After arguably the most controversial race weekend of the season so far, Formula One turns to one of the most iconic locations on the 2024 calendar. São Paulo, Brazil for the final instalment of this triple-header string of race weekends.
Brazil is always a highlight for drivers and fans alike with its incredible history, both classic and modern. Senna's first home Grand Prix victory in 1991, the controversial 2008 finale and Lewis Hamilton's unbelievable last-to-first effort at the 2021 Brazilian Grand Prix. With how 2024 is shaping up, it looks like we could be in for another fantastic race weekend.
Lewis Hamilton, 2008 Brazilian Grand Prix celebrations. Image: Diogo Dubiella on WikiMedia Commons via Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.
Whilst the duo might be friends off the track, there is no correlation when they get behind the wheel. How far will Verstappen push his luck and what will become of his title fight if he continues to break the rules? Could Norris turn the season around?
Lando Norris after the Mexican Grand Prix. Image: Formula One
To become champion in 2024, Norris needs to reduce an intimidating 47-point gap to leader Verstappen. However, whilst this is a big ask of the Papaya driver in four events, the Dutchman has not been immune to reliability and consistency problems this year, so Norris is still well and truly in the fight.
Whatsmore, in the final practice session on Friday, Norris lead a British 1-2-3 with Mercedes' Geroge Russell and Kevin Magnussen's replacement this weekend, Oliver Bearman, filling in the final slot. Norris is looking fired up and ready for a fight. There is no doubt Verstappen is faster than the 15th he managed in FP3, he never put the soft on his RB20 so we will have to wait until Sprint Qualifying gets underway to see his true potential.
Future Audi team member, Rueda talking to then-head of strategy at Mercedes, James Vowles. Image: Formula One
Rueda has been unemployed in the world of Formula One since leaving Ferrari at the end of last season. Rueda will join the Swiss team as a replacement for current strategist, Beat Zehnder, who will be promoted to the new position of Director of Signature Programs and Operations.
Current Haas driver, Nico Hulkenberg, was officially announced back in April as the first driver to be announced for Sauber and then into Audi's Formula One effort in 2026. The speculation has been rising continuously over who will partner with the German, current drivers Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu are not favourites for the seat. Bottas has admitted he ‘can’t do more’ with his Kick Sauber and therefore cannot show why he deserves a seat in 2025.
Kick-Sauber will become Audi in 2026. Image: Formula One
Current Formula 2 championship points leader, Gabriel Bortoleto, is making waves in the paddock with this second Audi seat up for grabs. Talking to the media in Brazil, three-time world champion Max Verstappen had this to say about the future driver lineup at Sauber.
Valtteri Bottas, Zhou Guanyu and Yuki Tsunoda. Image: Red Bull Content Pool / Getty Images
Early on Friday morning, Haas announced Magnussen had become physically unwell and would not be able to compete in the Friday and Saturday sessions. There is hope that the Dane will be able to compete in Sunday's big race, but time will tell.
We want to put some real effort into implementing your ideas where they can be done. To kick this off we will start with a suggestion made by OverTake member Pete Conway. The idea is to run a simple contest around F1 podium predictions. Here are the rules:
If you have any questions please ask in the comments below!
Christopher E - Community Manager
Max Verstappen, Brazil 2024. Image: Red Bull Content Pool / Getty Images
Who are you supporting this weekend? Let us know in the poll above! Make sure to put your podium predictions in the comments below!
Brazil is always a highlight for drivers and fans alike with its incredible history, both classic and modern. Senna's first home Grand Prix victory in 1991, the controversial 2008 finale and Lewis Hamilton's unbelievable last-to-first effort at the 2021 Brazilian Grand Prix. With how 2024 is shaping up, it looks like we could be in for another fantastic race weekend.
Lewis Hamilton, 2008 Brazilian Grand Prix celebrations. Image: Diogo Dubiella on WikiMedia Commons via Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.
Can Lando realistically beat Max Verstappen?
To nobody's surprise, it was Max Verstappen and Lando Norris’s Forza Motorsport open-lobby-style clash in Mexico which has been the talk of the town in Sao Paulo. This follows an incident-packed trip to Austin, Texas the week before.Whilst the duo might be friends off the track, there is no correlation when they get behind the wheel. How far will Verstappen push his luck and what will become of his title fight if he continues to break the rules? Could Norris turn the season around?
