Verstappen could equal his own consecutive win record, Red Bull could become the third team to record 1-2 finishes at the first three races of the year and Hamilton could equal his own record for most poles at a single venue. Here are the milestones and the records which could be broken at the 2024 Australian Grand Prix!
THE 2024 AUSTRALIAN GRAND PRIX MILESTONES
The 2024 Australian Grand Prix will be the 1,104th World Championship event in Formula 1 history.
This will be the 38th time that Formula 1 has raced in Australia. F1 first visited the country in 1985. It will be the 27th Grand Prix held at Albert Park. In total, this will be the 87th Australian Grand Prix since the event was first held in 1928.
The 2024 Australian Grand Prix is set to be Max Verstappen’s 188th consecutive race start. That will see him overtake Riccardo Patrese for fourth in the list of most consecutive F1 race starts in the sport’s history. Meanwhile, Valtteri Bottas will make his 187th start, equalling Patrese for fourth in the list.
Lando Norris makes his 107th start with McLaren this weekend, equalling Alain Prost as the driver to have made the fifth-most starts with the team.
With Max Verstappen on the grid, the 2024 Australian Grand Prix will be the 550th World Championship race which a Dutch driver will start. Meanwhile, Charles Leclerc makes this the 150th race which a Monegasque driver will start.
The 2024 Australian Grand Prix will be the third Formula 1 race to take place on March 24, after the 1991 Brazilian Grand Prix and the 2013 Malaysian Grand Prix.
10 WINS IN A ROW FOR VERSTAPPEN?
Max Verstappen could equal his own record of ten successive victories. Verstappen has won every race since the 2023 Japanese Grand Prix. He previously won ten races in a row between the 2023 Miami and Italian Grands Prix.
For the first time in his career, Max Verstappen has won the first two races of a Formula 1 season. Should he win the 2024 Australian Grand Prix, he would make this the eighth time that a driver has won all of the first three races of the year. He would be the sixth driver to achieve the feat, after Ayrton Senna, Nigel Mansell, Michael Schumacher, Damon Hill and Nico Rosberg.
A win from pole position for Max Verstappen would mark the 30th time that Verstappen has won a Grand Prix from pole. That would see him overtake Ayrton Senna for fourth on the list of most wins from pole.
Verstappen has won all of the last three races from pole position. Another win from pole at the 2024 Australian Grand Prix would make this only the eighth time in F1 that a driver has won four races in a row having started from pole position.
If Max Verstappen leads every lap of the race, he will overtake Jim Clark for fourth in the list of most races led from start to end. It would be the 14th time he has done so in his career.
A front row start for Max Verstappen at the 2024 Australian Grand Prix would make this the 61st time that he has started from the front row in F1. That would put him sixth in the list of most front row starts, overtaking Nico Rosberg.
A podium finish for Max Verstappen at the 2024 Australian Grand Prix would be his tenth consecutive top three result. He would become the third driver – after Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton – to record a streak of 10 successive podiums twice in his career.
If either Red Bull driver wins, it would be the tenth consecutive victory for the team. Red Bull would become only the second team – after Mercedes – to record ten successive wins on more than one occasion in Formula 1.
A 1-2 result for Red Bull at the 2024 Australian Grand Prix would make this only the third time that a team has opened a season with three consecutive 1-2 results. Williams finished 1-2 in all of the first three races in 1992, while Mercedes recorded a 1-2 result at all of the first five races in 2019.
Should Max Verstappen lead a lap of the 2024 Australian Grand Prix, this will be the 15th time that a driver has led laps in ten consecutive races.
Victory for Max Verstappen would see the Netherlands equal Finland as the nation to have won the fifth most races in Formula 1. Finland have won 57 Grands Prix to date in F1, while Verstappen has secured all 57 of the Netherlands’ victories.
THE FORMULA 1 RECORDS WHICH COULD BE BROKEN
A pole position for Lewis Hamilton at the 2024 Australian Grand Prix would be his ninth at Albert Park, seeing him equal his own record for most pole positions at a single circuit. Last year, Hamilton became the first driver to take nine poles at a single track with pole position at the Hungaroring.
If Lewis Hamilton fails to finish in the top five at the 2024 Australian Grand Prix, this would be the first time in his career that he has finished outside of the top five at six successive races.
