Verstappen wins by 0.725 seconds, Norris records McLaren’s best Imola result in 21 years and Alonso records the worst finish of his 23-year F1 career. Here are the facts and statistics from the 2024 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.
VERSTAPPEN WINS THE 2024 EMILIA ROMAGNA GRAND PRIX
Max Verstappen claimed the 59th victory of his Formula 1 career at the 2024 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.
Verstappen was under increasing pressure from Lando Norris towards the end of the race and ultimately won by 0.725 seconds – the third smallest winning margin in Imola’s history on the F1 calendar.
This was the smallest winning margin since Verstappen won the 2023 Australian Grand Prix – which finished behind the Safety Car – by 0.179 seconds. The last closer finish under green flag conditions was at the 2022 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, which Verstappen also won, by 0.594 seconds.
This was Verstappen’s third consecutive Imola win, having also won the 2021 and 2022 Emilia Romagna Grands Prix. He equalled Michael Schumacher as the driver to have won the most consecutive Imola races. Schumacher won three races in a row here between 2002 and 2004.
Red Bull equalled the record for the most consecutive team wins at Imola, tying Williams – from 1995 to 1997 – and Ferrari – from 2002 to 2004.
Verstappen became the fourth driver – after Ayrton Senna, Alain Prost and Michael Schumacher – to have won as many as three races at Imola.
Verstappen’s win saw him record the 104th podium finish of his F1 career, overtaking Kimi Raikkonen for sixth on the list of most top three results in the sport.
The 2024 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix marked Verstappen’s 32nd win from pole position. He overtook Sebastian Vettel for third on the list of most victories from pole position.
Italy becomes the fourth country – after Austria, Mexico and the United States – in which Verstappen has taken five race victories.
The Imola race was the 14th consecutive race in which Verstappen led a lap. This is only the fifth time in Formula 1 that a driver has led a lap in 14 successive races. Verstappen is the first driver to achieve the feat since Lewis Hamilton in 2020.
ON THE PODIUM
Lando Norris finished on the podium for a third consecutive Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.
Norris was voted Driver Of The Day for a third consecutive race, equalling the record for most consecutive Driver Of The Day wins.
Norris recorded McLaren’s best result at Imola since Kimi Raikkonen finished as runner-up in the 2003 San Marino Grand Prix.
Finishing third, Charles Leclerc became the first Ferrari driver to finish on the podium at Imola since Michael Schumacher won the 2006 San Marino Grand Prix.
This was Leclerc’s fourth podium finish – and the third time he has finished third – in 2024.
Leclerc became the 40th different driver to finish on the podium in Imola’s F1 history.
The 2024 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix is the 100th race weekend at which Leclerc has scored a point. He is the 20th driver to have scored points in 100 Grands Prix.
All of the top three starters finished in the same position as they started. This was the third race at Imola – after the 1988, 1992 and 2002 San Marino Grands Prix – in which this has occurred.
Both scoring points for the fourth time in four appearances, Charles Leclerc and Lando Norris usurped Didier Pironi as the drivers who’ve made the most starts at Imola without ever failing to score a point.
IN THE POINTS
Oscar Piastri picked up points for the sixth time in the seven Grands Prix so far. His fourth place finish in the 2024 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix equalled his best result of the season to date, having also finished fourth in the Saudi Arabian and Australian Grands Prix.
Carlos Sainz recorded a third consecutive fifth place finish. He is now the only driver who has finished in the top five in every race which he has started in 2024.
Lewis Hamilton finished sixth for a second consecutive race having not finished in the top six in any of the previous eight Grands Prix.
With Hamilton sixth and George Russell seventh, this was Mercedes’ first double points scoring race at Imola since their 1-2 finish in the 2020 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.
Sergio Perez finished eighth in the 2024 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, recording his first finish outside of the top five since his retirement at the 2023 Las Vegas Grand Prix.
With Max Verstappen winning and Sergio Perez finishing eighth, the 2024 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix was the 50th consecutive race weekend at which Red Bull have scored a point. Red Bull are only the fourth team – after Ferrari, McLaren and Mercedes – to have scored at 50 races in a row.
After the 2024 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, Red Bull lead the Constructors’ Championship for the 115th time. That sees them equal Williams as the team who’ve led the title race on the fourth most occasions.
Lance Stroll finished ninth at the 2024 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, scoring points for the third time this season. He last scored at the Australian Grand Prix.
With Lando Norris having finished where he started, Lance Stroll is now the only driver to have gained places from where he started in all four of the Imola races since F1’s return to the track in 2020.
Finishing tenth in the 2024 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, Yuki Tsunoda picked up a point for the fourth time in the last five races.
This was the fourth consecutive Emilia Romagna Grand Prix in which the Red Bull junior team has scored a point – though it’s the first time since 2006 that neither driver has finished in the top seven at the track.
THE OTHER FINISHERS
Neither Haas driver scored a point in the 2024 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. However, for only the second time this year – after their double points finish at the Australian Grand Prix – both Nico Hulkenberg and Kevin Magnussen finished in the top twelve.
Magnussen made up six places in the race – the most positions gained of any driver. This is the first time Magnussen has made up as many as six positions since the 2022 British Grand Prix, when he gained seven places.
For the sixth time in the seven races so far this season, both Alpine drivers finished outside of the points in the 2024 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.
Zhou Guanyu finished 15th – the second time he has done so in his two F1 appearances at Imola.
Logan Sargeant finished 17th in the 2024 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. He has finished 17th in all of the last three races in which he has reached the chequered flag.
Finishing 19th after his pit lane start, Fernando Alonso failed to score points for the first time in 2024. This was Alonso’s first point-less race since retiring from the 2023 Mexico City Grand Prix.
This is the first time in his Formula 1 career that Alonso has finished a race in a position outside of the top 17. He has recorded four 17th place finishes in his career to date.
ALBON THE ONLY RETIREMENT
Alex Albon was the only driver to retire from the 2024 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. This was Albon’s second retirement of the season, after his first lap DNF at the Japanese Grand Prix.
This was the first time Albon failed to reach the chequered flag in his three appearances at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. It was Williams’ fourth DNF in the last four Imola races.
This was the first time there has not been a retirement within the first 24 laps of a Formula 1 race at Imola.
This was the first race to feature no Safety Car, Virtual Safety Car or Red Flag periods since the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix.
