Piastri’s Hungarian Win And Mclaren 1-2 Marred By Team Orders Argument With Norris

Formula 1 returned to the Hungaroring this weekend for the 13th round of this year’s championship, and following an eventful encounter that included an embarrassingly uncomfortable public argument over team radio between McLaren and its driver, Lando Norris, it was McLaren’s other pedaller, Oscar Piastri, who claimed his first Grand Prix victory.

After Sergio Pérez continued his latest mid-season slump with a further non-points finish at Silverstone a fortnight ago, Red Bull’s team principal Christian Horner made it very clear that such a situation would be unsustainable were it to continue, as its key rivals are all improving and its lead in the prize-money-paying Constructors’ Championship is coming increasingly under threat. In the last six races prior to Hungary, Pérez had scored just 15 points, compared to 119 during the same timeframe by his teammate Max Verstappen.

2024 Formula 1 Hungarian Grand Prix

1 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) 1hr38m1.989s
2 Lando Norris (McLaren) +2.141s
3 Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) +14.880s
4 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +19.686s
5 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +21.349s
6 Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) +23.073s
7 Sergio Pérez (Red Bull) +39.792s
8 George Russell (Mercedes) +42.368s
9 Yuki Tsunoda (RB) +1m17.259s
10 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +1m17.976s
11 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +1m22.460s
12 Daniel Ricciardo (RB) Lapped
13 Nico Hülkenberg (Haas) Lapped
14 Alex Albon (Williams) Lapped
15 Kevin Magnussen (Haas) Lapped
16 Valtteri Bottas (Sauber) Lapped
17 Logan Sargeant (Williams) Lapped
18 Esteban Ocon (Alpine) Lapped
19 Zhou Guanyu (Sauber) Lapped
20 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) RetiredF1 is all about outright performance rather than just being a nice guy, and you live or die by your results, which is only to be expected as the stopwatch never lies. So, Red Bull confirmed that, if the Mexican doesn’t up his game sooner rather than later, there will be a need to consider activating performance clauses in his contract, enabling them to drop him at no cost well before its conclusion at the end of 2026. It’s understood that Pérez needs to be within 100 points of Verstappen by the start of the forthcoming summer break, or the team can replace him immediately. Prior to this weekend, he was 137 points adrift of the triple champion.

Of course, Red Bull would need a suitable replacement if it parted company with Pérez, and Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz, who is rather unluckily set to be dropped at the end of the season to make way for the arrival of Sir Lewis Hamilton from Mercedes, would no doubt relish an opportunity to join Red Bull. However, Horner would no doubt prefer to avoid the risk of repeating the friction that their fathers, Carlos and Jos, caused when he and Verstappen were team-mates for Red Bull's sister Toro Rosso team. Liam Lawson, a promising young reserve driver from New Zealand, tested the current RB20 during a filming day at Silverstone on Thursday following the British Grand Prix and is set to run in its RB counterpart at Imola later this month. The Kiwi’s contract stipulates that he will be free to leave for a rival team next year if he isn’t given a Red Bull or RB race seat by then, something Red Bull is very keen to avoid.

...it’s no surprise at all that F1’s long been known as the Piranha Club due to its cutthroat nature

Meanwhile, Williams had recently been very close to signing Sainz to replace the underperforming Logan Sargeant, but the Spaniard’s ongoing unwillingness to commit to the outfit’s ambitious plans for the future has not been well received by team principal James Vowles. As a result, it now appears quite possible that Valtteri Bottas, set to be dropped by Sauber at the end of this season, could be Alex Albon’s new teammate for next year and beyond, with Vowles seeing Sainz as more interested in his own short-term career prospects than Williams’ fortunes. Elsewhere, Esteban Ocon, who will part company with Alpine at the end of this season, may end up joining Haas alongside Oliver Bearman, but a possible move to Williams should not be ruled out for the Frenchman. Current Haas driver Nico Hülkenberg is bound for Sauber/Audi with effect from next year, leaving his existing teammate, the Danish veteran Kevin Magnussen, without a drive.

