The 2024 F1 season kicks off in Bahrain on Saturday, and iconic commentator Martin Brundle now gets a sneak peek at what could happen in the next 24 races of the year.
Martin Brundle has stated that Red Bull will once again compete with Ferrari for the 2024 F1 title.
The new season kicks off in Bahrain this weekend. Max Verstappen is the reigning World Champion and he is aiming for four consecutive titles.
Red Bull are also chasing their triple crown. Sky Sports pundit Brendel revealed in making the ** that the defending champions are once again his favourite, but will be heavily pushed by Ferrari.
"At the moment it seems that Red Bull and Ferrari are in hot pursuit, similar to our results last year," he said. Then, based on what I learned after talking to different people after the test, it was Mercedes, Aston Martin and McLaren who were very close and all three wanted to chase Ferrari closely.
Alpine and Haas seem to be in trouble. Williams is doing just fine, but hasn't taken the step they want to make yet, and it's essential to understand their new car.
Then you'll see that the RB and Sauber teams look very convenient and they might join them. So that looks like our priority going into the start of the season. ”
In addition to the Constructors' Championship, there is a lot of talk about the current drivers and their futures. The headliner this term is Lewis Hamilton, who is on the verge of completing a sensational transfer to Ferrari.
Brendel believes that the upcoming transfer could give Mercedes teammate George Russell a chance to shine, and the German team may prioritise him. He added: "George is going to come out of Lewis's shadow and to be honest, I think it's going to do him a lot of good.
I think the whole situation will also breathe life into Mercedes because they can bring in young gunners and work for the future. I'm guessing they'll do it in 2025, but who knows. ”
In addition to Hamilton's future, Blundell is also looking forward to a lot of surprises across the track. He praised McLaren stars Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri as a "wonderful combination" and expected the duo to "push each other".
He also expects Carlos Sainz to do "big things" in his final year at Ferrari. Blundel believes he can be a "free spirit" all season, as long as he doesn't "despair" to prove that the Italian team was wrong to let him go.
Another person who needs to prove is Sergio Pérez. Blundell hopes he can regain confidence and form ahead of the campaign.
Blundell also expressed his thoughts on the rest of the squad and that they may not challenge for the Drivers' Championship. He stated that if Williams does not make significant progress, Alex Albon may question his future with Williams.
Finally, he also spoke openly about Daniel Ricardo and Fernando Alonso. Blundell questioned whether the former had regained his "magic", while also asking if Alonso was still motivated to compete in the over-40s.
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