Ferrari’s hopes of a first Formula 1 championship in 16 years took a major blow early during the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix weekend.
Charles Leclerc’s 10-place grid penalty for an energy store change meant that he had no chance of starting inside the top 10 before Qualifying had even got underway.
Carlos Sainz delivered another consistent performance to ensure he would be on the tails of McLaren on race day – who managed to put their cars one-two.
The penalty didn’t count for much after all though, as Leclerc was a shock elimination from Q2 due to a track limits time deletion – and it couldn’t have come at a much worse time.
Charles Leclerc’s form drop-off compared to Carlos Sainz ‘surprising’
Ferrari entered the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix weekend trailing McLaren by a catchable gap of 21 points – albeit they knew that they would have to be the ones with both cars on the podium.
Leaving the Middle East without a title would be disappointing for them and the Tifosi, but their dark horse effort is something to be admired – they changed the narrative of previous seasons.
Speaking on BBC Sport’s Chequered Flag podcast, Jolyon Palmer believes that Leclerc has dropped off towards the end of the season, and the points that he has lost out on may end up costing them.
READ MORE: Juan Pablo Montoya confident of how Carlos Sainz will create ‘a good opportunity’ for Franco Colapinto
“Leclerc’s just dropped away a bit at the end of the season, hasn’t he? It’s been surprising to see Sainz quite often now, leading the line for Ferrari.
“He had a decent drive in Qatar last time out, but he was fighting for second in the drivers’ championship still – Charles Leclerc.
“More and more, we’re seeing Sainz be the lead contender and he had the track limits violation, but he was slower than Sainz anyway at the time in Q2 and has just struggled a little bit for form at the end of the season.”
What was most impressive about Ferrari’s 2024 season?
While their drivers have been solid throughout most of the season, claiming multiple wins in the face of adversity each (namely Sainz’s appendicitis recovery), there have been other impressive aspects.
For the first time in a very long time, Ferrari have proven that they are capable of developing their car in a positive direction across a long 24-race season.
It has led them to a position to possibly end their 24-year championship drought, but there is clearly still a lot of work to do.
READ MORE: Ted Kravitz outlines how Williams must ‘step up’ when Carlos Sainz arrives from Ferrari in 2025
Sainz’s final race in red couldn’t have been set up much better for him before he bids farewell to the team and moves to Williams.
But in the end, falling short means that there is just a little bit more work to do over the winter than usual – considering that they are and were so close in 2024.
