Winners and Losers from 2024 F1 Dutch Grand Prix

The Dutch Grand Prix was a rather straightforward race, with Lando Norris cruising to the win ahead of Max Verstappen.

It was a strong performance from the Briton, who captured his second career win with a dominating drive.

There were ups and downs throughout the grid, so who are considered this week's winners and losers after the race from Zandvoort?

Winner - Lando Norris

Let's start with the obvious candidate -  it was an immaculate weekend from championship-chasing Norris.

A dominant pole position was followed by an even stronger run to the chequered flag as he bested Verstappen by well over 20 seconds to capture his second win.

His latest start blip must be mentioned. On the build-up to the race, it was a common topic of conversation and once again, he failed to lead the opening corner from pole position.

However, he stuck with Verstappen in the opening phase and left the Dutchman with no answer when he retook the lead on lap 18 before building his mammoth gap.

With nine races to go, a title for the McLaren driver still seems unlikely with a 70-point margin between the pair - but performances like the one at Zandvoort could leave Norris in a pretty position come the end of the season.

Loser - Williams

It was truly a weekend from hell for Williams.

During the rain-soaked FP3 session, Logan Sargeant - who is clearly lacking confidence - suffered a heavy crash that destroyed his car and ruled him out of qualifying.

Williams' pain was relieved somewhat when Alex Albon fired his car to P8 at the end of qualifying, setting the team up for a potentially point-scoring conclusion to the event.

However, shortly after qualifying, Albon was disqualified after his floor was found to be outside of the regulations by “decimals of a millimetre”, according to team boss James Vowles.

It meant both of the Grove-based cars started at the back of the grid, all but eliminating any chance for a strong result.

Albon and Sargeant rose to 14th and 16th respectively, but without the expulsion from qualifying, it could have been so much more.

Winner - Charles Leclerc

“I'm not very often happy with a P3 but I think with today's race, we can be extremely happy with the job we've done on a difficult weekend for the team.”

It seemed to be a case of same old, same old for Ferrari as it struggled through the race weekend only to come alive during the grand prix.

A strong start off the line for Leclerc saw him move into fifth place and ahead of Sergio Perez before Ferrari's strategy got the Monegasque driver in front of George Russell and Oscar Piastri.

Leclerc crossed the line in third place for back-to-back podium finishes, offering a welcome boost ahead of Ferrari's home race at Monza this weekend.

The 26-year-old displayed strong pace throughout the grand prix and successfully fended off Piastri in the latter stages on older tyres.

Loser - Mercedes

Mercedes entered the Dutch Grand Prix weekend riding a wave of form as it seemed to successfully impose itself in the fight at the front of the grid.

However, the weekend at Zandvoort was a disaster for it with Lewis Hamilton failing to advance out of the Q2 qualifying session.

George Russell, too, was nowhere near the fight for pole position in the race, he “dropped like a stone” as he described.

Hamilton made use of his soft tyres in the opening stages of the grand prix to make up positions but at the chequered flag, the pair were in seventh and eighth respectively, out-scored by its top four rivals.

It leaves the team in an unusual position heading to Monza as it seeks to rediscover the sweet spot of the car that lifted it to three victories this year.

Winner - Pierre Gasly

Gasly's run of point-scoring finishes during the mid-part of the season was disrupted by reliability problems at Silverstone and Budapest, before taking the chequered flag in 13th at Spa-Francorchamps.

However, his pace at Zandvoort was mighty fast and he was clearly the strongest competitor outside of the top eight usual suspects.

The upturn in form was noted by several of his rivals after the chequered flag as he took home two points for Alpine, all while vastly out-performing team-mate Esteban Ocon.

The two valuable points have seen the French squad take another step towards Haas in the battle for P7 in the championship.

Loser - Haas

It's very rare that the biggest story from a team's weekend is one that takes place off the track.

That was the case for Haas during the weekend as bailiffs on behalf of ex-title sponsor Uralkali entered the circuit to seize its assets.

The situation has since been resolved following a repayment of $12 million, which was due to be made after a Swiss arbitrator ruled in Uralkali's favour earlier this year.

It completely overshadowed Haas' weekend at Zandvoort and even led to doubts that it would be ready to compete at the Italian Grand Prix this weekend.

Such a large sum, not including fees, is a monumental figure for a team the size of Haas. While the curtain has been closed on the incident, it was an uncomfortable experience for all involved when it was attempting to navigate a grand prix event.