Mount Hood

Mercedes’ hat trick and Max Verstappen’s dominance

Written by: Jaylin Emond-Hardin | Entertainment Editor

Max Verstappen clinched his fourth World Drivers’ Championship this weekend by finishing one place ahead of championship rival Lando Norris. The Dutch driver is the third driver in the last fifteen years to “fourpeat,” and the second Red Bull Racing driver to “fourpeat.” Former racer Sebastian Vettel holds the first of both of these records. 

In April this year, Norris had said, “Verstappen’s dominance could bore fans.” This, of course, was at the beginning of the season, when Verstappen had still been winning every race. Norris had yet to be a championship contender, and would not be one until May, with his maiden win in Miami putting him in second for the championship for the first time in his career. 

From then on, for Norris to be able to win the championship, he needed to finish each Grand Prix ahead of Verstappen, a feat he has rarely been able to do.

It was the Las Vegas Grand Prix that would make or break Norris and Verstappen’s championship dreams.  

Starting in fifth with rival Norris in sixth gave Verstappen an edge to where he could block him from taking the inside line on corners, as well as allowing Verstappen to block any undercutting from the McLaren driver. Undercutting occurs when a driver pits before the car or cars in front to try and gain a position, a strategy favored by McLaren Team Principal Andrea Stella. 

These strategy choices were what allowed Verstappen to maintain his fifth-place position, just one ahead of Norris, and to clinch his fourth championship. 

Las Vegas also meant a hat trick for Mercedes Racing drivers Lewis Hamilton and George Russell. Hamilton and Russell topped all three free practices on Thursday and Friday, giving the pair an edge for qualifying.

While Hamilton struggled to break the top 10 in qualifying, Russell maintained dominance on the track and clinched pole position for Saturday’s race. Starting in pole, or first position, gave Russell an undeniable edge as he was able to lead by a margin of seven seconds.

A one-stop pit-stop strategy brought Hamilton up to second, but with the margin that Russell led by, he couldn’t catch up to his teammate. By the end of the 50-lap race, Russell and Hamilton had maintained their one-two positions, giving Mercedes the double podium.

With the Mercedes double podium, this also meant that the team had clinched a hat trick. With Hamilton and Russell leading in all three free practices, Russell claiming pole position and a Mercedes double podium, the team dominated the Las Vegas Street Circuit. 

Formula One’s last two races of the season are Dec. 1 and Dec. 8, with the drivers traveling to Qatar and Abu Dhabi. While Verstappen has been crowned the World Drivers’ Champion, the Constructors’ Champion — where both drivers’ points combine for a team score — still has yet to be decided. McLaren currently leads with 608 points, with Ferrari just 24 points behind. 

The Qatar and Abu Dhabi Grands Prix will be streaming on ESPN+ and F1 TV. 

Contact the author at howlentertainment@wou.edu

Formula One back in United States for Miami Grand Prix

Written by: Jaylin Hardin | Sports Editor

The Miami Grand Prix hosted a plethora of talent in recent weekends, where Formula One and the Formula One Academy both held their most recent Grands Prix. Both races ended on the podium for McLaren drivers, Lando Norris and Bianca Bustamante — first for Norris and second for Bustamante. However, there is an importance in the presence of the Academy racing in Miami, Florida. 

Historically, there have only been five female drivers in the male-dominated motorsport, and only two have ever completed a Grand Prix or scored points on a Formula One Circuit. 

Competing from 1958 to 1992, these drivers became pioneers in a sport where they were not initially welcomed. 

In 2004, Formula Women was created for female drivers and ran for three seasons before its ultimate cancellation in 2007, and in 2019 the W Series was also introduced, but was once again canceled and cut short after three seasons — both due to financial reasons.

However, following the cancellation of the W Series in 2022, Formula One announced it would be funding its own all-female racing academy, to promote and prepare young drivers for higher levels of competition.

There are currently 15 drivers in the Academy, with three drivers on one of the five teams. Additionally, 10 drivers are sponsored by one of Formula One’s teams, while the five not sponsored by a Formula One team are then sponsored by the series’ partners. 

