Oh, you read that right. Formula 1 is back for another season where the battleground stretches far beyond the asphalt. Oh, my dearest readers, Formula 1 2024 is a riot, and we’re only two races in. The high-speed competition, the adrenaline rush, the hush-hush gossip – Formula 1 2024 is truly the new Fast and Furious! So, buckle up, for we are about to embark on a roller coaster ride that will be nothing less than a trip aboard a Formula 1 car through the most glamorous battleground…
Do we recall how the Formula 1 Singapore Airlines Singapore Grand Prix 2023 took our breath away? History was etched on those streets. Headlines were made around the world.
Singapore was among the only stops on the roster to see a break in Red Bull’s Max Verstappen’s winning streak. 2023 was insane.
But as the final car zoomed past the checkered flag in Abu Dhabi and wrapped the 2023 season, shocking things came to light, and some sensational drama unfolded, which makes Formula 1 a thrill to watch on and off track. And to celebrate the dawn of a new season, we are about to spill all the dirt you need to know to fully enjoy race season.
Red Bull Drama
If you’re familiar with Formula 1, you’d know that Red Bull has dominated the season. Maybe ‘dominate’ is an understatement. They are the season. In the 2023 Formula One World Championship, Max Verstappen was crowned World Champion, winning every single race except for three – including Singapore! His team, Red Bull, was named Constructors’ Champion (basically, the winning car team). They made headlines for a shocking season.
But off-track, Red Bull has been making headlines for other reasons. And it got messier each week. In December 2023, Christian Horner, Red Bull’s team principal (AKA the big boss who’s also been the longest-serving team principal in the paddock!), was accused of “inappropriate” and “controlling” behaviour by a female Red Bull employee.
On 5 February 2024, Red Bull GmbH, the parent company of the Red Bull Racing Formula 1 team based in Austria, confirmed that Christian Horner was under investigation. Horner always denied these claims from the very start. The process reportedly took eight weeks and involved hours-long interviews with Horner. But on 28 February, it was announced that Horner had been cleared in the investigation.
Let’s grasp how significant this is. Across sports, people in positions of power have faced severe consequences when such serious allegations were made. But these claims made against Horner were dismissed with no further consequence as of the time of writing. Sometime during this mess of events, there was also word that Horner offered the employee £650,000 to settle the case. What is going on behind closed doors that we don’t know? But wait. It got worse.
On 29 February, a bombshell was dropped, and a Google Drive containing WhatsApp messages and other photos of evidence against Horner was sent to hundreds of journalists, team principals, and more. Oh, whoever this was, used the power of media when justice didn’t prevail. I got goosebumps when I read this. We’ve taken a look at this Google Drive, which has since been circulated around the world. Let’s just say if these are real, things don’t look good for Horner.
On 2 March 2024, the new season began proper in Bahrain. Despite the leak, we all saw how Horner was evading the cameras, avoiding being caught in the frame and facing the wrath of the outraged internet. We also saw Horner joined by his wife Geri ahead of the race. One of Red Bull’s stakeholders, Chalerm Yoovidhya (who owns 51% of Red Bull), was also spotted smiling from ear to ear with the seemingly happy couple. Sus. All we can say is that their PR team is working overtime!
Once again, it gets worse. Jos Verstappen got involved – Red Bull’s current star driver, Max Verstappen’s father. He spilt the beans the whole world was itching to find out – he told the Daily Mail that “the team is in danger of being torn apart” if Horner remains in his position and that “There is tension here while he remains in position. The team is in danger of being torn apart. It can’t go on the way it is. It will explode.”.
But guess what? On 5 March, the PA news agency reported that Horner’s accuser had been suspended. Cue dramatic music! It looks like they’re trying to move on. But wait. Once again, it gets worse. Another jaw-dropping post on X sent chills down my spine.
It’s believed that the person who leaked this scandalous Google Drive was none other than Red Bull motorsport adviser Helmut Marko. A source close to Red Bull told BBC Sport that the plan was to suspend Marko. But wait. Max Verstappen said, “It’s very important that he stays within the team. If such an important pillar falls away, that’s not good for my situation as well. So, for me, Helmut has to stay, for sure.”. Following this, there were rumours that Max could be leaving Red Bull. Red Bull losing their star driver? One word: insane. But more on all this later.
Anyway, it seems that things are pretty much still in the air surrounding this issue, and we don’t know what to believe. All we can say is that if this employee really experienced an injustice, we hope this horrific wrong is righted as soon as possible.
Driver Drama
Now, let’s move on to the main protagonists of Formula 1 – the drivers.
And let’s begin with this jaw-dropper: Seven-time world champion (or eight?) Lewis Hamilton will be moving to Ferrari in 2025 after 11 years of driving for Mercedes. This will be his final season driving in a black suit and blue car; arguably the most significant driver move in F1 history.
