Russell Wins Comfortably as Verstappen Wins 4th-Straight Title
It was a Simply Lovely night in Las Vegas as George Russell took home a brilliant victory for Mercedes whilst Max Verstappen was crowned as a 4-time Champion of the World! Lewis Hamilton completed a terrific Mercedes 1-2 with a drive through the field whilst Carlos Sainz rounded out the Podium for Ferrari!
The Biggest Talking Points
George Russell got a great start off the line to remain in the lead out of Turn 1 whilst Charles Leclerc managed to jump both Pierre Gasly and Carlos Sainz to move into second place! The first few laps were honestly pretty frantic in the lower positions, particularly between Kevin Magnussen and Liam Lawson, but we also got a great fight at the front between Russell and Leclerc! However, Charles had clearly pushed his tyres too hard as he was passed by both Carlos and Max Verstappen before a lot of the teams made a very early switch to the Hard Compound Tyres! Pierre Gasly, who qualified brilliantly, was sadly forced to retire due to his engine blowing up whilst Oscar Piastri was also given a 5-second time penalty for not being in his Grid spot properly (it was very tight though)! Alex Albon was then the next car to retire from the points as Williams’ bad run continued before Ferrari continued to ignore Sainz’s demands to switch tyres! This ultimately resulted in Carlos pulling out of a pit stop, and he also lost a place to Lewis Hamilton (as a result)!
After more questionable tactics from Ferrari where they asked Carlos Sainz to move out the way for Charles Leclerc, Ferrari asked Carlos to stay behind Charles on the pit exit, and the Spaniard didn’t listen one bit! Lewis Hamilton then cleared Max Verstappen for second before Verstappen saw both Ferraris go past as Max cruised home for the Title! Behind all of this, Lando Norris was running his own Race in P6 (he did get the Fastest Lap at the end though) whilst Nico Hulkenberg cleared Yuki Tsunoda for P8, and Sergio Perez made a terrific double overtake on his way to scoring a point!
The Standout Drives in the Race
I’ve given out three 10’s for the 2024 Las Vegas Grand Prix and the first one is obviously for George Russell! George was brilliant today, he led from start to finish, and this feels like redemption for what was taken away from him in Spa! The second driver I’ve given out maximum points to is Lewis Hamilton and I think it’s very much deserved because even though he messed up his Qualifying, to go from 10th to 2nd in this field is mega impressive! And the final driver I’ve given a Perfect 10 to is Nico Hulkenberg, and once again, Nico’s drive will get overlooked because of others, but he was absolutely brilliant today, and The Hulk has moved Haas back up to 6th in the Constructors’! I also thought Carlos Sainz did a great job to make it onto the Podium, Yuki Tsunoda deserves praise for scoring a couple of points, and we can’t not mention Max Verstappen who is simply the best! Congrats Champ!
Drivers Who Had a Shocker
In total, I’ve only given out one 1 for today’s Race, and that is unfortunately for Valtteri Bottas! Valtteri just hasn’t been on it this weekend, and to finish last on the road, and miles behind his Kick Sauber teammate just isn’t good enough from him! Liam Lawson also had a pretty disappointing outing for Visa Cash App RB whilst I have to mention both Lance Stroll and Esteban Ocon and how ridiculous it is that their respective teams weren’t ready for them in the Pitlane! Like, I cannot understand how Aston Martin and Alpine let that happen! Oh, and Lance didn't have a radio all Race either which certainly doesn't help!
Overall Race Results and My Ratings
George Russell: 10
Lewis Hamilton: 10
Carlos Sainz: 9
Charles Leclerc: 8
Max Verstappen: 8
Lando Norris: 6
Oscar Piastri: 5
Nico Hulkenberg: 10
Yuki Tsunoda: 9
Sergio Perez: 5
Fernando Alonso: 6
Kevin Magnussen: 6
Zhou Guanyu: 7
Franco Colapinto: 5
Lance Stroll: 3
Liam Lawson: 2
Esteban Ocon: 3
Valtteri Bottas: 1
Alex Albon: 7 (DNF)
Pierre Gasly: - (DNF)
Credit: The Straits Times
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