2024 F1 Las Vegas Grand Prix results: Russell wins the race, Verstappen wins the Championship

Russell's win took a backseat to Verstappen's fourth Drivers' Championship

By Bruce Brown Published November 25, 2024 6:29 PM

Red Bull driver Max Verstappen signaling his fourth F1 Drivers' Championship. — Courtesy of Formula 1

Mercedes driver George Russell won the F1 Las Vegas Grand Prix on Saturday, November 23. Russell drove masterfully, but Red Bull’s Max Verstappen’s fifth-place finish, one place ahead of McLaren’s Lando Norris, got more attention because it locked in Verstappen’s F1 World Drivers’ Championship for the season. With Verstappen’s fourth consecutive F1 crown, he joins a small group of drivers in F1’s 75-year history.

Verstappen’s Championship win

Max Verstappen started the 2024 race season as a continuance of 2023, when he dominated, winning 19 of 22 races. Midway into the season, after the June 23 Spanish Grand Prix, Red Bull’s car wasn’t as competitive as previously. The McLaren, Ferrari, and Mercedes drivers took the top step on the winners’ podium until the Sao Paulo Grand Prix on November 3, when Verstappen won.

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McLaren’s Lando Norris was closest to Verstappen’s Drivers’ Championship points total and was going fast. Before the Las Vegas Grand Prix, Verstappen was 63 points ahead of Norris. With only three races left in the season. Given how points are distributed, all Verstappen had to do to wrap up the Championship was to beat Norris. And he did.

Las Vegas Grand Prix Race Results

When George Russell won the Austrian Grand Prix on June 30, it was only the fourth time another driver had won besides Verstappen. Russell’s LVGP win certainly counts, and Mercedes team Principal Toto Wolf praised Russell’s driving as “from another planet,” but his victory pales in comparison to Max’s winning the championship.

The following are the finishing positions and the points earned in the 2024 F1 Las Vegas Grand Prix:

Place	Driver	Team	Championship Points
1	George Russell	Mercedes	25
2	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	18
3	Carlos Sainz	Ferrari	15
4	Charles Leclerc	Ferrari	12
5	Max Verstappen	Red Bull	10
6	Lando Norris	McLaren	8
7	Oscar Piastri	McLaren	6
8	Nico Hulkenberg	Haas	4
9	Yuki Tsunoda	RB Honda	2
10	Sergio Perez	Red Bull	1
11	Fernando Alonso	Aston Martin	0
12	Kevin Magnussen	Haas	0
13	Zhou Quanju	Kick Sauber	0
14	Franco Colapinto	Williams	0
15	Lance Stroll	Aston Martin	0
16	Liam Lawson	RB Honda	0
17	Esteban Ocon	Alpine	0
18	Valtteri Bottas	Kick Sauber	0
19	Alex Albon	Williams	0
20	Pierre Gasly	Alpine	0

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A Digital Trends Contributing Editor and Contributor for TheManual.com, Bruce Brown writes e-mobility reviews and covers…

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