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Max Verstappen claimed his 4th consecutive drivers' title arsenic George Russell won the Las Vegas Grand Prix connected Sunday.
Lewis Hamilton finished 2nd to marque it a Mercedes one-two, with McLaren's Lando Norris sixth - a effect which ended his rubric hopes.
There are 2 races to go, successful Qatar and Abu Dhabi, with the constructors' title inactive to beryllium decided. Ferrari person narrowed the spread connected leaders McLaren to 24 points.
BBC F1 analogous Andrew Benson answers your questions going into this weekend's Qatar Grand Prix.
Like Sebastian Vettel, Max Verstappen is simply a four-time champion, all-time large racer, grounded, funny, thoughtful, normal, eloquent, but ever formed arsenic the villain. Why? - Nick
Max Verstappen is so an all-time large connected the way and disconnected it. Yes, helium is besides grounded, funny, thoughtful, mean and eloquent, on with a fig of different likeable characteristics. "A large guy", arsenic Lando Norris enactment it earlier this year.
At the aforesaid time, determination is nary question that Verstappen is an uncompromising racer, and that successful definite circumstances helium drives successful a mode that immoderate radical find unacceptable.
For an example, look backmost to the interrogation helium did with BBC Sport astatine the opening of the Las Vegas weekend, successful which helium said helium would never fto anyone overtake him astir the outside.
Verstappen is fundamentally saying determination that if idiosyncratic tries to overtake him astir the outside, helium would consciousness entitled to propulsion them disconnected the track. For him, that is simply a perfectly acceptable approach.
Many drivers and different radical experienced successful F1 would not find that an acceptable attitude. People consciousness that overtaking astir the extracurricular should beryllium possible, if the operator trying it has got his car into the close position, and pushing idiosyncratic disconnected conscionable due to the fact that they are having a spell should not beryllium allowed.
If Verstappen is painted arsenic a villain successful immoderate quarters - and it's hard for maine to judge, due to the fact that I don't bash it - it's astir apt due to the fact that of this attack to racing.
Verstappen admits that helium is 2 antithetic radical successful and retired of the car.
Is this Max Verstappen's astir awesome rubric triumph yet? With an inferior car for overmuch of the year, helium has consistently maximised his results. – Ieuan
The reply to questions specified arsenic this is ever going to beryllium subjective. And that's summed up successful 1 of Verstappen's answers successful his post-race quality league successful Las Vegas connected Saturday night.
It was enactment to him that this was his astir awesome title yet, and helium said: "I deliberation truthful too."
But the reply was much nuanced than that - helium made it wide helium was not saying helium felt it was his champion season.
"Last twelvemonth I had a ascendant car," Verstappen said. "But I ever felt not everyone appreciated what we achieved arsenic a team.
"Of people the car was dominant, but it wasn't arsenic ascendant arsenic radical thought it was. So that for definite is my champion play due to the fact that adjacent if, successful places, we didn't person the champion set-up, successful the races we were inactive susceptible to win.
"But I americium besides precise arrogant of this play due to the fact that - I would accidental for 70% of the play - we didn't person the fastest car but really we inactive extended our lead."
The world is that Verstappen has been driving astatine an incredibly precocious level for a agelong clip present - and you tin day it backmost to 2018.
He went done a tricky clip astatine the commencement of that year, making mistakes successful the archetypal six races of the season, culminating successful a clang successful Monaco last signifier that prevented him taking portion successful qualifying, erstwhile helium had been looking arsenic if helium mightiness predominate the weekend.
Inevitably, that led to questions arsenic to whether helium needed to alteration his approach, and his nationalist effect astatine the adjacent contention successful Canada was to say: "I get bushed of the questions. If I get a fewer more, I mightiness headbutt someone."
But that contention was a turning point. Verstappen added much power to his driving, dialled it backmost a bit, and helium has been outstanding ever since portion retaining his aggravated competitiveness.
So, portion past twelvemonth helium had a ascendant car, it was 1 his team-mate Sergio Perez made look ordinary.
But to clasp that level of power and consistency successful a play successful which Verstappen did not person the champion car for overmuch of it - and helium was defending a pb - is highly impressive.
Do you deliberation Lando Norris and McLaren are accordant capable to equine a season-long rubric situation adjacent year? – Ed
Norris surely thinks so.
"Next twelvemonth we volition spell into the play with a car we deliberation we tin triumph the title with from the archetypal race, and I'm precise excited for that."
Norris insists helium "has what it takes" but admits helium has "some things to enactment on, for sure".
The aforesaid applies to McLaren.
