Formula 1 is back after the summer break, and next up is Zandvoort for round 15 of what has been an enthralling 2024 season.
We have seen seven different winners in just 14 races, which is in stark contrast to the almost total Red Bull domination last season, and all is up for grabs once again at the Dutch Grand Prix this weekend.
Race preview
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Last time out at Spa-Francorchamps, Lewis Hamilton claimed his 105th career race win after his Mercedes teammate George Russell was disqualified for having an underweight car.
Hamilton, who had initially finished P2, was subsequently promoted to race winner, lifting Oscar Piastri of McLaren into second and Charles Leclerc of Ferrari up to third.
McLaren come into this race with the most optimism and form on their side after the Woking-based team climbed above Ferrari into second in the Constructor Standings, and they now sit just 42 points behind Red Bull.
While Red Bull are still the team to beat, Sergio Perez's performances in particular have led to plenty of speculation about his future, but the car is still supreme in a number of areas and a strong end to 2024 could be set up perfectly with a good result here.
Ferrari have shown promise and disappointment in equal measure this season with the highs of tasting Grand Prix victory in Monaco and the lows of the double DNF in Canada, but the high-downforce nature of Zandvoort could be beneficial for Leclerc and Carlos Sainz to claw back some points on McLaren.
For Mercedes, the team will be bringing their new floor to the race weekend so it will be interesting to see how this affects their on-track performance, especially as they took the race win in Spa having abandoned the upgrade they had initially put on the car.
If we switch our attention to the midfield teams where Aston Martin, Haas and RB will all be vying to come out on top, this could be a fruitful weekend for Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll of Aston Martin, with their results at previous high downforce tracks showing that they could sneak a double-points finish if their performance in Hungary is anything to go by.
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Haas have been the surprise package in recent races though, with Nico Hulkenberg in particular shining for the American team, but the Haas car has not looked as strong running on a higher downforce in the way that RB has with Yuki Tsunoda and Daniel Ricciardo at the helm this season.
For Alpine, Williams and Sauber in particular, this race will be about building the foundations and finding some valuable momentum to take into the 2025 season.
All three teams are some distance away from the midfield trio ahead of them, but Alpine have demonstrated a mini upturn in form as the season has progressed, while the likes of Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu of Sauber and Logan Sargeant of Williams are the only three drivers yet to score a single point this season.
As for the race itself, Zandvoort in 2023 was undoubtedly one of the best races on the calendar, after heavy rain on the opening lap caused chaos and pit stops aplenty.
The entire grid started on dry tyres, but by the end of the first lap the conditions had dramatically worsened leaving some teams to deliberate between staying on dry or switching to the intermediates.
The weather then dried up before another spell of heavy rain in the last 10 laps of the race caused another chain reaction of pit stops, but eventually Max Verstappen would reign supreme, with Alonso and Perez finishing second and third respectively.
Verstappen comes into this weekend's race having won the last three Dutch Grands Prix in a row, with no other driver on the current grid having tasted victory here before.
Track Guide
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Zandvoort is a truly unique circuit; set among the sand dunes and just a stone's throw from the North Sea, the sand often gets whipped up by the wind and deposited on the track which adds to its sense of theatre.
The track is also known for its high-cambered corners, with Turns 3 and 14 featuring 19 and 18-degree banking respectively, leaving little room for error for the drivers as they navigate their way around the circuit.
With winding turns and its undulating layout, Zandvoort is a thrill ride that notoriously causes high degradation on tyres, and its narrow track limits also mean that overtaking chances are generally rare.
But while overtaking is at a premium, Zandvoort is known for being particularly strong for the undercut if timed correctly, as on such a short lap choosing the correct time to avoid coming back out into traffic provides an extra tactical layer on top of the race itself.
Zandvoort is also one of the most high-downforce tracks on the calendar and having recently seen how well the likes of McLaren, Ferrari and Mercedes performed at the Hungaroring and Monaco, the three teams will be confident of once again taking the fight to Red Bull and Max Verstappen at his home race.
While higher downforce setups compromise outright race pace on the straights, the drivers will only be at full throttle for 55% of the lap, meaning most of their lap times will be determined by how well they can manoeuvre the winding turns.
There are two DRS zones here; the straight between Turns 10 and 11 and a lengthy second zone which runs down the majority of the long run to Turn 1, and this is where we are likely to see the most overtaking action.
Zandvoort is also one of the shortest tracks on the calendar too (4.259 km), so fans will be treated to 72 laps of this slaloming circuit, which is a far cry from the 44 we saw last time out at Spa-Francorchamps.
Heading into the race weekend, Pirelli have selected the C1, C2 and C3 compound tyres for the race weekend; the hardest set in the range which owes to the highly-abrasive nature of the circuit.
Driver Standings
1. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) - 277
2. Lando Norris (McLaren) - 199
3. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) - 177
4. Oscar Piastri (McLaren) - 167
5. Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) - 162
6. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) - 150
7. Sergio Perez (Red Bull) - 131
8. George Russell (Mercedes) - 116
9. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) - 49
10. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) - 24
11. Nico Hulkenberg (Haas) - 22
12. Yuki Tsunoda (RB) - 22
13. Daniel Ricciardo (RB) - 12
14. Ollie Bearman (Ferrari) - 6
15. Pierre Gasly (Alpine) - 6
16. Kevin Magnussen (Haas) - 5
17. Esteban Ocon (Alpine) - 5
18. Alex Albon (Williams) - 4
19. Zhou Guanyu (Sauber) - 0
20. Logan Sargeant (Williams) - 0
21. Valtteri Bottas (Sauber) - 0
Constructor Standings
1. Red Bull - 408
2. McLaren - 366
3. Ferrari - 345
4. Mercedes - 266
5. Aston Martin - 73
6. RB - 34
7. Haas - 27
8. Alpine - 11
9. Williams - 4
10. Sauber - 0
We say: Max Verstappen to win
This is an extremely difficult race to call, as the top four teams can all be optimistic that the circuit and correct car setup could suit them, but with home backing we think Max Verstappen will take the race win and extend his lead at the top of the Drivers' Championship.
Although the Dutchman has not won since the Spanish Grand Prix back in June, his new engine alongside recent Dutch Grand Prix history being on his side might just be enough to see him take P1 on Sunday.