The arrivals, inter-team transfers, and departures of drivers at the Formula 1 level are always full of intrigue and behind-the-scenes activity, not to mention money, and it’s no surprise at all that F1’s long been known as the Piranha Club due to its cutthroat nature. However, there’s also an ongoing and far less high-profile regular transfer of other staff between the rival outfits, if less so at the senior level. However, it is interesting that Ferrari's longtime chassis technical director, Enrico Cardile, is leaving the Scuderia prior to Sir Lewis Hamilton's arrival to join the Silverstone-based Aston Martin team as its chief technical officer. The latter also recently announced the signing of Mercedes’ former engine chief, Andy Powell, as its new Group CEO in place of Martin Whitmarsh, and in 2026, the outfit will be Honda’s power unit partner in place of Red Bull. Formula 1 is always full of hopes and dreams at all levels, and we can only wait to see if the building blocks being put in place by owner Lance Stroll will bear fruit in front of the grid, as hoped, given a little time.

In other news since Silverstone, there’s been an announcement about the six rounds next year, which will feature a sprint event as well as a Grand Prix. There’s little change from the 2024 schedule as five of this season’s Sprint hosts will remain the same (China, Miami, Austin, Brazil, and Qatar), but Belgium will replace Austria.

Also, on a different tack, last Sunday the former Formula 1 driver and current Sky Germany pundit, Ralf Schumacher, revealed publicly that he has been in a gay relationship with his partner Etienne for the last two years and has since received a wave of support for having had the courage to do so. There’s a feeling within the motorsport world that this may encourage other drivers past and present, including within F1, to also reveal their true sexuality without fear of a homophobic backlash. Ralf, the younger brother of Michael Schumacher, was previously married to Cora before their divorce in 2015, and they have a 22-year-old son, David, who is also following in the family footsteps as a racing driver.

There’s a feeling within the motorsport world that this may encourage other drivers past and present, including within F1, to also reveal their true sexuality without fear of a homophobic backlash.

The fast, loud, and dangerous world of Formula 1 used to be a bastion of heterosexual masculinity, led in the past by serial womaniser James Hunt and with the drivers constantly surrounded in the paddock by glamorous young women. For many years, it was standard practice as part of the F1 “show” for scantily clad girls to hold the pre-race driver grid boards, and I well remember being at Monaco one year when the practice was deemed no longer appropriate, so they simply used a mix of good-looking boys and girls instead! However, as time progressed, they quickly abandoned this practice, and today, nearby electronic signs remind drivers of their grid slots. Looking ahead, it will be interesting to see if Schumacher’s revelation leads to others doing likewise. Hamilton, a regular campaigner for social reform and equality, has publicly supported gay rights in recent years, including having displayed the Gay Pride rainbow colours on his helmet, and said in the Hungarian F1 paddock on Friday that Schumacher’s coming-out sends a positive message to everyone.

Hungaroring is located in undulating countryside a short drive from Budapest, and last Wednesday heavy rain had left the pitlane flooded, but, as the race weekend neared, the weather became very hot and sunny, alleviating any fears that the running of the event might be disrupted. Friday’s opening free practice session began at 13.30 local time, and it was Sainz who reminded everyone, including his own team, just how fast he is, as he went quickest ahead of Verstappen in an upgraded Red Bull, the other Ferrari pedalled by Charles Leclerc, and Mercedes’ George Russell. Later the same afternoon, the second practice period was interrupted by red flags after Leclerc had crashed backwards into the Turn 4 barriers, and, come its conclusion, Norris topped the timing screens, with Verstappen, Sainz, and Pérez the best of the rest. Norris then led the way again in yesterday afternoon’s final practice session, just clear of Piastri, as Verstappen and Russell set the next fastest times.

After Friday’s heat, we had rain and cooler temperatures as qualifying neared, but the circuit conditions slowly improved as the action progressed.

Practice, whilst useful, is still just practice, and it only really starts to matter come the subsequent three-part qualifying hour to determine the grid for today’s Grand Prix around this short but challenging Hungarian track. After Friday’s heat, we had rain and cooler temperatures as qualifying neared, but the circuit conditions slowly improved as the action progressed. Not that this helped the underpressure on Pérez, who crashed his Red Bull into the barriers at Turn 8 in Q1, triggering more red flags and more expensive repairs for his team while consigning him to another very poor starting position for this afternoon. Just what neither he nor Red Bull wanted as he desperately strives to retain his seat. Russell also faltered in the initial part of qualifying, blaming both his own driving and his team for failing to put sufficient fuel in his car as the track continued to dry.