In Las Vegas squad main Andrea Stella reflected connected McLaren's season. "If we region the archetypal fewer races of the play earlier the Miami upgrade, we spot we person a trajectory from a drivers' title constituent of presumption that means Lando could vie with Max," helium said.
"This is 1 of the unthinkable achievements we person to positively admit astatine McLaren, reasoning of wherever we were adjacent 18 months ago.
"I'm precise arrogant of however rapidly Lando is picking up from the situations helium experiences connected and, to immoderate extent, adjacent disconnected way to go a amended and amended driver.
"I americium not definite this is acknowledged capable externally. There is much acknowledgment of the missed opportunities, alternatively than recognising that Lando is connected a beardown trajectory and helium was successful a condition, erstwhile McLaren had the material, to triumph races to support the gait with Verstappen."
It's present up to McLaren and Norris to beryllium they tin bash it implicit a full play - arsenic a squad to commencement the twelvemonth with a competitory car and support it done 24 races, and for Norris to effort to rise his crippled to Verstappen's level.
When was the past clip a drivers' title was won without the fastest car connected play average? - Juha
This is simply a truly hard question to answer, due to the fact that however bash you specify what is the fastest car? You tin look astatine mean qualifying show for the fastest car outright implicit 1 lap, but that is not ever the aforesaid arsenic the fastest car successful the race. And what astir the operator factor, and however overmuch quality that makes?
On that basis, the question contains an incorrect assumption. It implies that the Red Bull has not been the fastest car connected mean successful qualifying truthful acold successful 2024. But really it has - by 0.078 seconds.
However, that fig is skewed by Red Bull’s domination of the aboriginal races. Because if you instrumentality the mean lone from Miami onwards, erstwhile McLaren introduced their large upgrade that transformed their pace, the McLaren is fastest, by 0.038secs.
And implicit the 2nd fractional of the season, that fig goes up to 0.124secs.
Anyway, the reply to the past clip a a operator won the rubric successful a car that was not the fastest implicit 1 thigh is 2021, erstwhile the Mercedes was a interaction faster than Verstappen’s Red Bull.
Before that, it's 2012. Which is an reply that mightiness astonishment you, astatine slightest successful immoderate ways.
The title conflict that twelvemonth was betwixt Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel and Ferrari's Fernando Alonso. And it is rightly hailed arsenic Alonso's top season, for taking the rubric to the last contention successful what was the 4th fastest car, and lone losing retired due to the fact that helium was taken retired done nary responsibility of his ain astatine the commencement of 2 abstracted races.
Actually, though, portion the Red Bull was considerably faster than the Ferrari, the fastest car connected mean successful qualifying was the McLaren - but their mediocre reliability scuppered Lewis Hamilton’s hopes.
What changed with the Mercedes for Lewis Hamilton to spell from hating it successful Sao Paulo to loving it successful Las Vegas? - James
It's a truly bully question, and neither Hamilton nor Mercedes look to truly cognize the answer. After all, George Russell qualified connected the beforehand enactment successful some races.
When Hamilton has struggled this twelvemonth helium has talked astir lacking assurance successful the rear of the car. That’s what happened successful Brazil again.
He said astatine the commencement of the Las Vegas weekend: "If the squad springiness america a car that doesn't privation to propulsion itself off, I volition person a bully weekend. On the simulator, it doesn't bash that. I drove the simulator with the set-up I had worked to person (in Brazil) and it was rapid, and we conscionable request to cognize wherefore it is not reflecting connected Saturday."
He did not person this occupation successful Las Vegas - but helium did messiness up his qualifying by making mistakes connected some his laps successful the last session. This was reflective of the information Hamilton has struggled successful qualifying compared to Russell successful 2024.
The feeling is that Hamilton is pushing excessively hard successful these last moments successful qualifying, and that the existent ground-effect cars don't respond good to an assertive driving style, which is Hamilton's earthy way.
Fernando Alonso has besides commented connected this, saying it's sometimes amended to thrust conscionable nether the bounds due to the fact that it keeps the car’s aerodynamic level much stable, and is truthful faster.
At the aforesaid time, mostly speaking, the Mercedes has a weakness successful slower corners. Turning it requires the drivers to descent the rear and that generates higher tyre temperatures. And Hamilton has struggled with that much than Russell.
Fundamentally, Hamilton has been speedy this twelvemonth erstwhile the car has been to his liking and he's been comfy with it - specified arsenic successful Silverstone, Spa - some of which helium won - and present Las Vegas, which helium mightiness good person won but for his qualifying errors.
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