Formula 1 racing without rivalry is bound to get boring, simply because of the nature of the sport where one driver or team keeps dominating. That is exactly what Max Verstappen did in his Red Bull in 2022 and 2023 after an epic title showdown with Lewis Hamilton in 2021. But 2024 received a fresh whiff of air with Britain’s Lando Norris providing a stiff challenge to Verstappen, before the Dutchman eventually clinched his fourth drivers’ title with McLaren clinching their first constructors’ title since 1998.
This season, however, at least for the initial phase it looks like it will go in the way of Norris after McLaren emerged as the fastest car at pre-season test in Bahrain last month with Red Bull suffering multiple issues at the Sakhir International Circuit.
“Definitely Lando (is the favourite this season) as Mclaren seems to have made a really strong card. They continue on how they went last year. If you just look at their season and how they progressed, they kept making steps forward. And Lando was the only driver in the field that could step up to Max. That was on it every race,” former world champion Jacques Villeneuve said over a video call from Melbourne where the new season starts this weekend.
“So, if he’s still in the same mindset, then the season should start strong. But then Ferrari will move forward with Lewis there helping the team. So, we’ll have to see halfway through the season how it pans out. But the favourite right now is Lando and McLaren.”
Remembered for beating the legendary Michael Schumacher to the 1997 F1 title in a controversial finish, the 53-year-old Villeneuve, who is the last driver to win the championship with Williams, added that Norris didn’t budge on track, even when Verstappen was pushing the boundaries throughout last season.
“Lando did the right thing last year. He didn’t move. They ended up clashing in Austria. He paid a hefty price, stronger than Max did. But ultimately, he showed Max that he wasn’t going to move, that he was in there to fight. He showed that he would be there fighting, not that he would give up,” said the Canadian, who raced in F1 from 1996 to 2006, in a call facilitated by OTT platform FanCode.
While the title fight will likely see Norris and Verstappen fight it out again at the front of the grid, the one team who can disrupt the party is Ferrari, who also showed they have the potential to do so at the end of last season as well as in the pre-season test.
In addition, the sport’s most celebrated team has signed F1’s most successful driver Lewis Hamilton which has been making waves in the motorsport world ever since the seven-time world champion turned up in red overalls last month.
Will Hamilton deliver at Ferrari? Can he go where no one has gone and win an eighth championship? Can he fulfil his childhood dream of winning with the Scuderia are questions that are waiting to be answered.
“Lewis knows how to cement his position inside a team. He got cut out when (George) Russell joined (Mercedes). He had become a little bit complacent with all the easy years with (Valtteri) Bottas. And he didn’t see it coming. But he goes into Ferrari knowing that it’s Leclerc’s team and he needs to become the team leader. I think he will be brutal in that aspect,” said Villeneuve, son of Ferrari great Gilles Villeneuve.
“He knows how to win. He knows how to move a team forward. It will be interesting because Ferrari is not an easy team. There’s a lot of pressure from the fans, from the team. It’s a very energetic place, but not an easy place to evolve in. And Leclerc knows it really well. For Ferrari, it’s a win-win situation. If they win with Lewis, bingo, amazing! If Leclerc beats Lewis, then they manage to create a star out of Leclerc. So right now, I guess they’re just waiting to see what will happen.”
