Oscar Piastri is the seventh different winner in 13 races
Thirteen races, seven winners. We're certainly not on the same pace as 2012, with seven winners in seven events. But 2024 could become a historic season. Explanations.
And what if Oscar Piastri entered Formula 1 history twice? The Australian driver won his first victory in the premier category of motorsport on Sunday, July 21st. The conditions in which this Hungarian Grand Prix took place were certainly not ideal, but the books and experts will only remember the name of the winner.
The McLaren driver became the 115th man to win in the discipline, after his team reasoned with his teammate. Indeed, Lando Norris, who was second for a long time, took advantage of a strategic mistake by his team to find himself in the lead. About fifteen laps were necessary to make him crack and give up the position to his teammate.
By crossing the finish line in first position, Oscar Piastri added his name to the list of Grand Prix winners in 2024. There are now seven of them in thirteen events. Max Verstappen, Carlos Sainz, Charles Leclerc, Lando Norris, George Russell and Lewis Hamilton have achieved such feat so far.
This proves how tight the field is at the front of the race and that anyone can win the race on Sunday. The situation is certainly not as exceptional as in the 2012 season, where seven different drivers had placed their machine in first position in the first seven races. But it is still important to mention this statistic.
A record of 12 different winners
For the past few seasons now, such a variety of winners has not been so frequent. With the domination of Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton, the others had to be content with the crumbs.
With eleven races still to be contested, the public is not immune to seeing a new man on the top step of the podium. To see eight different drivers win a race, you have to go back to that famous year 2012. An achievement also accomplished in 2003, 1985, 1983, and 1977. In 1975, nine different people had triumphed. But that is still below the record.
The 1982 season had seen no less than twelve different men triumph. John Watson, Patrick Tambay, Niki Lauda, Alain Prost, Keke Rosberg, Didier Pironi, Nelson Piquet, Ricardo Patrese, Elio de Angelis, René Arnoux, and Michele Alboreto had added their names to the list of winners.
So, will we see 12 drivers win in 2024, as happened in 1982? In this scenario, Oscar Piastri would therefore enter Formula 1 history twice.