Lando Norris after the Mexican Grand Prix. Image: Formula One
To become champion in 2024, Norris needs to reduce an intimidating 47-point gap to leader Verstappen. However, whilst this is a big ask of the Papaya driver in four events, the Dutchman has not been immune to reliability and consistency problems this year, so Norris is still well and truly in the fight.
Whatsmore, in the final practice session on Friday, Norris lead a British 1-2-3 with Mercedes' Geroge Russell and Kevin Magnussen's replacement this weekend, Oliver Bearman, filling in the final slot. Norris is looking fired up and ready for a fight. There is no doubt Verstappen is faster than the 15th he managed in FP3, he never put the soft on his RB20 so we will have to wait until Sprint Qualifying gets underway to see his true potential.
Kick-Sauber restructure in preparation for Audi takeover in 2026
Ex-Ferrari Head of Race Strategy and Sporting Relations, Inaki Rueda, will join the Kick-Sauber team in 2025 as part of the team’s ongoing restructuring in preparation for the team to morph into Audi’s Formula 1 team when the new rules come into play for the 2026 season.Future Audi team member, Rueda talking to then-head of strategy at Mercedes, James Vowles. Image: Formula One
Rueda has been unemployed in the world of Formula One since leaving Ferrari at the end of last season. Rueda will join the Swiss team as a replacement for current strategist, Beat Zehnder, who will be promoted to the new position of Director of Signature Programs and Operations.
Current Haas driver, Nico Hulkenberg, was officially announced back in April as the first driver to be announced for Sauber and then into Audi's Formula One effort in 2026. The speculation has been rising continuously over who will partner with the German, current drivers Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu are not favourites for the seat. Bottas has admitted he ‘can’t do more’ with his Kick Sauber and therefore cannot show why he deserves a seat in 2025.
Kick-Sauber will become Audi in 2026. Image: Formula One
Current Formula 2 championship points leader, Gabriel Bortoleto, is making waves in the paddock with this second Audi seat up for grabs. Talking to the media in Brazil, three-time world champion Max Verstappen had this to say about the future driver lineup at Sauber.
Valtteri Bottas, Zhou Guanyu and Yuki Tsunoda. Image: Red Bull Content Pool / Getty Images
Kevin Magnussen to miss Brazilian sprint race.
Danish Haas driver, Kevin Magnussen, is due to miss out on all of Friday's free practice running as well as Saturday's sprint race at the Brazilian Grand Prix this weekend. Haas' young reserve driver Oliver Bearman will take the wheel of Magnussen's VF-24 for those two days.Early on Friday morning, Haas announced Magnussen had become physically unwell and would not be able to compete in the Friday and Saturday sessions. There is hope that the Dane will be able to compete in Sunday's big race, but time will tell.
When to watch the Grand Prix
| Session | Date | Time (UTC) |
|---|---|---|
| Free practice 1 | Friday 1 November | 13:30 - 14:30 |
| Sprint qualifying | Friday 1 November | 17:30 - 18:14 |
| Sprint race | Saturday 2 November | 13:00 - 14:00 |
| Qualification | Saturday 2 November | 17:00 - 18:00 |
| Race | Sunday 3 November | 16:00 |
Your chance to win
It's always super cool to see new ideas and suggestions pop up here in informal chats and forum posts. We are excited to start implementing some of your creative thinking, because after all this is a community, and more importantly your community!We want to put some real effort into implementing your ideas where they can be done. To kick this off we will start with a suggestion made by OverTake member Pete Conway. The idea is to run a simple contest around F1 podium predictions. Here are the rules:
Points system:
There will be 10 points awarded for guessing the right position and the correct name and 5 points for guessing the right name, but the wrong position. The table above is purely to illustrate how it works (Mexico has been used as an example) At the end of the season we will award the overall winner one year of Premium membership here on OverTake worth €12.99!If you have any questions please ask in the comments below!
Christopher E - Community Manager
Max Verstappen, Brazil 2024. Image: Red Bull Content Pool / Getty Images
Who are you supporting this weekend? Let us know in the poll above! Make sure to put your podium predictions in the comments below!