If Oscar Piastri were to win the 2024 Australian Grand Prix, he would become the first driver to take his maiden Grand Prix victory at his home event since Johnny Herbert at the 1995 British Grand Prix.
A podium finish for Charles Leclerc would be his 32nd podium result with Ferrari, equalling Niki Lauda for seventh on the list of most podium finishes with Ferrari.
If Charles Leclerc qualifies on the front row for the 2024 Australian Grand Prix, it would be his eighth consecutive front row start. That would see him equal his longest front row qualifying streak to date. He also qualified on the front row for eight consecutive races at the start of the 2022 season.
At the 2023 Belgian Grand Prix, Max Verstappen joined Fernando Alonso as only the second driver to have won races from nine different grid positions. Either driver could become the first to win from ten different grid positions, while Lewis Hamilton could equal the existing record.
A second or third place finish for Lando Norris would see him overtake Nick Heidfeld as the driver with the most podium finishes to have never won a Grand Prix.
A points finish for a French driver would make 2024 the 70th season in which a French driver has scored. Only two other nations have scored points in 70 seasons: Britain and Germany.
Pole position for a Ferrari driver would mark the 250th pole position for a Ferrari car in Formula 1 history.
A 1-2 finish for Mercedes would make them the second team, after Ferrari, to record 60 1-2 finishes in Formula 1. Ferrari reached the milestone at the 2002 United States Grand Prix.
A podium finish for a Mercedes-powered car would make 2024 the 30th consecutive season in which Mercedes power has recorded a podium finish.
A top ten finish for Lewis Hamilton or George Russell at the 2024 Austrlian Grand Prix would make this the 63rd consecutive race in which Mercedes have scored, overtaking the team’s longest scoring streak in F1. Mercedes previously scored at 62 consecutive races between the 2012 Brazilian Grand Prix and the 2016 Russian Grand Prix. Only Ferrari and McLaren have had longer scoring streaks in F1 history.
A points finish for Logan Sargeant would make the United States the 12th country to score 1,000 points in World Championship history.
A front row start for Oscar Piastri would make this the 100th Grand Prix at which an Australian driver has lined up on the front row of the grid.
A points finish for Haas would make this the 50th Grand Prix weekend at which they have scored points. They would become the 27th constructor to score at 50 Grand Prix weekends, with Aston Martin having become the 26th constructor to do so at the 2024 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
THE AUSTRALIAN GRAND PRIX RECORDS TO BREAK
Michael Schumacher holds the record for most Albert Park victories with four. His record cannot be equalled at the 2024 Australian Grand Prix but Lewis Hamilton could become the fourth driver to have won three Albert Park races, while Fernando Alonso, Valtteri Bottas, Charles Leclerc or Max Verstappen could become the eighth driver to record multiple Melbourne wins.
McLaren currently hold the record for the most Australian Grand Prix victories, with 11. They could extend the record to 12 wins this weekend, while Ferrari could equal the existing record. Ferrari-power could also equal Mercedes-power for the most wins for an engine manufacturer at the Australian Grand Prix.
Ferrari currently hold the record for most podium finishes at the Albert Park circuit. Their record tally of 20 top three finishes here could be equalled at the 2024 Australian Grand Prix by McLaren – but only if both McLaren drivers finish on the podium with no Ferrari drivers in the top three positions.
In terms of overall Australian Grand Prix podiums, McLaren and Ferrari are currently tied for the most, with 26 each. Either team could set a new outright record at the 2024 Australian Grand Prix.
Six points in the 2024 Australian Grand Prix would see Lewis Hamilton become the first driver to score 200 points at Albert Park since the track first joined the F1 calendar in 1996.
Michael Schumacher holds the record for most laps led at Albert Park, with 198. His record could be surpassed during the 2024 Australian Grand Prix if Lewis Hamilton leads 42 laps of the race. Hamilton will also overtake Sebastian Vettel for second in the list if he leads 38 laps.
If Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz lead 28 laps of the 2024 Australian Grand Prix between them, Ferrari will become the first team to have led 500 laps at Albert Park.
