After more than four weeks of hints, unveiling of liveries, and introduction of cars, Formula 1 teams have pretty much shown us everything they wanted to before pre-season testing begins next week.
But which team had the best car launch? Who created something impressive? And whose offering left us wishing we had skipped it?
Our writers were asked to rank each team’s launch (including the event, media releases, and social media content) from worst to best:
The first car launch for Red Bull’s rebranded second team RB didn’t go down well with our panel. The timings for the Las Vegas event were not widely advertised in advance, and the event was not streamed anywhere. Instead, images of the car and later pictures from the launch event were released at a time that was not convenient for many F1 fans or media.
“This launch was not intended for fans or media and was a weak way to start a new era,” Scott Mitchell-Malm commented.
Josh Suttill called it a “disappointing first launch” for RB’s new identity and said “they couldn’t have chosen a more alienating way to reveal their new look”.
Edd Straw’s critical review stated: “It was poorly communicated, offered nothing to fans, and didn’t make it clear that there would be little for those in Europe who made the effort to be present when it happened.
“It reflects a team that is only interested in serving those who bring in big money and appears to be an afterthought for Red Bull.”
Ben Anderson criticized the “chaotic” timings and the Visa Cash App RB name, stating that everything except the car “should be discarded”.
The car itself received praise and was not ridiculed, with Suttill describing it as “a missed opportunity to showcase a really nice-looking car”.
Williams is the only F1 team that has not yet revealed its 2024 car, and this affected its ranking in our assessment.
“The absence of a 2024 car significantly impacted Williams’ ranking, despite their efforts in other areas,” explained Edd Straw.
Or as Suttill put it, “it didn’t promise much and it didn’t deliver much”.
Mitchell-Malm was satisfied with Williams at least holding media sessions and producing content with the drivers and team boss James Vowles for fans.
“Although they didn’t launch a car, they did introduce their ‘season’ and reveal their livery. They made drivers and the team boss available and produced content for fans,” he said.
“Considering the circumstances, it was good.”
Haas revealed renders of an early version of its new challenger, the VF-24, on February 2, making it the first (sort of) real 2024 F1 car to be shown.
Just over a week later, content from its Silverstone shakedown was released.
“This launch was a bit minimalistic, but the early renders were nice, and Haas provided some assets from the shakedown too,” commented Mitchell-Malm. “So at least we got to see the car.”
Straw described it as “a low-key launch for a team that expects to have a low-key start to the season,” while Anderson jokingly referred to it as “as basic as it gets,” suggesting that Gene Haas is tightening the budget.
Suttill felt that McLaren’s mid-January livery launch overshadowed Haas’s usual “first launch” thunder but was impressed with Haas’s consistent release of content throughout the launch period.
McLaren had not one, but two F1 launches, with a livery reveal in mid-January and a proper car reveal in mid-February.
“It was clever to go much earlier than everyone else, but it was only a livery,” remarked Anderson.
“And then they disguised the real car too! Not a good move – although I do appreciate their old-fashioned F1 paranoia!”
Mitchell-Malm described it as a “more streamlined launch compared to previous years,” which meant there was “less for fans and media to rely on.”
He noted that McLaren intentionally concealed the assets they provided, but praised them for granting media access to key figures at both launches.
Suttill found “two launches to be one too many” but understood why they couldn’t reveal their 2024 car in mid-January.
“The Aston Martin launch was good from a media perspective, with team boss Mike Krack, technical director Mike Fallows, and the drivers making appearances. However, the 86-second launch video didn’t provide much for fans,” summarized Straw about Aston’s brief virtual launch.
Anderson mentioned that “the car looked decent, but the whole thing was almost overshadowed by the star driver putting himself on the market for a drive with the engine builder!”
This refers to Fernando Alonso using his launch media session to offer himself as an option to replace Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes after 2024, while Aston openly expressed their desire for Alonso to stay.
For Suttill, this elevated the launch beyond the basic video reveal.
The Mercedes launch was a brief 10-minute event where the car was shown almost casually, with Toto Wolff, Lewis Hamilton, and George Russell standing over it.
All three gave brief statements, and that was it for the launch of the W15, except for some footage and images that emerged from its shakedown at Silverstone later in the day.
“A quiet reveal for a team determined to let its on-track performance do the talking after two challenging years,” summarized Straw.
