For the first time in a decade and a half, Ferrari and McLaren rose to the forefront of the F1 field. Both historic teams duelled it out for the Constructors’ championship in 2024.
From Monza to Abu Dhabi: Five Amazing McLaren and Ferrari Battles from the 2024 F1 Season
McLaren became the first team other than Red Bull or Mercedes to win a championship since 2010. The Papaya team completed its resurgence, executing its comeback to perfection in 2024.
Alongside the team in orange, Ferrari executed one of their best F1 seasons to date. The Scuderia amassed 652 points, their highest tally in the sport to date.
As the title battle shifted in favour of the two old giants across the season, the drivers enjoyed some stellar battles too.
Here are five of the best McLaren and Ferrari battles in 2024.
Australia: The First Ferrari vs McLaren Moment of the Season
For most of the first half, Red Bull found themselves at the head of the field. Max Verstappen had won seven of the first ten races in 2024. These included four of the first five in 2024.
However, the one race he failed to win was at Albert Park. A fiery brake duct prompted an early retirement from the race. This allowed Ferrari and McLaren to occupy the top four positions.
While Charles Leclerc moved ahead after the first round of stops, McLaren attempted to unleash Lando Norris to close down the gap. The pit wall swapped his and Oscar Piastri’s positions, to enable Norris to go chase after the Monegasque.
While Norris closed down the gap, Leclerc pitted on lap 35. The earlier pit stop helped him keep second on the road, while Norris settled for third.
Carlos Sainz headed a Ferrari 1-2, while Norris took the first of McLaren’s many podiums in 2024. It kicked off the sequel to an exciting yet friendly rivalry, one that fans eagerly awaited all season.
Leclerc Makes the Strategy Work to Win on Ferrari’s Home Soil
As McLaren’s mid-season upgrades worked, Ferrari’s upgrades put them on the back foot. The two teams reflected opposite trajectories in form, with McLaren ascending the ladder, while Ferrari fell further back.
But a slew of upgrades at Ferrari’s home race in Monza put them back in the battle for victory. Although McLaren locked out the front row, Leclerc managed to sneak past Norris on lap 1.
McLaren’s undercut allowed Norris to get past the Ferrari man. He made it a 1-2 on the road, as Piastri led the race ahead. However, both drivers reported concerns over tyres, and not being able to take them to the end.
This led to both the papaya cars making second pit stops. On the other hand, Ferrari opted to keep both cars out on the track, going for the one-stop strategy.
Piastri pitting on lap 39 left the Australian 15 laps to chase down Leclerc for victory. However, as hard as he tried, he fell just under three seconds shy of the Ferrari man ahead.
Leclerc withstood the pressure of two McLarens chasing him down, managing his tyres to take an emotional home victory for Ferrari. It marked one of his finest drives in the sport, with Ferrari and McLaren occupying the top four spots once again.
READ MORE: Ferrari’s 2024 Season Review: ‘A Big Step Up, With Room for Growth’
A Race-Long Battle for Victory in Baku
Only two weeks later, Ferrari and McLaren put on an enticing race-long battle for victory in Baku.
Leclerc took his fourth consecutive Baku pole, while Piastri made it up to second on the grid for the race. What followed, though, was a battle for the ages.
While the pole-sitter opened up a gap of nearly six seconds in the first round of pit stops, his advantage dwindled after the pit stops.
Piastri’s undercut meant he made up plenty of ground on the Monegasque ahead and on lap 19, shaped for an overtake. The Australian pulled off a massive move from a long way back, moving into the lead.
Leclerc attempted to overtake the McLaren ahead several times across the race. However, try as he might, he couldn’t find a way past. Both drivers pushed to the limit, even sliding across the kerb at the same time on lap 42.
However, Leclerc had worn his tyres out in his bid to race Piastri to the line. As the Australian pulled away, Leclerc found himself battling for second.
He managed to hold on, though, finishing runner-up to his Australian rival, marking one of the finest moments of Ferrari vs McLaren in 2024.
A Mexican Tussle with Norris Limiting Damage
Ferrari and McLaren once again rounded out the podium in 2024. This time, it was at the Mexican GP weekend. Sainz qualified on pole, while Norris and Leclerc started third and fourth respectively.
While Sainz managed to regain the lead he lost at the start, Norris was caught up in his melee of incidents with Verstappen.
This series of events allowed Leclerc into second, with the Briton forced to limit the damage. He closed down Leclerc ahead, who had found himself stuck in traffic of several backmarker cars ahead.
As Norris hunted Leclerc down for second, a moment of oversteer for the Ferrari driver ahead gave Norris an easy path to second position ahead.
While the McLaren driver ate into the gap to Sainz, it wasn’t enough to stop the Spaniard ahead. Yet, Norris was able to prevent a second consecutive Ferrari 1-2 finish in the Americas, finishing second.
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The Final Showdown in Abu Dhabi
For the first time since 2008, it was McLaren and Ferrari fighting for a title. Both teams had experienced an extremely consistent run of form across the year and remained evenly matched.
Starting 21 points ahead into the finale, Ferrari had the uphill task of finishing 1-2 on the road with both McLarens off the podium, to stand any chance of winning a constructors title.
While McLaren’s weekend went smoothly, Ferrari’s weekend was the complete opposite. While Norris headed a McLaren 1-2, Leclerc wound up P14 due to a track limits infringement.
He then dropped down to P19 due to a battery replacement ahead of the weekend. Sainz, on the other hand, would start third, behind both McLarens.
However, once the race started, it would be a very close battle between both teams. Leclerc’s stellar recovery across the race coupled with Piastri’s lap 1 tangle with Verstappen very much kept the championship fight in balance.
With Leclerc recovering to third after the round of pit stops, it was all on Sainz to go and overtake the McLaren ahead. However, despite a brilliant out lap and an undercut, Sainz was unable to close to within DRS range of Norris.
With every passing lap, the chances of a Ferrari championship dwindled. Eventually, Norris won the race, ensuring McLaren took home their first Constructors’ title in a whopping 26 years.
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