant was just behind in 17th, while Valtteri Bottas rounded out the finishers in 18th place.

Fernando Alonso had spent much of the afternoon running near the rear of the pack in what has been a challenging weekend for the Spaniard. He retired his Aston Martin in the latter stages, classifying him in P19.

The only other retiree was Alex Albon, who was forced to retire his Williams earlier in the Grand Prix.

Mario Isola, Motorsport Director, Pirelli:

It was a close race, mostly, without any exhilarating moments, but it livened up towards the end as Norris closed on Verstappen. On an old-style track like Imola, overtaking has always been difficult, and this year was no exception. As predicted, a strategy based on a single stop was the quickest and was adopted by the majority, with the first stint run on the Medium and the second with the Hard. Both compounds worked quite well even though, especially at the front of the field, the drivers pushed practically all race long, with track temperatures oscillating between 43 and 50 °C, even if there were a few clouds overhead.

The predicted pit stop window proved accurate: those who stopped very early then found themselves struggling towards the end. Degradation was not very high because there were few signs of graining.

Let’s not forget the incredible atmosphere created by the passionate crowd at Imola. Their unwavering support and enthusiasm added an extra layer of excitement to the race, making it a memorable experience for the drivers and teams.

The day on the track:

Fifteen drivers lined up for the start on the Medium tyre. Three, Perez, Sargeant and Zhou opted for the Hard, while Alonso, starting from pit lane and Gasly, took a gamble on the Soft. As widely predicted, it was a one-stop race, with Medium and Hard as the favourite choices. Starting on the Softs did not pay off, and both drivers had to make an additional stop. With three laps to go, Aston Martin’s Spanish driver fitted another set of Softs, probably to set the fastest race lap, but this went to George Russell, who also made an extra stop on lap 52 with this in mind, thus bringing Mercedes the extra point.

The prize for the longest stint goes to Valtteri Bottas (Sauber), who is no stranger to this exercise. He completed 54 of his 62 laps on the C3, while Kevin Magnussen (Haas) and Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) topped the laps on the C4, extending the first stint to lap 37.

What’s next?

The European leg of the Formula 1 season is back in action immediately next week with another classic event, the Monaco Grand Prix. As in Imola, the two junior categories, Formula 2 and Formula 3, will also race on the streets of Monte Carlo.

2024 Formula 1 Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix Race Results

2024 Constructor Standings

Here are the team-by-team highlights:

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