Fernando Alonso will become the first driver to have raced 1,000 laps at Albert Park if he completes 12 laps of the 2024 Australian Grand Prix. Lewis Hamilton could also surpass both Jenson Button and Kimi Raikkonen for second on the list of most laps raced at the track over the course of the Grand Prix.
If a team other than Mercedes, Ferrari or Red Bull win the 2024 Australian Grand Prix, it would equal the record for the most consecutive different teams winning at Albert Park. Four different teams won at the track between 2006 and 2009, and between 2011 and 2014.
Both Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton share the record for most points-scoring appearances at Albert Park with Kimi Raikkonen, having all finished in the points on 13 occasions. Alonso or Hamilton could set a new outright record this weekend, while Hamilton could equal Alonso’s record of 14 top ten finishes at the track.
A third place finish for Fernando Alonso at the 2024 Australian Grand Prix would see him set a new outright record for the most third place finishes at Albert Park. Lewis Hamilton could equal the existing record, which is currently shared between Alonso, Ralf Schumacher, Kimi Raikkonen and Sebastian Vettel.
2024 AUSTRALIAN GRAND PRIX: QUALIFYING RECORDS
Mercedes and Ferrari are currently tied for the most pole positions at Albert Park with six apiece. Either team could set a new outright record this weekend, while McLaren could equal the existing record.
A Q1 exit for Kevin Magnussen or Lance Stroll at the 2024 Australian Grand Prix would see them equal Marcus Ericsson’s record of four Q1 exits at Albert Park.
CAN LECLERC CONVERT A POLE TO A WIN?
A pole position for Charles Leclerc would see him overtake Niki Lauda as the driver to have taken the second-most pole positions with Ferrari. Only Michael Schumacher has taken more poles at Ferrari than Lauda and Leclerc.
Charles Leclerc has failed to convert all of his last 12 pole positions into wins. Should he take pole and fail to win again this weekend, he would equal the record for most successive poles without a win. Rene Arnoux currently holds the record, having failed to convert any of the first 13 poles of his career into victories.
If Charles Leclerc takes pole position and fails to win, it would be the 20th time that he has done so in his Formula 1 career. That would see him overtake Nelson Piquet for fifth in the list of most failed pole to win conversions.
LONGEVITY RECORDS FOR HAMILTON AND ALONSO
A victory for Lewis Hamilton at any race in 2024 would see him overtake Michael Schumacher as the driver to have won at least one race in the most Formula 1 seasons. Both Schumacher and Hamilton have won races in 15 different Formula 1 seasons.
A podium finish for Lewis Hamilton at any race in 2024 would make him the third oldest British driver to finish on the Formula 1 podium. He currently sits fourth in the list, behind Nigel Mansell, Graham Hill and Reg Parnell.
A Fastest Lap for Lewis Hamilton would make him the first driver to have set a Fastest Lap in 17 Formula 1 seasons. A Fastest Lap would also see Hamilton equal Schumacher’s record for most consecutive seasons in which a driver has set the Fastest Lap in a Grand Prix. Schumacher set at least one Fastest Lap in all 15 seasons between 1992 and 2006, while Hamilton has set a Fastest Lap every year since 2010.
A Fastest Lap for Lewis Hamilton would see him set a new record for most Fastest Laps with a single team. He is currently tied with Michael Schumacher, having set 53 Fastest Laps with Mercedes. Schumacher took 53 Fastest Laps with Ferrari during his tenure at the team.
A win for Fernando Alonso at any Grand Prix in 2024 would make him the oldest driver to win a Grand Prix since Jack Brabham at the 1970 South African Grand Prix.
A podium finish for Fernando Alonso would see him overtake Alain Prost as the driver to have taken the fourth-most podiums in Formula 1 history.
A podium finish for Fernando Alonso would make him the third driver – after Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton – to record podium finishes in 15 different Formula 1 seasons.
Pole position at any race for Fernando Alonso in 2024 would make him the oldest polesitter since Jack Brabham at the 1970 Spanish Grand Prix.
If Fernando Alonso leads a lap of any race in 2024, he would become the first driver to have led Formula 1 races over a period longer than 20 years. Alonso first led a Grand Prix in Malaysia in 2003. He most recently led at the 2023 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, just a week short of the 20th anniversary of him leading a lap for the first time in Formula 1.
