2024 F1 Hungarian GP review: Piastri new Iceman, Norris loyal, Verstappen ungrateful, Ferrari distant

07/21/2024 01:53 PM

Scuderia Ferrari was a protagonist in the beautiful Hungarian Grand Prix at the 4.381-kilometre Hungaroring in Budapest. Charles Leclerc, with an excellent performance, placed fourth, just off the podium, taking advantage of a good start, where he even got ahead of his Maranello teammate Carlos Sainz, who had a terrible start when the lights went out.

The first stint with the medium tires showed how the SF-24 struggled quite a bit with this type of compound in Budapest, while with the hards, especially Charles Leclerc in the middle stint, had a really excellent pace, often being the fastest on the track, even faster than Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton, who were fighting throughout the race until the contact caused by the super nervous three-time Formula 1 Dutch champion, who was described as “childish” from the pit box.

Sunday at the Hungaroring delivered a beautiful race, with Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris ahead of everyone. For the Australian McLaren driver, it was his first career victory, in his 35th Formula 1 appearance, after a spat between the British driver and the pit wall that lasted throughout the final stint because the Briton did not want to give up the position to his teammate in any way, only to do so demonstratively in the last three laps.

As for Ferrari, just like we mentioned, the medium tires were definitely not friendly on this Hungarian Sunday, and if there had been the possibility, the last stint would have been done with the hards, but the Maranello team had no more available, having used one during the first free practice session on Friday.

Charles Leclerc had an excellent pace, enough to take advantage of the clash between Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton, with the Dutchman definitely at fault and nervous from the first lap. There, the Monegasque immediately placed himself ahead of the Red Bull, taking a fourth position that moves the standings and especially sweetens a bit his dark period from which it seemed very difficult to emerge.

The one who disappointed at Ferrari was definitely Carlos Sainz, sixth, never really in the race due to a disastrous start that put him even behind Fernando Alonso’s Aston Martin. For this reason, the Spaniard lost valuable time in the very first laps to stay in contact with his Maranello teammate and the group fighting for the third podium position. A blemish then in an otherwise positive period for the Spanish driver.

Apart from Ferrari, the race at the Hungaroring was beautiful mainly from a strategic point of view, with many twists and disputes between drivers and pit walls. In particular, Max Verstappen and Lando Norris had quite a bit to argue with the pit wall about the strategic choices made in Budapest, so much so that post-race, we expect controversy, especially at Red Bull.

Max Verstappen indeed literally told the team off for the whole race, blaming them for messing up the strategies. The Dutchman then lost his temper, clashed with Lewis Hamilton after running very long, and had to settle for fifth place in the end, with Charles Leclerc thanking him.

We also expect a confrontation at McLaren for what happened between Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri: the Australian was first without problems until the last stint when they first called the Briton to the pits to cover a hypothetical undercut on Lewis Hamilton, then, two laps later, it was Osca Piastri’s turn for the stop. This put Lando Norris ahead of his teammate, and after about twenty laps of discussion with the pit wall, in a demonstrative way and on the straight, Lando Norris let his teammate pass, losing seven precious points in the 2024 Formula 1 world standings.

The situation could have been better handled at McLaren, by bringing Oscar Piastri in first and Lando Norris the lap after, to avoid frankly unnecessary controversy. It is noteworthy how Lando, in the middle of the discussion with the team, set fast laps to distance himself from the young Australian. Finally, a commendation to Lewis Hamilton, third, superb in his defense against Max Verstappen, on his 200th career podium.

What would you have done if you were in Lando Norris’s shoes? Was it right to let his teammate, who was disadvantaged by the strategy, pass, or would it have been more correct to push forward thinking about the possibility of the world title? These are questions that will accompany us for who knows how long, because the arguments are very valid on both sides. Let’s say that purely from a sporting and heartfelt perspective (which should never be overlooked), it was correct to recognize the supremacy of Oscar Piastri, while looking at the team’s interests, it would have been logical to favor Lando Norris. In any case, it was a triumph for McLaren, the Woking team of great champions – from Fittipaldi to Hunt, Lauda, Prost, Hakkinen – that had lost its way and now has returned to dominating thanks to the extraordinary management of a brilliant and reserved engineer like Andrea Stella, one of the many opportunities Ferrari did not understand and certainly did not value.

But returning to the topic that heated up the race and the aftermath, one must consider what lies beyond the track, which is a team discipline that must still be observed. From this perspective, hats off to Norris’s ethics, a driver who is overly generous, loyal, sincere in his feelings and behaviors, far removed (at least for now) from the ruthless hunger of many aces of all eras. Lando Norris followed Andrea Stella’s orders; at other times there hasn’t been the same correctness, just think of the most notorious case, Pironi-Villeneuve at Imola 1982. But it can also be argued that today, to climb the hierarchies, one must be ruthless and especially deaf to radio orders. That is, Verstappen knows that his main rival for the title is not a “bastard,” to use a term frequently used by drivers. This reassures him.

However, it must be noted that Norris was once again defeated by himself, by a disastrous start, by tension he cannot control at crucial moments. Had he started ahead, he would have won. He wasn’t capable of it and was punished. Lando was complicit in what McLaren decided. Conversely, Oscar Piastri deservedly won, destined for a great future at the wheel, as he is analytical, fast, intelligent, and above all, cool-headed. Cool like Kimi Raikkonen, with whom he shares a side of his character. Let’s say he is the new Ice Man coming from the hot Australian climate.

Then there is the second issue that still divides, concerning Max Verstappen, described by someone at Red Bull as “a child” for his unruly behavior during the race, for his arrogant conversations with the pit wall, for his glaring error in the attempt to overtake Hamilton that relegated him to fifth place. Red Bull has always given him a lot, but under stress, Max forgets it.

And Ferrari? Excellent with the hard tires, as we pointed out, much less so with the medium ones. Charles Leclerc achieved a fourth place that is the best possible with the SF24. He showed aggression and pace in the middle of the race: full marks. However, Carlos Sainz’s slower pace is a mystery. In any case, 20 seconds behind the winner is too much. The race is hard to judge, it’s better to wait for the more challenging test at Spa-Francorchamps next Sunday to understand where the Prancing Horse is really heading.

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