More light rain followed part way through the top ten shootout, meaning it was crucial for teams to get the remaining drivers out as soon as possible. However, red flags flew again after RB’s Yuki Tsunoda had a hefty shunt at Turn 5, with the Japanese driver fortunately unhurt but his car significantly damaged. There was just enough time remaining for Q3 to be resumed, with McLaren keen for its drivers to retain their provisional places at the top of the timesheets and Verstappen and Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso deciding that there was no value in running again. Ultimately, Norris added another pole position to his growing CV, and Piastri ensured it was indeed a McLaren front-row lockout, with Verstappen and Sainz set to start just to their rear.

Just like at Austria’s Red Bull Ring three weeks ago, the Hungaroring always attracts plenty of orange-clad Verstappen fans on their summer travels around Europe, and they simply added to the fun atmosphere as the 15.00 local time start of the Grand Prix neared. The sun was shining down, with all the grandstands packed with a capacity crowd, and the big question was what might happen during the 460-metre sprint from the front of the grid to the braking point for the opening right-hand corner. We didn’t have to wait long to find out, and, after those famous red lights went out, Norris immediately edged to his right in an attempt to block his teammate, but exiting Turn 1, it was Piastri who led, followed by Verstappen after an off-track excursion. The incident deemed the latter to have gained an unfair advantage, and on lap 4, the reigning champion somewhat begrudgingly let Norris pass into second place, with Hamilton in fourth.

The sun was shining down, with all the grandstands packed with a capacity crowd, and the big question was what might happen during the 460-metre sprint from the front of the grid to the braking point for the opening right-hand corner.

As the race pattern started to settle, Piastri looked comfortable out front, with Norris’ main concern being the pursuing Verstappen to his rear. From lap 17 onwards, all the leading contenders made their first pit stops, switching from medium to hard specification rubber, and this left the top four as Piastri, Norris, Hamilton, and Verstappen. Mid-race, Verstappen found a way past Hamilton at Turn 2 into third position, but quickly lost out just one corner later. Then, after the Red Bull team leader had continued to pressurise the Mercedes driver, the latter pitted for more hard tyres, while Leclerc was put onto mediums.

Soon, the other leading runners made their second stops, with McLaren pitting Norris first ahead of Piastri to see off the threat of an undercut from Hamilton. Crucially, this left Norris in the lead ahead of Piastri, with McLaren telling Norris over team radio that he would be asked to let Piastri back ahead. Norris, with a 3.8-second lead at this stage, was unimpressed and suggested Piastri would have to catch him first, then proceeded to increase his ontrack advantage over his teammate. There was an increasingly acrimonious debate over the radio between McLaren officials and Norris, as the former repeatedly pleaded with Norris to slow down and let Piastri pass for victory. Meanwhile, with eight laps remaining, third-placed Hamilton and the chasing Verstappen clashed, with contact made at Turn 1, which saw the Dutch racer briefly airborne, and as a result, Leclerc moved up into fourth position.

Back on the McLaren front, the ongoing and very public spat between the team and Norris was really casting a dark shadow over what should have been pure celebrations for the Woking-based outfit, with a fully deserved 1-2 finish on the way. With Norris leading his teammate by almost six seconds—a lifetime in F1 terms—he blatantly slowed on the pit straight with two laps remaining to wait for Piastri to catch him and then speed by on his way to victory.

...so a major packing and relocation exercise from Hungary began following the completion of today's race. Belgium will be Formula 1’s last port of call before the summer break

Hamilton was left to claim the final step on the podium, with Leclerc, Verstappen, and Sainz completing the leading sextet of finishers. Pérez and Russell reached the chequered flag in seventh and eighth places, respectively, after their lowly grid positions, with the latter at least claiming the extra point for setting the fastest lap of the race.

This year's Belgian Grand Prix at the iconic Spa Francorchamps circuit follows in just one week's time, so a major packing and relocation exercise from Hungary began following the completion of today's race. Belgium will be Formula 1’s last port of call before the summer break, and all teams will be hoping to enter the subsequent pause in activity on a relative high after performing well in the Ardennes.


2024 Formula 1 Drivers’ Championship

1 Max Verstappen 265
2 Lando Norris 189
3 Charles Leclerc 162

2024 Formula 1 Constructors’ Championship

1 Red Bull 389
2 McLaren 338
3 Ferrari 322