While the first season’s races were not broadcasted — a decision that received pushback from fans — Formula One Academy received huge support from across the globe, as women and girls were finally able to see representation in the male-dominated sport.

A large contribution came from the Formula One drivers, some including Lewis Hamilton, Charles LeClerc and Lando Norris and their brands promoting their sponsored cadets. These sponsored drivers wear the teams’ livery and colors on their cars, as well as participate in press conferences, media tours and dual race weekends at select tracks. The Miami Grand Prix was one such race weekend.

Both sets of drivers had practice sprints on the track, as well as qualifying races to see where in the grid they would be placed, before it cumulated in the Grand Prix race May 5. The Academy races once more than Formula One does, to give the drivers more experience on the track. 

With Formula One Academy racing at 11 p.m. EST in the final race that Sunday, May 5, they were set well ahead of Formula One’s race that evening at 4 p.m. EST. 

Alpine driver Abbi Pulling went two for two in Miami, pulling ahead of McClaren driver Bustamante by a margin of 3.8 seconds in the final laps. Bustamante was looking to right the mistakes she made in the first race, and ended up creating a seven-poll difference in her results — going from P9 to P2.

McLaren was also extremely successful in the Formula One race later that evening. Drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri began the race in P5 and P6 respectively, and while Piastri failed to finish in the top ten, Norris secured his first win. 

Before the race, it had been 539 days since a non-Red Bull or Ferrari driver had won a Grand Prix, with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen leading the charge in wins, followed closely by Ferrari drivers Carlos Sainz and Charles LeClerc. Sainz is currently not signed to a team for the 2025 season, with Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton signing to Ferrari.

Norris was the only driver in the Formula One circuit to make podium appearances while also having no wins under his belt, a total of 16 appearances. In 2021, after a victory at the Russian Grand Prix slipped through his fingers, fans on Norris’ Instagram dubbed him “Lando NoWins,” a nickname he would ultimately change to “Lando NowWins.”

“About f—–g time! Finally! Finally! I’m so happy,” Norris had cheered to his race engineer. Formula One racers are connected to their engineers via radio comms. Norris is also the first McLaren driver to win in a United States Grand Prix since 2012 — Hamilton was the last driver to do this at the Austin Grand Prix. 

Two teams dropped new livery for the Miami Grand Prix for their vehicles: Scuderia Ferrari and Visa Cash App Red Bull — VCARB. 

On April 23, 2024, Ferrari began teasing their livery reveal by posting images to Instagram of Sainz, LeClerc and their vehicles in a 3D style with the caption “Coming soon.” Other posts soon followed of the team and crew wearing blue uniforms.

However, when the team released images of the livery May 1, fans were less than thrilled. Rather than the all blue car they were expecting, the livery now bore eight blue HP logos in varying sizes. Reactions to the livery varied, but all voiced their disappointment, “Ferrari and disappointing fans – the saga continues,” said Instagram user @desaiiiyash15. “(One) month marketing, (one) million posts, for this…” 

The chameleon livery that VCARB unveiled May 3 received a more positive response from fans of Formula One, the “oil slick” look inspired by the colors of Miami and the chameleon Cash App Visa card. 

“The suits. The livery. VCARB ate everyone up, I fear,” said Instagram user @khemkheang_art21. Many others shared this reaction and suggested the team use the livery for the rest of the season.

While Formula One Academy will not race again until June 21 – 23 in Barcelona, Formula One will be in Emilia-Romagna for the Italian Grand Prix May 24 – 26. Races will stream on the Formula One Network and ESPN+.  

 

Contact the author at howlsports@wou.edu

Verstappen holds off Hamilton to win Austin Grand Prix

Written by: Jaylin Hardin | Sports Editor

Look who’s done it again: Red Bull Formula 1 driver, Max Verstappen. The three time world champion clamped down on 50 career wins following the race on Sunday, Oct. 22 in Austin, Texas. Verstappen recovered from sixth place to steal the lead from McLaren driver, Lando Norris, and held Mercedes driver, Lewis Hamilton, to second place. Norris had managed to get ahead of Charles LeClerc — who drives for Ferrari — on a rundown in Turn One from the beginning and held a two-second lead going into Lap Two. 

