Hamilton shambles and Norris milestone - FIVE things you may have missed at the Spanish GP

The Spanish Grand Prix saw Max Verstappen take another win, but again Red Bull’s advantage was only slight with rivals continuing to close in.

The Dutch driver scored his seventh victory in 2024’s ten races, with Lando Norris just a couple of seconds behind and Lewis Hamilton rounding out the podium.

READ MORE: US teen sensation set to REPLACE IndyCar star

Norris started from pole but a poor start saw him slip to third as George Russell swept into the lead, though that lasted mere laps before Verstappen took command.

After that, it was largely an uneventful race, but at GPFans we have been keeping our eyes peeled for some important moments which may have gone under the radar.

Hamilton rejects podium trophy

Hamilton earned his first grand prix podium since Mexico last year with a stellar drive to bring the longest drought of his career to an end in Spain.

It was not the seven-time world champion, though, who was out of practice with the celebrations.

Khalid Al Zamil, Vice President of Public Affairs at race sponsors Aramco, was handing out the trophy for the winning constructor when he incorrectly attempted to present the accolade to Hamilton.

The Brit helpfully pointed the official in the right direction towards the Red Bull team member, and later collected his P3 trophy.

Hamilton was then welcomed back to the podium in fine style by Verstappen and Norris, who immediately took aim at the 39-year-old with their champagne spray.

And it was all… not yellow

There was plenty of yellow in the grandstands in Barcelona, but for the second year running not a single flag of that colour was waved in the race.

A sign of how little action there was, perhaps. Then again, there was some fantastic close racing and sweeping overtakes into turn one which could have brought out the caution with less skilled manoeuvring.

Alex Albon’s trip to gravel late on seemed like a classic yellow flag situation, but maybe the marshals were determined to match last year’s feat.

As well as that, all cars finished the Spain race for a second consecutive year, though some were further back than others…

Sargeant finishes two laps down

Logan Sargeant is the only driver to have been the sole racer to finish two laps down in a grand prix in 2024. In fact, he has now done it twice!

The American was lapped twice by Verstappen at the season opener in Bahrain, and was again on Sunday in Spain.

He was also two laps down in Monaco at the chequered flag, but there he was in good company with five other drivers. No other races have seen the leader lap backmarkers twice, so far.

In the closing laps he was told he could push to the end but responded: “There is nothing left to push.” Little did he know!

Ricciardo hits milestone

Daniel Ricciardo clocked his 250th race entry in Catalunya as the Australian remains on track to crack the top 10 by the end of the season.

He is currently 12th, and fourth of the active drivers, behind Fernando Alonso (390), Lewis Hamilton (342), and Sergio Perez (271).

Evidently, he still has a long way to go to catch those above him, and the trio listed are all certain to be on the grid in 2025, whereas Ricciardo is not.

Still, assuming Ricciardo enters the eight of the remaining 2024 races, he will move into 10th, displacing Jarno Trulli and Riccardo Patrese.

Bittersweet championship improvement for Norris

Lando Norris’ P2 finish saw him move up to second in the drivers’ championship for the first time in his career, but much like his assessment of the race, frustration was his main reaction.

Though the McLaren driver jumped ahead of Charles Leclerc, the gap to leader Verstappen was extended with the Dutchman’s win, and now stands at 69 points.

Zak Brown believes that the championship race is still on, and Norris admitted he has the car to challenge Verstappen, so he will be expecting to slowly close that gap over the summer races.

READ MORE: Where does Red Bull legend Adrian Newey shift to next?

Related

Latest F1 News

F1 champion shares DIM view of team prospects

• June 26, 2024 20:00

F1 Off The Track

Hamilton takes deserved BREAK from racing after Spanish GP

• June 25, 2024 18:00