The Australian Grand Prix turned out to be the most thrilling race of the season, with even the strongest teams like Mercedes and Red Bull encountering setbacks that led to their cars retiring from the race. Surprisingly, it was the underdog teams that managed to secure points. As a result, fans are curious to see how this unexpected turn of events has affected the overall driver standings and which drivers managed to secure a spot in the top 5 positions.
ALSO READ: Australian Grand Prix: Why Did Red Bull Get Hit By Grid Penalty?
The show stoppers of the Australian Grand Prix 2024
- Carlos Sainz
Carlos Sainz performed a smooth race after the surgery by winning a podium.
Max Verstappen of Red Bull withdrew from the race around the third lap at the Australian Grand Prix, making way for Sainz to make an incredible comeback of taking the lead.
In the previous 11 months, he and Verstappen are the only two drivers to reach the top step of the podium. Sainz is the only driver who has broken the dominance of Red Bull in the past two seasons. For the first time since 2004, Ferrari finished in P1 and P2.
- Charles Leclerc
Charles Leclerc comes second in the drivers standings after Verstappen giving a tight competition for the Red Bull team. Leclerc has given a solid performance in this season so far.
Leclerc had a wheel-to-wheel race at Melbourne with his teammate and went along defending the two Mclaren’s making way for both the Ferrari’s getting a 1-2 podium finish.
- Lando Norris
The Mclaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri finished third and fourth at the Australian Grand Prix.
Norris had his first podium win for the season at the Australian Grand Prix. It was also the team’s first podium win of the season as well. While the Australian driver, Piastri was disappointed not to have finished on the podium in front of his home audience. McLaren is now in the third position in the constructors’ championship.
- Yuki Tsunoda
Yuki Tsunodo finishes the Australian Grand Prix in P8, which is his best finish of the season so far. Tsunodo and teammate Riccardo were in close battles throughout the previous two races, but Tsunodo finished strong by helping the team win points.
- Nico Hulkenberg
The Haas driver has performed well this season, taking home points in Melbourne and ending in ninth place.
In the last four seasons, Hulkenberg has scored at the Australian Grand Prix. With double points from both cars this season, the Haas team appeared to be improving.
Driver Standings 2024
Here are the driver standings for 2024:
| Position | Driver | Team | Points |
| 1 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | 51 |
| 2 | Sergio Perez | Red Bull | 46 |
| 3 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 46 |
| 4 | Carlo Sainz | Ferrari | 40 |
| 5 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren | 28 |
| 6 | Lando Norris | McLaren | 27 |
| 7 | George Russell | Mercedes | 18 |
| 8 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | 16 |
| 9 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 8 |
| 10 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | 9 |
| 11 | Oliver Bearman | Ferrari | 6 |
| 12 | Yuki Tsunoda | RB | 6 |
| 13 | Nico Hulkenberg | Haas | 3 |
| 14 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas | 1 |
| 15 | Alex Albon | Williams | 0 |
| 16 | Zhou Guanyu | Kick Sauber | 0 |
| 17 | Daniel Ricciardo | RB | 0 |
| 18 | Esteban Ocon | Alpine | 0 |
| 19 | Logan Sargeant | Williams | 0 |
| 20 | Valtteri Bottas | Kick Sauber | 0 |
| 21 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine | 0 |
Fiza is a writer at The Sports Orbit, focusing on F1 coverage. She is currently pursuing her master’s in broadcasting journalism and has a profound love for motorsports. She finds F1 to be the most engaging among others due to its adrenaline rush. She got interested in the sport after watching an F1 race with her brother and uncle, and she’s been hooked ever since. Her favorite team is Mercedes and she is a fan of Lewis Hamilton. Besides her dedication to F1, she enjoys activities like reading, practicing her calligraphy skills, and experimenting with cooking.
