Ferrari were the team to beat in Mexico, with Carlos Sainz claiming a commanding victory in the SF-24. As Ferrari inch closer to McLaren in the constructors’ standings, Charles Leclerc is also hopeful of passing Norris in the drivers’ Championship.
Leclerc: Norris is a realistic target
The Mexico GP confirmed that Ferrari’s COTA victory was a sign of things to come. Following the SF-24’s latest upgrades, the Maranello-produced car is dictating the pace.
To be clear, McLaren are still a significant threat to the Scuderia. Norris pressured Leclerc into a mistake before making notable progress on Sainz in the final laps.
Regardless, Leclerc and teammate Sainz have a race-winning car at their disposal.
Speaking after his Mexico podium, Leclerc responded to a question about his prospects in the drivers’ standings:
“I welcome Max being as aggressive to Lando as possible,” he said in the FIA Press Conference.
“Because it helps me, at least it gives me chances to be closer to Lando in the Drivers’ Championship because it’s still a fight.
“If anything, it’s more a fight, Lando and myself, than with Max that has quite a lot of advantages in points.
“On my side, I don’t think about the Drivers’ Championship, realistically…
“I’ll just try and do the best possible end of the season, and then we’ll do the math at the end of the season.”
Leclerc is only 24 points behind Norris in the standings – with the Briton himself only 47 points away from Verstappen.
The margin for error has become smaller and smaller throughout the 2024 season. With two of the remaining four race weekends to feature Sprint races, plenty of points are still up for grabs.
Ferrari are in a very strong position, both in terms of absolute performance and in the Championship.
Given that McLaren and Red Bull have introduced upgrades more recently than Fred Vasseur’s team, the SF-24 will likely be the benchmark for the rest of 2024.
