Can Charles Leclerc Challenge Max Verstappen for the 2024 F1 Championship After Monaco GP Triumph?

After Red Bull unveiled the RB20, everyone thought that the driver’s championship and the constructor’s championship for the 2024 season were over. Adrian Newey seemed to have made a car that took inspiration from Mercedes’ Zeropods and seemed to have made it work. These concerns were further confirmed after the first couple of races, where Max Verstappen absolutely dominated.

Carlos Sainz, however, sneaked in a win at the Australian GP, but that was because of Max Verstappen retiring. The Dutchman dominated the next couple of races in Japan and China, but the Miami GP brought an eye-opening revelation that the Red Bull was not unbeatable like the 2023 season. The RB20 seems to have some weaknesses. Lando Norris won in Miami and came within a second of taking it all away from Verstappen in Imola.

And now, Charles Leclerc has won the Monaco GP and is closer to the Dutchman than he ever was in a championship. 8 rounds into the championship, the gap between the two is less than what it was during the 2022 season. The Monegasque and Ferrari seem to have come alive at the Monaco GP with the win in the upgraded Ferrari. Is there any hope for Charles Leclerc to win the 2024 championship? 

Max Verstappen and Red Bull’s Downfall Since Miami GP

Christian Horner’s investigation is believed to have caused a lot of upsets within Red Bull. Adrian Newey announced his exit from the team coming into the Miami GP. Although Max Verstappen took the pole position in Miami, he was not happy with the grip and balance of the car. Come Sunday, the race day, Max Verstappen struggled in the latter parts of the race. While Lando Norris did get lucky with the safety car, he pulled away from the Dutchman on pure pace in the latter half of the race as Verstappen struggled with rear grip.

Imola seemed like a slam dunk win for Verstappen but in the last 15 laps, the Dutchman started to lose temperatures in his tires, whereas Lando Norris came alive. Another lap or two in the race and the Brit would’ve overtaken the Red Bull. The Monaco GP, however, was the worst of the last 3 races for Verstappen. Throughout the weekend, the Dutchman was complaining about the car being too stiff, lack of grip and power. The RB20 just didn’t seem to work.

As a result, Verstappen qualified P6 and finished the race in the same position. The upgrades brought by Red Bull in Imola seem to have made the car worse in terms of drivability and the championship leader just doesn’t seem to find the right balance and setup. Adrian Newey is no longer involved in the F1 project and it is now up to Pierre Wache and Co. to find a solution to these issues. Ferrari and McLaren, on the other hand, seem to have found the sweet spot in terms of performance and drivability and pose a threat to Red Bull. Let’s see what the upgrades have done for Ferrari.

Charles Leclerc and Ferrari are on the move with the upgraded SF-24

Ferrari was left behind after McLaren brought the major upgrades to the Miami GP. Fortunately, the Maranello-based team had a huge upgrade coming at the Imola GP. The upgrades were so big that many are considering the SF-24 with the upgrades as the SF-24 Evo. The package is believed to have helped Ferrari find 3–4 tenths of performance. And while it wasn’t visible at Imola, it was just Ferrari’s first weekend with the upgrades.

The Italian team seems to have optimized the upgrades coming into Monaco and took the pole position with 2 2-tenths gap to Piastri in P2. Even in race trim, while most of the race Leclerc was managing the pace, towards the end we saw the real pace as he opened up an 8-second gap to Piastri within a few laps. Both the Ferrari drivers finished the race on the podium, with Leclerc taking the win.

With the way McLaren, Ferrari, and Red Bull are set up, the performance varies depending on the layout of the track. Ferrari is great around track with slow-speed corners and technical zones whereas McLaren performs well around the track with high-speed corners. Red Bull so far has been a car that is efficient at everything but not the best at one particular thing. Keeping all these factors in mind, is it possible for Charles Leclerc to beat Max Verstappen in the championship?

Charles Leclerc on Max Verstappen’s Tail with two-thirds of the season remaining

A third into the 2024 season championship, the gap between Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen is just 31 points. Ferrari and Red Bull are even closer in the constructors championship, with only 24 points separating the Scuderia from the championship leaders. Red Bull hasn’t been the strongest with development so far this year, whereas Ferrari has made major steps with its upgrades.

If this trend continues for the rest of the season, it wouldn’t even be a walk in the park for Ferrari and Charles Leclerc to take the championship lead away from Verstappen and Red Bull before winning the title. However, if Christian Horner and Co. are able to find their way back and Ferrari continues on the same path, it is guaranteed to be a close fight to the end of the season. 

Ferrari improved on their weakness around high-speed corners with the new upgrade package that added 15 downforce points to the car, which will make them competitive around a variety of tracks. Charles Leclerc needs to drive every weekend like Monaco, with zero mistakes and a perfect strategy. If he does, he’s definitely in with a shot to beat Max Verstappen and win his first-ever F1 World Championship.

What are your thoughts on this? Do you think Charles Leclerc and Ferrari can win it all this year? Let us know in the comments.