Going into Turn Twelve, Verstappen had caught up to the leaders, racing in the fourth place position behind Norris, LeClerc and LeClerc’s teammate, Carlos Sainz. This is where Verstappen made his move to pass Sainz and take the third-place position.

It wasn’t until Lap Eleven that Verstappen was able to overtake LeClerc, once again coming into Turn 12 — this turn being considered the most advantageous turn on the Austin course. By Lap 26, Verstappen was only a second and a half behind Norris. 

In Lap 29, Verstappen took advantage of Norris locking up to drop into Turn 12 and secured the lead for himself — Norris was unable to return to first position for the duration of the race.

Hamilton and Norris were both in close pursuit of Verstappen in Lap 33, and by this point, Verstappen’s teammate, Sergio Perez, was closing in on Sainz to take P4. 

Tire changes for Perez, Sainz and Hamilton in Lap 38 meant the tide could turn for any one of these drivers, some switched their medium tires for hard tires or put on a new set of medium tires — this signifies the amount of grip the tire has and its durability on the track.

Throughout the race, many drivers were issued black and white flags for exceeding track limits, which occurs when drivers go outside the track boundaries or are issued as a stop-and-go penalty in the pits. American driver, Logan Sargeant, was one to receive one of these flags. 

In Lap 46, Hamilton was two and a half seconds behind second-place Norris, but if he wanted to catch up to Verstappen, he would need to up his pace. Aston Martin driver, Fernando Alonso, was forced to retire his vehicle in Lap 50 due to rear suspension failure — he had been in seventh place.

Once he got into second place, it was looking less than likely that Hamilton would be able to overtake Verstappen; there was a five-second gap between the two drivers. The Ferrari drivers battled against each other for position, and Sainz pulled ahead of his teammate at the discretion of the Ferrari team, a decision LeClerc was clearly not happy with. 

Two laps to go and Hamilton had closed the gap between him and Verstappen to two seconds, with Verstappen complaining about braking issues on his vehicle. Hamilton was unable to close this gap, and Verstappen took his third consecutive win at Circuit of the Americas or COTA. Norris followed in third, with Sainz taking fourth and Perez overtaking LeClerc for fifth place.

However, Hamilton and LeClerc were unable to celebrate their positions in the Grand Prix, as both were shortly disqualified for technical breaches. An inspection of the plank wear was carried out on their vehicles after the race and irregularities were spotted — the skids on their tires were not in compliance with Technical Regulations — and they were referred to the stewards.

Both Hamilton and LeClerc sent a representative to see the steward, where they attributed the evident wear on the skid pads to the combination of a bumpy track and the short time between the Sprint race and Grand Prix, making for a unique situation.

The stewards’ job is to ensure that a team’s vehicle is in compliance with regulations at all times during an event. In this case, the rear skid in the Technical Delegate’s report was well outside of the thresholds outlined in the FIA Formula One Technical Regulations, which includes allowances for such wear. 

Hamilton and LeClerc were subsequently disqualified from the Grand Prix, which moved Norris up to second and Sainz to third podium. Sargeant, who drives for Williams Racing, moved to P10 and won his first point on the season. 

Sargeant had initially placed twelfth, which was groundbreaking for the driver, considering he started last. He is also the first American driver to score points in 30 years. Those points were scored by Michael Andretti, son of Mario Andretti, who debuted in Formula One during the 1993 season and had dropped out with three races left

This is Sargeant’s Rookie year, having competed in the Formula 2 circuits for the 2022 season, and initially debuting in Formula 4 for the Winter 2016 season. 

The next Formula 1 races are set for Sao Paulo, Brazil on Nov, 5 at 9 a.m. and Las Vegas, Nevada on Nov. 18 at 10 p.m. Both races will be streaming on ESPN+ and the F1 Network. 

Contact the author at howlsports@wou.edu

Verstappen holds off Hamilton to win Austin Grand Prix

Written by: Jaylin Hardin | Sports Editor

Look who’s done it again: Red Bull Formula 1 driver, Max Verstappen. The three time world champion clamped down on 50 career wins following the race on Sunday, Oct. 22 in Austin, Texas. Verstappen recovered from sixth place to steal the lead from McLaren driver, Lando Norris, and held Mercedes driver, Lewis Hamilton, to second place. Norris had managed to get ahead of Charles LeClerc — who drives for Ferrari — on a rundown in Turn One from the beginning and held a two-second lead going into Lap Two. 

