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The problems of the year
Track Limits – You could also call it the bad word of the year. More than a thousand suspected cases of exceeding route limits were reported in Spielberg alone. More than 150 fastest laps were withdrawn, resulting in many grids being disrupted throughout the year. In Doha, Zhou crossed the finish line in 12th place and immediately ended up in 9th place with two points. Because Pérez, Stroll and Gasly each got 5 seconds extra. Track Limits penalty.
Cancellation of the year
Imola – The Emilia region around the circuit has been flooded after days of rain. The Santerno River, located behind the paddock, burst its banks and made an event impossible. While half of Formula 1 was already there. The cancellation came Wednesday. Police and marshals were needed to rescue trapped residents. Famous cancellations: Spa 1985 because the heat cracked the asphalt. Bahrain 2011 due to political unrest.
Nonsense of the year
Felipe Massa – The Brazilian tried to claim the 2008 World Cup title. He lost this to Hamilton (overtook Glock and finished fifth) in the penultimate corner of the final in São Paulo. But that wasn’t the point. Massa wanted to remove the result of the Singapore GP from the rankings. Ecclestone had officially announced too late that the GP had been rigged by Renault (Piquet’s crash, yellow flags, Alonso’s victory). Massa hired lawyers – and failed miserably.
Farewell to the year
Franz Tost – No team boss lived for Formula 1 as much as the Tyrolean: “There are no days off, holidays are a luxury.” He started at Toro Rosso in 2006. A year earlier, Red Bull’s A-team entered Formula 1 – with Christian Horner (50) as boss. Tost guided 17 drivers from Vettel (who won at Monza in 2008), Verstappen, Sainz and Ricciardo to the top. The Swiss Buemi also went through school. Tost is replaced by Peter Bayer from Vorarlberg.
Crash festival of the year
Melbourne – The training sessions were still harmless. But all hell broke loose in the race: three red flags, three restarts. First, Albon lost control in the Williams on lap 8 – and flew into the wall. Then Magnussen’s accident in the Haas on lap 52 – red again and then a standing restart on the penultimate lap. Sainz collided with Alonso from behind. Behind them, the two Alpines as well as De Vries and Sargeant collided. Safety car for the last lap!
Problem of the year
Andretti entry – The FIA launched a tender for an eleventh GP team in January. Ultimately, the Andretti Cadillac remained of the seven candidates. But the Formula 1 management and especially the teams are against entry because they do not want to divide the billion-dollar pie by eleven. Andretti wanted to pay the registration fee of 200 million dollars, which will increase to 600 million dollars in 2026. General Motors is putting pressure on us – and has registered as an engine supplier from 2028.
Mouthpiece of the year
Mercedes – They are often not worth the paper they are printed on. The official press releases. Before, during and after the race. The commendable exception: Mercedes. Boss Toto Wolff and both drivers speak clearly, admit mistakes, etc. Here you look in vain for sugar coating: for that Mercedes takes the media crown.
Eviction of the year
Otmar Szafenauer – The American-Romanian Otmar Szafenauer had to leave Alpine before the summer break. A delayed reaction to the loss of Alonso (to Aston Martin) and Piastri (McLaren). Sports director Permane and chief technician Fry also had to leave. The French had already said goodbye to CEO Laurent Rossi. The new ‘strong’ man is called Bruno Famin, who no one really knows. Alpine finished lonely in 6th place at the World Cup. Szafenauer is not allowed to work until April 2024.
Transfer of the year
None – Most teams ignore talents like F2 champions Drugovich or Pourchaire and rely on the old staff. In 2024, the entire circus will travel with the same artists. Only at Alpha Tauri (soon with a new name) did a change take place during the season. De Vries was released and Ricciardo was brought out of mothballs. And because he broke his hand in the Netherlands, Lawson replaced him for five races. That is it. And Schumi Junior? After a year’s break, he disappears into the long-distance world championships.