With Charles Leclerc successfully renewing his contract with Ferrari in 2025, Hamilton has taken the spot of Carlos Sainz Jr., leaving an empty spot in Mercedes alongside George Russell. This means that we’re about to see significant driver reshuffling in 2025. There’s always been word that Audi will enter Formula 1 in 2026, and Sainz has always been on their radar. But what does this mean for Sainz in 2025? So many questions, but not nearly enough answers.
But let’s play the guessing game a little and have fun with what seems like a historic period for Formula 1 that generations to come will be looking back at. Many are thinking of a simple swap of partners, which means Hamilton to Ferrari and Sainz to Mercedes. While that would be cool, it seems a little too easy.
Many are guessing that Fernando Alonso, who currently drives for Aston Martin, could move to Mercedes. At 42, Alonso is the oldest driver on the grid and the only Spanish Formula One driver to have won a World Championship. He’s a fierce driver, and, who knows, maybe with the right car, we can see Alonso reliving his glory days once again in 2025.
Word is also floating around that Mercedes might introduce a young driver, Andrea Kimi Antonelli, in 2025. By young, we mean young. Antonelli is 18 years old and was scouted by Mercedes when he was just 11. He has a bright racing career ahead of him and is among the top contenders for Mercedes, for whom bringing in a young driver would work for their long-term future. It’d be a smart move, but we might not expect an outstanding performance from them in 2025. Well, it’s not like Mercedes has been performing that well lately, anyway.
Or perhaps, we may see the two ex-karting-buddies-turned-best-friends, George Russell and Alex Albon, reunite in Mercedes, with Albon moving up from Williams (a team powered by Mercedes engines since 2014). Albon is an arguably talented driver with a car that doesn’t measure up to his potential, so it would be a sight to see his potential fully unleashed!
And then there’s also the possibility of Max Verstappen leaving Red Bull amid this insanely twisted controversy within the team. When Mercedes’ Team Principal, Toto Wolff, was asked about this, he revealed that he would “love” to have Max Verstappen at Mercedes should he become available. Of course, he would. We’re talking about the reigning king of the grid!
Nonetheless, Sainz is in his villain era. He’s here to show Ferrari the gem they’re losing. Think about it: Sainz was the only driver to beat Verstappen in a race in the 2023 season (once again, here in Singapore! We’re so proud of that, aren’t we?). The internet is mad at Ferrari, albeit ecstatic to see Hamilton make his move to reclaim his throne. But we saw Sainz take the podium in 2024’s debut race, and he somehow had every motorsport fan rooting for him, regardless of the team they support. Magical!
Of course, this was before he got appendicitis and had to be taken for emergency surgery in Saudi Arabia the day before the race. That’s how we met a definite World Champion in the making: Oliver Bearman.
Oh, what a driver! The team’s reserved driver is just 19 this year, and he managed to get P7 in the final race, placing higher than Hamilton himself! This was his first time in a Formula 1 car, being an F2 ace, and he felt its effects on his body, saying he was “destroyed” from the tough race. This gives us an eye-opening viewpoint into the sheer difficulty of this sport that looks deceptively easy. He was named “Driver of the Day”, which was so well-earned!
It was adorable seeing drivers from different teams come together to welcome Bearman into the world of Formula 1. As Hamilton and McLaren’s Lando Norris overtook him, it was heartwarming to see them give him mini applause and little thumbs-ups! Hamilton and Russell even waited for him after the race to give him a hug and let him know how well he’d done. As the first driver in F1 history to share the grid with the World Champion of his birth year, Fernando Alonso, I think we just watched the first F1 race of a future World Champion himself.
As for the rest of the racers, F1 is, unfortunately, getting ridiculously dull. Every race, we know who’s about to grab pole position and which country’s national anthem we will be hearing at the end. On the tracks, there’s no suspense. There’s no ‘sitting at the edge of your seat, biting your nails, awaiting with bated breath the winner of the race and the World Champion’. Max Verstappen will get pole position, and if we follow the patterns from the first two races, Sergio Pérez will get P2, and a Ferrari driver will get P3.
Mercedes, who won P2 in the Constructors’ Championship last year, is doing shockingly poorly, considering that their car this year is supposed to be better than last year’s. The highest position we’ve seen Mercedes reach thus far is P5, attained by Russell. In another shocking (and disappointing) turn of events, Hamilton has ranked P9 and P7 in the first two races.
McLaren has also been underperforming, but it’s interesting to note that the highest position attained by McLaren was P4, by Oscar Piastri. He was named Rookie of the Year during his inaugural Formula 1 debut last season! His performance as a rookie has been a hoot to watch. Here’s hoping for a phenomenal race for Piastri in his home race in Australia this weekend.
