The 2024 Formula One season might not feature as many changes as we have seen in recent years but there are some notable differences heading into the upcoming season. Here's what's changed for the 75th Formula One World Championship season.
DRIVERS
For the first time in the history of Formula One, every driver who finished last year's final round in Abu Dhabi will take the grid for the opener season in Bahrain with the same team. All 20 drivers from Max Verstappen to Logan Sargeant have retained their seats from 2023 to 2024 without a single driver move between them. In fact, the only difference between the field who will compete in Bahrain in March and the 20 drivers who raced there last year will be that Daniel Ricciardo races in place of Nick De Vries, after he replaced the rookie midway through last season.
TEAMS
The last 12 months have left people wondering whether Andretti will get to join The Grid as an 11th team in the upcoming years. But while Andretti's formal approval remains uncertain, the 2024 grid will be made up of the same 10 drivers it has since 2016 with the arrival of Haas as the newest team in the pit lane. The new season will be seeing two name changes, the first one being Red Bull's second team, who have been competing as Alpha Tauri for the last four seasons. They will now be known as Racing Bulls. Similarly, the Alfa Romeo name has left the Formula One grid for the third time in the sport's history. Run by the Sauber organization, Alfa Romeo became the full naming rights partner in 2019. They will now be known as Kick Sauber, as announced by the Audi factory for 2026.
TEAM PRINCIPLES
There are a couple of changes for the lineup of 10 team principles. The most notable change being of the team formerly known as Alpha Tauri, who have a bid farewell to Franz Tost, the man who has led Red Bulls Junior Team since they purchased the former Minardi Squad in 2005. He will be replaced by 46-year-old Laurent Mekies, making him the oldest team principal on the grid. He has previously been the sporting director of Ferrari, making him a very experienced leader.
The only other change is at Alpine. After the former team principal Otmar Szafnauer was fired by the owners of Renault, following last year's Belgian Grand Prix, Bruno Famine took the reins as team principal.