I thought I would introduce something different and new to the blog this year. I want to be less afraid to be myself and to talk about one of my loves which is Formula One. I know and appreciate this isn’t going to be for everyone, but it isn’t going to become just a F1 blog, I promise you. I just wanted to talk about something I’m passionate about and to introduce a different side of me, that I hope many people will like and engage with. I was and a part of me is still looking forward to this season however, I must admit with the drama surrounding Lewis’s move from Mercedes, I feel like everyone is already so focused on next season, that this season is being overshadowed. I think there is still a lot of excitement to be had, especially when there is a lot of driver’s contracts ending and it will be a case of who is staying, who is going, who may even be returning. Will Red Bull dominate this season again or will they have a fight on their hands? What will Haas be like without Gunther Steiner? Luckily we don’t have too long to wait till the season kicks off with the cars now revealed, testing the cars and also the next series of Drive To Survive launching just round the corner.
Anyways, with all the cars now been revealed, I thought it would be cool to rate this seasons cars from least to most favourite. With a few name changes and a few new looks, there have been some questionable decisions I’m not going to lie and a few surprises. Some I never thought I would rank so highly as well. So without further ado let’s get started with the worst car this year..
10. Visa Cash App RB
What a mouthful this is. I hate the name and I hate the car. Who’s idea was this? I was so hoping that maybe the car wouldn’t be as bad as the name, but it is. To me the new identity just looks really plastic and fake. I kind of feel bad for saying this with me being a Red Bull fan and this being their sister team, but I have to be fair and I can’t place this any higher up. The only thing I can commend them on is the fact that it is one of the cars with the most colour. I just keep referring back to the name though and have to say it probably goes down as the worst name in F1 history. Good luck to the commentators who have to say this every time some action happens, lets hope the car performs better than it looks.
9. Aston Martin
Aston Martin launched their car reveal from the Silverstone headquarters which sports a British racing green livery and an underwhelming one at that. I suppose I should start off with a positive, I do like the shade of green they have used, a colour that still remains true to themselves and they haven’t followed the trend of having more black. When you compare last seasons car and this one, it is quite clear that they have unfortunately lost a few sponsors. Although this car looks exactly the same as last years, you can see some slight changes like the sidepods look slightly bigger and the changing of the rear and front wings, so maybe I have been a bit harsh with where I’ve placed the car. I’m not sure if this will change Stroll’s ability to perform though.
8.Williams
Launched in New York, we have the Williams. I’m not a fan of this design at all, I can’t help but find it a bit boring and disappointing. I think every now and again more of a change is needed and unfortunately I think this is the case that needs to happen with the Williams. One thing I will say though, I really like how they’ve incorporated Duracell into their design, it’s very clever and a part of the design that does stand out on the car. Again, like Haas, it is nice to see Williams with some sponsors on the car, however I think I preferred the overall look of last seasons car with the brighter blue. It’s not the best but it isn’t the worst of the bunch. I do hope they manage to get more points then last season though, it would be good to see some improvement as I do really like James Vowles.
7. Haas
The first of the 10 to be revealed was the Haas car, I guess it was only fair that they were first at something. It’s nice to see the car looking not as plain as in recent years. The overall look is clean and looks like a car that is not to be messed with. Although I’m not sure if this will be the case, at least it will be something nice to look at for the other 18 drivers to pass around the track. Yes, I am giving the team some abuse but I do actually think this is a nice looking car. Although there seems to be some very torn views on carbon black, I like that this is the overall focus colour with a hint of red and white. It suits the brand and finally looks like a complete car. The real question on everyone’s minds is Haas it got quicker?
6. Sauber
Next we have the next contender from Sauber, or shall we say Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber, or the Ben10 car I’ve seen people call it, but I’ll be honest I prefer Sauber on its own. I don’t know what I was expecting with the new era but I was pleasantly surprised and wasn’t expecting this. I actually love the bright green and think that overall it looks very fresh and I appreciate the boldness. It’s great to see a team not to shy away from colour, and it certainly won’t be hard to spot the 2 cars on the track that’s for sure. I think this looks way better than the Alfa Romeo previously, although I understand I’m probably in the minority. Lets just hope they can bounce back from a disappointing ninth-place finish in the constructors’ championship this season.
5. Ferrari
With claims that every single area of the car is redesigned, we have the new Ferrari and I must admit, I do really like it. I wish they had stuck with the previous shade of red, however I don’t have a problem with this deeper colour either. The 2024 challenger sounds promising to be a real contender with it being said that they have addressed one of their main weaknesses which is tyre wear. An aspect of the car that I really love, is the more highlights of yellow, especially within the wheels. I really do hope that they get their strategies right this season because as much as I love Red Bull, it would be great to have a bit of a fight and more of a race on our hands, for more than the first few laps of each event. Fingers crossed!
4. Alpine
Alpine have raised the bar with revealing two liveries. One which will be used for 16 races and the other with splashed of pink to be used for the other eight. The teams livery is inspired by their partnership with contemporary artist Felipe Pantone and I must admit, I liked Alpines car last season but I think this looks even better and I think the two liveries are great. I love the equal measures of blues, pinks and white, I feel like they balance each other out well and I do think less blue and more of the carbon black works. I like the border around the “BWT” rather it just being a solid block behind, it looks less tacky in my opinion. Another feature that stands out to me is the top of the engine cover, I think if the rest of the design was like that, then the car would look solid.
3. McLaren
We next have a fierce looking McLaren. I feel like the last few seasons the liveries have been very powerful looking and the Norris and Piastri duo supports this with how strong they performed last season as a team. One of the only teams who looked anywhere near to contend with Red Bull. Back to the car, and I must say I do like how they incorporated Google into their car, I’m glad they kept this feature for this season. It’s little things like this which I think can make a design really clever and the McLaren car in my opinion, looks like a proper race car. I prefer the less blue look, I think the orange against the black works really well and will look great on track. The only thing I will say is, I wish they didn’t release the livery so soon, it kind of looses the hype for when the rest gets revealed.
2. Red Bull
Last to reveal their car was the Red Bull. Now I wasn’t expecting to place the car so high up in the list but I saw some changes to the car that I really like. I will start off by saying the livery is pretty much exactly the same, the colours are more vibrant. As much as it always looks good and why change something that works, I do hope there is a bit of a change for next season. One feature that really caught my eye was the bumps that are connected from behind the halo bars, it’s quite unique and also the side pods are reversed. Not to say too much, but I am glad Christian Horner was also there for the presentation. Whether you like him or not, you can’t take away from what he has built with Red Bull and I am so excited to see what the team can do this season!
1. Mercedes
Although it pains me to say this, the Mercedes wins in my opinion. Mercedes have made some drastic changes when it comes to their new challenger with a switch to a pushrod rear suspension and focusing on improving the car’s unpredictable rear axle. The black and silver livery with a hint of red is quite something and I love the enhanced look of the silver arrows. I think it’s fair to say that this car has had quite the glow up and that they have the confidence to differ from the other teams. With taking things in a new direction, which I think was very much needed, it will be interesting to see how this car performs. With it being Lewis’s last season with the team, there will certainly be a lot of eyes and attention focused on the team.
I would love to know where you rank these cars, feel free to share in the comments!
Amy x
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