The 2024 Formula 1 race campaign has turned into a little bit more of an intriguing one than many fans would have expected it to, even only a few short months ago.
We are used to seeing controversies in F1, they are basically ten a penny each and every single year, and the staple news again is Red Bull’s Max Verstappen is already running away with another Championship title even though we are only a handful of races through the year, and inevitable Mercedes’ struggles continue.
They have high points during practice and qualifying, but the cars continue to fail to perform during each individual Grand Prix, and their engineering team still do not seem to understand fully why, and what the problems are – ergo how to fix them. For those who like a flutter on a number of top betting sites, that question moving forward will certainly dictate future race odds.
It is not the only issue for Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff this year though. His wife, Susie, is currently taking legal action against the FIA over their seemingly unfounded ‘conflict of interest’ investigation. He is also continuing to deal with their ongoing under performance issues, and not least the fact that seven time World Champion, Lewis Hamilton, has already announced that from next season onwards he will be driving for rival race team Ferrari.
As you look at things, 2024 should be quite easily another Red Bull and Verstappen lap of honour. But things are just as unsettled in their camp as well.
There are the ongoing headlines about their own team principal Christian Horner, and that has led to a plethora of claims and counterclaims, such as the suspension of the female colleague who made the original allegations – and it should be stated Horner vehemently denies the accusations levelled against him.
That in turn though, has also led to some stories which suggest that Verstappen himself is growing unhappy at Red Bull despite his success, and could well be looking to move on at the end of his own contract. There are also further and additional wild headlines currently in the news that I will not even address right now as it pertains to power struggles, sabotage – but this race season is getting weird.
With the turmoil at Red Bull, Wolff has taken full advantage lately to change the headlines surrounding Mercedes and he has completely thrown their hat in the ring as being interested in replacing Hamilton with Verstappen, if an opportunity arises.
In more recent interviews, Wolff has described the 26 year old, three time World Champion, Verstappen as his ‘number one pick’ should a deal be capable of being done, but he naturally qualified that with the statement that given the teams overall standing in F1, they certainly would not be short of potential suitors.
He also further qualified that any decision from their point of view would certainly not come quickly, as they were prepared to take their time to ensure they filled the future available seat with the best qualified candidate that offered them, the greatest future potential for success.
The twists and turns of 2024 are clearly not over yet, and racing fans will be hoping the headlines come from the grid and not elsewhere, but 2025 is currently in a league of its own when it comes to what might happen there.
Mercedes Name Top Hamilton Replacement As Red Bull Have Issues Of Their Own