It seems we’ve reached that stage in our Formula 1 watching careers that it’s no longer fun to guess the winners and best performers, but rather, the “losers”. Unfortunately, looking at the past two races, it seems like they’re Alpine, Williams, and Visa Cash App RB (former AlphaTauri). Alpine’s Pierre Gasly’s performance has been ghastly with a P18 and P20 placement. His teammate, Esteban Ocon, placed P17 and P13. Pretty disappointing races from them.
Williams’ Alex Albon is a promising driver who has performed pretty well despite being in an underpowered kit in comparison to Red Bull’s rocket ship. But he has attained P11 and P15 in the past two races, which isn’t wonderful. Fellow teammate Logan Sargeant’s performance has been even worse with P20 and P15.
Oh, and what’s the tea with Visa Cash App RB (or, as the internet affectionately calls them, ‘VCARB’)? In the first race, there seemed to be some tension between their drivers, Daniel Ricciardo and Yuki Tsunoda, who were fighting it out for P13. Tsunoda was ahead but was unable to overtake, so the team order was to let Ricciardo (who was right behind Tsunoda) go ahead as he was on softer tyres (which means he could go a tad faster), so that he could overtake and VCARB can place higher.
Tsunoda wasn’t happy with the direction, and Ricciardo was let ahead. Yet he could not make the overtake, and they did not manage to clinch that P13. During the interviews at the end of the race, Tsunoda and Ricciardo expressed some saltiness over the situation, which leaves us curious as to whether this could translate into something bigger.
Looks like we’ve got a lot to look forward to!
Takeaway Thoughts
Sure, the F1 scene might be dulling, with Max Verstappen almost toying with the rest of the grid with his incredible pace. But remember, his Everest awaits – Singapore. This was the only stop in 2023 that Verstappen did not win. He wasn’t even on the podium. We have way too long till we feel the electricity of revving engines and smoking hot drivers (oh, I mean the cars! Oops!) take on our sunny shores.
The Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix 2024 weekend will be from 20 to 22 September, so mark your calendars! The stakes are higher than ever. Do you expect anything less from the ‘Best Race’ of the 2023 season? From the home of the original ‘night race’ in Formula 1? We can’t miss the race of the year!
While details on the entertainment line-up and performers are still a secret, this cat will be out of the bag pretty soon, and more tickets will be released for purchase! Am I the only one eagerly checking the website for more tickets religiously every day? No? Thank goodness (that’s less competition for me)!
The next race will be this weekend in Australia, on 24 March 2024. We wonder what new theatrics we will witness in the coming races. This is just the beginning! Here’s to another (hopefully) historic season!
Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix
🗓️Dates: 20 – 22 September 2024
💲Prices of available tickets*:
Hospitality Packages:
| Hospitality Packages: | 3-Day Pass | Friday (20 September) | Saturday (21 September) | Sunday (22 September) |
| Formula 1 Paddock Club™ | S$11,772 | – | – | – |
| Sky Suite | S$8,938 | – | – | – |
| Twenty3 | S$7,848 | S$1,853 | S$3,052 | – |
| The Green Room | S$5,559 | – | – | – |
| The Vista Suite | S$5,559 | – | – | – |
| Sky View Pavilion | S$3,924 | – | – | – |
*Hospitality refers to all-in-one package experiences that include unobstructed views and dining. Grandstands provide prime vantage points to see the racers. Walkabouts allow free roaming around the circuit map zone, with designated viewing points available.
Grandstands:
| Grandstand | 3-Day Pass | Friday (20 September) | Saturday (21 September) | Sunday (22 September) |
| Super Pit Grandstand | S$1,988 | – | – | – |
| Pit Grandstand | – | S$298 | S$688 | S$988 |
| Turn 1 Grandstand | S$1,388 | – | – | – |
| Pit Exit Grandstand | S$1,388 | – | – | – |
| Chicane @ Turn 2 Grandstand | S$1,388 | – | – | – |
| Promenade Grandstand | S$1,188 | – | – | – |
| Republic Grandstand | – | S$188 | S$398 | – |
| Padang Grandstand | – | S$138 | S$298 | – |
| Stamford Grandstand | – | S$128 | S$248 | – |
Walkabouts
| Walkabout | 3-Day Pass | Friday (20 September) | Saturday (21 September) | Sunday (22 September) |
| Premiere Walkabout | S$598 | – | – | – |
*All tickets listed are available and priced accurately as of the time of writing.
Get your early-bird tickets to the Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix 2024 right now! Stay tuned to the latest happenings on Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix’s Instagram, Facebook, or TikTok pages.
Photo by Brendan Tan of the DANAMIC Team. Additional visuals courtesy of Singapore GP Pte Ltd.
*Article updated for clarity