Going into Turn Twelve, Verstappen had caught up to the leaders, racing in the fourth place position behind Norris, LeClerc and LeClerc’s teammate, Carlos Sainz. This is where Verstappen made his move to pass Sainz and take the third-place position.

It wasn’t until Lap Eleven that Verstappen was able to overtake LeClerc, once again coming into Turn 12 — this turn being considered the most advantageous turn on the Austin course. By Lap 26, Verstappen was only a second and a half behind Norris. 

In Lap 29, Verstappen took advantage of Norris locking up to drop into Turn 12 and secured the lead for himself — Norris was unable to return to first position for the duration of the race.

Hamilton and Norris were both in close pursuit of Verstappen in Lap 33, and by this point, Verstappen’s teammate, Sergio Perez, was closing in on Sainz to take P4. 

Tire changes for Perez, Sainz and Hamilton in Lap 38 meant the tide could turn for any one of these drivers, some switched their medium tires for hard tires or put on a new set of medium tires — this signifies the amount of grip the tire has and its durability on the track.

Throughout the race, many drivers were issued black and white flags for exceeding track limits, which occurs when drivers go outside the track boundaries or are issued as a stop-and-go penalty in the pits. American driver, Logan Sargeant, was one to receive one of these flags. 

In Lap 46, Hamilton was two and a half seconds behind second-place Norris, but if he wanted to catch up to Verstappen, he would need to up his pace. Aston Martin driver, Fernando Alonso, was forced to retire his vehicle in Lap 50 due to rear suspension failure — he had been in seventh place.

Once he got into second place, it was looking less than likely that Hamilton would be able to overtake Verstappen; there was a five-second gap between the two drivers. The Ferrari drivers battled against each other for position, and Sainz pulled ahead of his teammate at the discretion of the Ferrari team, a decision LeClerc was clearly not happy with. 

Two laps to go and Hamilton had closed the gap between him and Verstappen to two seconds, with Verstappen complaining about braking issues on his vehicle. Hamilton was unable to close this gap, and Verstappen took his third consecutive win at Circuit of the Americas or COTA. Norris followed in third, with Sainz taking fourth and Perez overtaking LeClerc for fifth place.

However, Hamilton and LeClerc were unable to celebrate their positions in the Grand Prix, as both were shortly disqualified for technical breaches. An inspection of the plank wear was carried out on their vehicles after the race and irregularities were spotted — the skids on their tires were not in compliance with Technical Regulations — and they were referred to the stewards.

Both Hamilton and LeClerc sent a representative to see the steward, where they attributed the evident wear on the skid pads to the combination of a bumpy track and the short time between the Sprint race and Grand Prix, making for a unique situation.

The stewards’ job is to ensure that a team’s vehicle is in compliance with regulations at all times during an event. In this case, the rear skid in the Technical Delegate’s report was well outside of the thresholds outlined in the FIA Formula One Technical Regulations, which includes allowances for such wear. 

Hamilton and LeClerc were subsequently disqualified from the Grand Prix, which moved Norris up to second and Sainz to third podium. Sargeant, who drives for Williams Racing, moved to P10 and won his first point on the season. 

Sargeant had initially placed twelfth, which was groundbreaking for the driver, considering he started last. He is also the first American driver to score points in 30 years. Those points were scored by Michael Andretti, son of Mario Andretti, who debuted in Formula One during the 1993 season and had dropped out with three races left

This is Sargeant’s Rookie year, having competed in the Formula 2 circuits for the 2022 season, and initially debuting in Formula 4 for the Winter 2016 season. 

The next Formula 1 races are set for Sao Paulo, Brazil on Nov, 5 at 9 a.m. and Las Vegas, Nevada on Nov. 18 at 10 p.m. Both races will be streaming on ESPN+ and the F1 Network. 

Contact the author at howlsports@wou.edu

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