Rounds 23 and 24 of the 2024 Formula 1 (F1) World Championship took place in Qatar on Dec. 1 and Abu Dhabi on Dec. 8, respectively.
Lusail International Circuit, Qatar
During qualifying at the Lusail International Circuit, Max Verstappen of Red Bull, the winner of the Drivers’ Championship, initially secured pole position. However, he received a one-place grid penalty for driving unnecessarily slowly ahead of Mercedes’ George Russell. As a result, Russell started on pole for race day, followed by Verstappen and Lando Norris from McLaren in third.
At the first turn, Verstappen clinched first, with Norris moving into second and Russell dropping to third. Further down the grid, chaos unfolded as several cars spun and collided, leading to time penalties being issued. Alpine’s Esteban Ocon and Williams’ Franco Colapinto were forced to retire from the race after an incident involving Haas’ Nico Hulkenberg. The safety car was deployed to neutralize the race so the cars could be retrieved.
On lap 30, Colapinto’s teammate, Alexander Albon, lost his right-side mirror, which fell onto the racing line. Double yellow flags were waved to alert the drivers to slow down and proceed with caution. Shortly thereafter, Valtteri Bottas of Kick Sauber struck the mirror, scattering it further across the track. This led to punctures for Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton on lap 34 and Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz shortly after, forcing both drivers into the pits for tire changes.
While marshals removed the debris, a second safety car was called, with racing resuming on lap 39. At the restart, Norris attempted to challenge Verstappen side-by-side but could not overtake him. Verstappen maintained his lead, Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc held third and Norris’ teammate, Oscar Piastri, was fourth. Shortly thereafter, Hulkenberg ended up beached in the gravel, prompting a third safety car.
Norris was given a 10-second stop-go penalty for failing to slow down during the earlier double yellow flags, meaning he would need to go into the pits within three laps and stay there for 10 seconds. This penalty dropped the British driver to 15th place, but he recovered to 10th by the end of the race. Leclerc placed second, while Piastri finished third. This marked Verstappen’s 63rd career win.
Bottas’ teammate, Zhou Guanyu, delivered Kick Sauber’s first points of the season by finishing eighth and earning four points.
Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi
The season finale at the Yas Marina Circuit began with Norris on pole, Piastri in second, and Sainz in third. Leclerc qualified in 14th after getting his time deleted during the second qualifying session for violating track limits. He also took a 10-place grid penalty for needing a new battery. Since Colapinto received a five-place grid drop for a gearbox change and qualified 19th, he started last, while Leclerc began from 19th.
On the opening lap, Leclerc went up 11 places to reach eighth. Verstappen, starting from fourth, made contact with Piastri at the first turn, causing both to drop down the order. Verstappen received a 10-second penalty for the collision. Piastri later received a 10-second penalty for a clash with Colapinto on the third lap. Despite this, Piastri finished 10th, completing all 1,444 laps of the season—a feat achieved by only three other drivers in F1 history: Michael Schumacher (2002), Hamilton (2019) and Verstappen (2023).
Jack Doohan made his debut, replacing Ocon at Alpine, and finished 15th. He is set to race full-time for Alpine in the 2025 season.
Norris secured first place, marking his fourth career win. This victory also earned McLaren its first Constructors’ Championship in 26 years, their ninth overall, with the last title dating back to 1998. Norris finished the season as runner-up in the Drivers’ Championship. Ferrari had a double podium finish, with Sainz in second and Leclerc in third. The team secured second in the Constructors’ standings, while Leclerc finished third in the Drivers’ Championship, followed by Piastri in fourth and Sainz in fifth.
Hamilton started in 16th place and overtook Russell for fourth on the last lap. This was his last race with Mercedes, putting an end to F1’s most successful driver-team partnership after 12 years with 84 victories and six Drivers’ Championships. He will join Ferrari in 2025, partnering with Leclerc.
As drivers depart or change teams, fresh talent will join the grid for the 2025 season. The first Grand Prix of the 2025 season is scheduled for March 16 at the Albert Park Grand Prix Circuit in Melbourne, Australia.
