The F1 summer break is underway, and fans will be anticipating the return of an action-filled 2024 season. The first 14 races have seen seven different race winners, with both drivers from Mercedes, Ferrari and McLaren claiming wins alongside Red Bull’s Max Verstappen.
When is the next Formula 1 race?
The next F1 race is the Dutch Grand Prix at the Circuit Zandvoort. The race is the 15th of the 2024 season and marks the start of the second half of the year.
Date: Sunday 25 August 2024
Start time: 2pm BST / 3pm CEST / 9am ET / 11pm AEST
The Dutch Grand Prix will take place between 23-25 of August, with Sunday’s race starting at 2pm BST – 3pm local time – on 25 August.
What are the timings for the Dutch Grand Prix?
Here are the full timings for the Dutch Grand Prix:
Friday 23 August:
FP1 – 11:30am BST / 6:30am ET / 8:30pm AEST
FP2 – 3pm BST / 10am ET / 12am AEST
Saturday 22 June:
FP3 – 10:30am BST / 5:30am ET / 7:30pm AEST
Qualifying — 2pm BST / 9am ET / 12am AEST
Sunday 23 June:
Race – 2pm BST / 9am ET / 10pm AEST
News heading into the Dutch Grand Prix
What are the Pirelli tyre compounds for the Dutch Grand Prix?
Pirelli announced that the tyre compounds available to the teams for the Dutch GP will be three of the hardest in their catalogue due to the hotter and more abrasive track.
The chosen compounds are:
Hard — C1
Medium — C2
Soft — C3
The C1 was introduced in 2023 to offer a mid-range hard tyre between the previous C1 and C2, to fill the performance gap between the two compounds. The old C1 is now C0, and is the hardest compound offered by Pirelli.
The C2 is now the third hardest compound available to the teams and is best suited to faster and hotter tracks. Both the C1 and C2 will be the preferred choice of tyre by the teams as they should last a significant proportion of the 66 laps.
The softer C3s could potentially be used during the race but are more likely to be seen during Saturday’s qualifying session. This is the third time this combination of Pirelli tyres has been used during the European leg of the 2024 season, with the C1, C2 and C3 tyres also being chosen for the Spanish and British grands prix.
Where is the Dutch Grand Prix being held?
The Dutch GP is held at the Circuit Zandvoort, which has hosted the event on and off since 1952. It returned to the F1 calendar in 2021 after being removed from the schedule in 1985 due to concerns surrounding noise pollution for the local people.
A newer circuit was finished in 2001, with a redesign which slightly lengthened the track to 2.646 miles (4.259km). In 2019 it was confirmed that the Circuit Zandvoort would return to the F1 calendar in 2020, but the return was delayed until the following year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Formula 1 track record is held by Lewis Hamilton when he set a time of 1:11.097 in 2021.
Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes W14
Photo by: Erik Junius
2023 Dutch Grand Prix results
Liam Lawson made his F1 debut with AlphaTauri at the 2023 Dutch GP after Daniel Ricciardo broke his hand during one of the practice sessions. It was a dramatic start to the race when rain began to fall during the formation lap.
Once the five lights had gone out, Verstappen pulled away and led the grid around an increasingly wet circuit. Heavy rain began to fall during the last sector of the track with a handful of drivers pitting for intermediate tyres, including Sergio Perez and Charles Leclerc.
More drivers pitted for the wet weather tyres on the second lap, with Mercedes and McLaren opting to leave their drivers out on their slick compound tyres. The two teams opted to bring their drivers in slightly later than others, resulting in those who had come in first now leading the race.
Tyre strategy continued to be difficult for the teams after 10 laps when many had returned to the pitlane for slicks despite the threat of further rain.
On lap 62 a further heavy rain shower resulted in all the drivers returning to the pits for intermediate tyres but slippery conditions saw Perez, Yuki Tusnoda and Zhou Guanyu all sliding off the track. The race was briefly red-flagged due to the weather, with Fernando Alonso chasing first-placed Verstappen.
Three drivers received penalties during the 2023 Dutch GP — Tsunoda was given a five-second penalty for causing a collision, Perez was given a five-second penalty for speeding in the pit lane and Kevin Magnussen was given a five-second penalty for falling more than 10 car lengths behind the safety car.
The fastest lap point went to Alonso who finished second.