Suttill was not impressed, stating that “it all felt a bit flat and melancholy to me.”
“I appreciate that they got on with it, but there was no excitement or sparkle. Too much can be overwhelming, but a launch with none feels a bit somber,” he added.
Anderson, on the other hand, was simply pleased to see an interesting car. “That’s the most important thing!”
Mitchell-Malm concluded: “Slightly outdated renders were compensated by a real car. There were plenty of assets of it on the track too.
“It’s just a shame that we didn’t get to speak to anyone ourselves, although the high-quality press pack with insightful team personnel made up for it.”
Ferrari released a brief launch video before conducting comprehensive media sessions, which, according to Straw, provided plenty of insights from the technical team, Fred Vasseur, and the drivers.
Ferrari’s launch last year, which included elements of the Fiorano shakedown, topped our 2023 ranking. As a result, Mitchell-Malm described the 2024 event as “a step down from last year, as the event at Fiorano was more exclusive.”
“It’s a shame that nothing was streamed for fans, but selfishly, Ferrari’s access to senior figures outweighs the lack of an on-site event in our rankings. Shakedown assets were also released,” he added.
Anderson enjoyed the contrast between the bombastic, showy launch of 2023, with grandstands full of fans on a real circuit, and the perfunctory one-minute video clip of 2024.
“No-nonsense Fred is truly in charge now,” he commented.
Suttill praised Ferrari’s livery, stating that “the use of yellow is clever and makes the SF-24 visually a modern classic.”
Sauber held the first in-season launch with a physical car on February 5, revealing its striking new Stake identity that couldn’t be missed.
“It was an excellent launch event with a live presentation for fans to watch and ample media access to key team personnel,” reflected Straw.
“The only downside is that the launch car wasn’t the genuine article, but rather a show car dressed up to resemble the 2024 machine.”
Mitchell-Malm called it a “proper event and well-organized,” but couldn’t rank it higher because the team didn’t reveal a real car.
Suttill went a step further, placing it at number one in his rankings, stating, “Sauber genuinely managed to create a buzz with the first car sporting the Stake colors.
“The livery is the best on the grid, and technical director James Key gave genuinely insightful interviews during the launch. The London crypt was an odd setting but will likely be memorable for years to come – probably the only launch on this list that will be.”
Red Bull made significant improvements compared to last year, climbing from last place in our launch rankings to second in 2024.
The team celebrated 20 years of Red Bull with a launch event in Milton Keynes.
The livery may have remained the same, but the car was very different, incorporating Mercedes cues that sparked discussions.
“It was a pleasant surprise to see Red Bull reveal a real – mostly real? – car for a change and put on a proper event, considering their history of fake launches with clearly inauthentic cars,” commented Mitchell-Malm.
Anderson rated it “10/10 because we finally got to see a real car at Red Bull’s launches.”
Straw, who attended the event, praised Red Bull’s efforts, stating, “They made a big effort with a well-produced show for fans to watch and a genuine car, although some areas were not as they will be in Bahrain.”
Suttill was also delighted with the “genuinely exciting technical innovations and a presentation that didn’t overstay its welcome.”
Christian Horner’s investigation unavoidably influenced Red Bull’s launch. Although it was not addressed in the live-streamed launch, he faced questions from the media about it.
Alpine takes the top spot in our rankings with a well-executed, stripped-back launch event.
Mitchell-Malm felt it was “a great blend of everything we need from a launch. It had a show, but it wasn’t as flashy as last year.”
“It incorporated another major racing program [the WEC launch], revealed a genuine car, involved key team personnel, and was well-handled from a media standpoint. It worked for everyone,” he summarized.
The launch was “a vast improvement from last year’s disorganized event,” according to Straw. “It put ‘Team Enstone’ at the forefront, revealed a real car, integrated the World Endurance Championship project, and made good use of technical director Matt Harman.”
Anderson enjoyed Harman’s quip about the steering wheel, considering it one of the best quotes of the launch season.
However, Suttill wasn’t as impressed. He said, “All the flamboyance of the 2023 launch was scrapped, and some of the fun was lost.”
“Alpine probably needs to convey a more serious image, so it’s understandable, but it’s not particularly exciting. The alternative pink livery was a letdown, and the social media teases of a pink-er livery were frustratingly misleading.”
According to the Source the-race.com