2024 F1 Imola GP: Race Predictions

The grid for the 2024 F1 Imola GP is set with Max Verstappen on pole position followed by Lando Norris and Charles Leclerc. Oscar Piastri has been bumped to P5 due to the three-place grid penalty.

There were forecasts of rain making an appearance, but that has not happened. For the most part, rain has not made an appearance and it does appear that it will stay away for the rest of the F1 Imola GP.

Max Verstappen starts the race alongside the driver who won the previous race. Both teams are neck and neck on pace, could this result in a close battle for the win? If yes, who will come out on top? Let's take a look.

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#5 Alpine scores points

Esteban Ocon starts the race in P12, just behind Sergio Perez. The Alpine appears to be making decent strides in terms of pace. It doesn't have the pace of the cars in front, but the nature of the track is such that it is very hard to pull off overtakes. Even in the F2 race earlier in the day, there were just a handful of overtakes, and something like that is just not desirable.

If Esteban Ocon can string together a decent start and a few cars ahead suffer from some issues, we're looking at the French driver once again scoring points. We're backing Alpine to add to its tally of one point at the F1 Imola GP.

#4 Overtaking is going to be tough

As we said earlier, overtaking is going to be very tough on this track. One decision by the FIA to shorten the DRS zone is going to be even more controversial because arguably one of the only overtaking areas is the end of the start-finish straight. With the DRS zone shortened, even that might get taken away from the drivers.

Overall, in terms of action during the race, it would be hard to see much of it, especially since rain is expected to stay away as well.

#3 Fernando Alonso doesn't score points

Fernando Alonso will start the race at the back of the grid. More or less, it doesn't matter where the Spaniard starts the race, one could expect him to slowly make his way through the field and score points.

At the F1 Imola GP, this might not be the case, as the driver is going to struggle to progress through the field.

#2 The race could become processional

With overtaking already an issue, the other issue is the fact that it is highly likely that the race would be processional. The tires are the softest allocation that could be put together but even they are not soft enough to have decent degradation.

According to all drivers, the race is expected to be a one-stopper. When that is the case and the pace differential between the top three teams is not much, then the start becomes important as there won't be too many opportunities to pull off overtakes. The F1 Imola GP this time around would likely be processional.

#1 Max Verstappen wins the F1 Imola GP

As we said earlier, the start of the race is going to be crucial. Max Verstappen starts the race on pole position and will have Lando Norris alongside him. The driver who takes the lead at the start of the race will be able to more or less manage the pace until the end of his stint.

The last time Max Verstappen lost a place at the start of a race was in the sprint of the 2023 F1 Qatar GP. The driver has nailed the starts almost every time and continues to have this ace up his sleeve. If Verstappen nails the start, it's hard to see him lose from there. Hence, we're picking the Dutch driver as the winner of the F1 Imola GP.