The Battle For F1’s Best Of The Rest In 2024: Perez, Leclerc And Hamilton

Max Verstappen and Red Bull Racing have been remarkably dominant for three seasons straight and the opening race of 2024 suggested their reign will not end this year. 

Red Bull has by far the most powerful machinery yet again and Verstappen’s fourth world title looks inevitable even at this early stage.

In the opening race at Bahrain, he won by a remarkable 22-second margin and it seems that the front of the grid aside from the three-time world champion will be in a battle to be the best of the rest throughout this season.

Here we will look at the leading candidates to only be beaten by Verstappen in the Drivers’ Championship in 2024. 

Sergio Perez

Red Bull’s 2024 car is a further improvement on last year’s which powered Sergio Perez to a second-placed championship finish.

This has led to him being this year’s clear favorite to finish runner-up again in betting UK as he is offered at -125. Based on the odds calculator this bet would return $18 from a $10 stake. 

Perez won two races last season as whenever his fellow Red Bull driver had an off-day, his car’s power made him the big favorite to secure maximum points. If the points are similarly shared across the team this year then the Mexican will be destined for a comfortable runner-up finish. 

The Mexican is arguably not quite as skilled a driver as some of the Ferrari and Mercedes competitors but it would still be a shock if Red Bull does not secure a one-two finish for 2024. 

Charles Leclerc

Charles Leclerc is the outstanding candidate to potentially disrupt Red Bull’s Formula One monopoly. Ferrari is not quite built to challenge for the Constructors’ Championship yet, but Leclerc will provide a strong horse in the Drivers’ table. He is offered at +300 to accumulate the most points besides Verstappen. 

The Monagesque’s chances of a top-season finish were destroyed by mechanical issues from his team last year and that will need to become a rarer theme if he is to improve on his fifth-placed finish in 2024. 

The opening race in Bahrain this year has seen Leclerc finish in fourth behind his teammate Sainz in third, however, he has proven long-term that he is Ferrari’s most consistent driver throughout a season. Leclerc finished ahead of Sainz in 2023 despite having suffered more early race exits. 

Ferrari certainly has the fastest car behind Red Bull and with Leclerc behind the wheel, they have the ideal formula to push Perez all of the way in the battle to finish directly behind Verstappen at the end of the year. 

Lewis Hamilton

The British legend of the sport is an outside option to finish as the leading driver disregarding the dominant Verstappen. He finished in third place with 234 points in 2023 despite encountering regular issues with his Mercedes. 

Hamilton has shown no signs of significant regression in his ability and – like Leclerc – his chances of becoming the best of the rest in the Drivers’ Championship may rest on the quality and reliability of his car. It is unclear at this stage how much of a strive forward his team has made since last season. 

Ultimately, machinery is expected to be decisive in the battle to be the top driver behind the Dutch reigning champion in 2024.

Perez is expected to take the theoretical crown for being the best of the rest as he has the backing of the leading car. However, Leclerc and Hamilton are remarkably skilled and experienced drivers who will be involved in the battle if their cars are capable when it comes to speed and durability.