Thrill of the year
Triple Header – Three races over three consecutive weekends. A logistical and stressful madness. The first triple header was prevented by the cancellation of Imola. The second demanded of everyone: more than 2,500 people flew from Austin (Texas) to Mexico City and from there directly to São Paulo. And the finale? After Las Vegas we immediately went 13,500 kilometers to Abu Dhabi. It goes without saying that the teams are losing more and more personnel and that the teams are rotating. Two triple headers to be concluded in 2024 – with a week’s break.
Comparison of the year
Binotto/Vasseur – The Italians also disagree: was the expulsion of Mattia Binotto at the end of 2022 justified? Well, his successor Fred Vasseur has not (yet) been able to live up to his high expectations. Binotto finished second at the World Championships with 554 points and four wins. Vasseur finished third at the World Cup, scoring 406 points and winning only once (Sainz in Singapore). Only in the sprints does the comparison of 22 races lag behind. This time there were even three more on the program.
Rising star of the year
McLaren-Mercedes – After the departure of Andreas Seidl (now CEO at Sauber), the papaya-colored team started with just 17 points from the first eight races. There was a rain of criticism. Because with Norris and the new star Piastri, the team around Alonso’s former Ferrari engineer Andrea Stella perhaps had the best driver pair. A major update for Spielberg brought the turning point with the MCL60. Piastri won the sprint in Qatar, Norris took seven podium places. The team came 4th.
Crash of the year
Alfa-Sauber – You can twist and turn it any way you want. 2023 was not a good season for the Hinwil team with the Alfa advertising appearance. The expulsion of technology boss Monchaux showed that the greatest evil had been recognized: the car. And therefore there were no exploits from the drivers. So they dropped three World Cup places – more than any other team. The penultimate place (four points ahead of Haas-Ferrari) makes sense if you do not score points 16 times in 22 races. Now it is expected that Audi will finally comment on the 2026 project.
Car of the year
Red Bull RB 19 – If you put the currently best driver, Max Verstappen, in the renewed genius move of star designer Adrian Newey (64), the competition can pack a punch. Then – just like in 2022 – it will soon be the end of the day with dreams about the title. Almost fortunately, the Honda-powered car didn’t work perfectly on the streets of Singapore – and as a result they missed out on all the wins of the season. With 19 successes (and four sprint victories) and 1003 laps ahead, Verstappen set two records that will probably last for a long time. And for Newey the show continues: more than 200 GP victories and 13 driver titles with Williams, McLaren and Red Bull.
Question of the year
Who is the best? – The question of the greatest of all time is almost as old as Juan Manuel Fangio’s five world titles (1951 and 1954 to 1957). Max Verstappen’s two-year dominance with 34 victories alone has put the Dutchman in pole position for many fans. But luckily this question survives Formula 1. So let’s discuss: were Hamilton, Schumacher, Clark, Stewart, Prost or Senna better?
The winner of the year
Mercedes – The Silver Arrows team has rarely suffered as much as when it came second in 2023. The W14 behaved like a stubborn donkey – and worse: Hamilton (at least six podium finishes) was once satisfied with the set-up, other times only Russell. People have made mistakes in development. Since the still controversial World Cup final on December 12, 2021 in Abu Dhabi between Verstappen and Hamilton, Mercedes has won only one race: in Brazil in 2022 (Russell). Boss Wolff: “We will come back stronger!”
Prediction of the year
What will happen in 2024? – Technically speaking, hardly anything will change. So what can we expect? There could be a battle between four teams at the front because McLaren has knocked on the big door. But Red Bull remains the clear favorite and Ferrari is unlikely to become world champion even after seventeen years. At the back, none of the last four teams can break into midfield (Alpine, Aston Martin). Sauber, or whatever the new team is called, would certainly be well served with an eighth place finish in the World Cup.
Source : Blick
I’m Emma Jack, a news website author at 24 News Reporters. I have been in the industry for over five years and it has been an incredible journey so far. I specialize in sports reporting and am highly knowledgeable about the latest trends and developments in this field.
