Leaving Formula 1’s 2024 Belgian Grand Prix, Mercedes was dealing with the joy of what turned out to be a win after all for long-time race leader Lewis Hamilton, but the hurt (and embarrassment) of losing George Russell’s on-the-road triumph after his one-stop gamble had seemingly paid off.
The main theory as to why Russell’s W15 ended up underweight is included in our regular post-race run down of all the big talking points from each F1 weekend. At Spa, this included all the latest 2025 driver market intrigue, Bruno Famin soon to be departing his position running the Alpine squad and the early expectations of Mattia Binotto’s signing at Sauber.
PLUS: Belgian Grand Prix Driver Ratings 2024
From the race, we learned just how much harder things are for Red Bull at this litmus test track of just how good its RB20 challenger is now relative to the competition and must ask whether Lando Norris has a problem to address regarding race starts.
Here then, is our pick of the storylines from Spa.
1. Another painful mistake costs Mercedes a valuable result
Russell had crossed the line first but a DSQ cost him the result and Mercedes a 1-2
Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images
Mercedes was always set for some angst to follow its stunning Belgian GP 1-2, as long-time leader Hamilton was suddenly beaten by Russell’s strategy gamble. But, instead, he leaves with 105th GP win and Russell had the “heartbreak” of a post-race disqualification.
PLUS: How Russell ‘gut feeling’ Belgian GP strategy led to post-race disappointment
The main theory on why Russell’s car came in 1.5kg down on the minimum weight rule centred on the likelihood his surprise one-stopper meant his tyres wore down and lost so much mass – “around 1kg” per tyre, per Pirelli motorsport boss Mario Isola – that it tripped Mercedes up on its pre-race weight calculations.
Toto Wolff said afterwards his team “clearly made a mistake”. This all calls to mind Hamilton losing his GP second place at Austin last year (along with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc) for Mercedes’ plank weak expectations on that bumpy track being off due to the sprint race weekend meaning it lacked practice data.
The rain at Spa and then the team opting to switch away from its new floor after Friday’s running suggests something similar may have happened again here.
2. Verstappen can’t always recover to Spa victory
Verstappen has charged from lowly positions to victory…
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