McLaren Bumps Red Bull Off Its Throne in F1’s Money-Making Championship Race

From the left, second-placed Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc of Monaco, McLaren's chief engineer Tom Stallard, first-placed McLaren driver Oscar Piastri of Australia, and third-placed Mercedes driver George Russell of Britain stand at the podium after the Formula One Grand Prix in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. AP Photo/Sergei Grits

McLaren Racing heads into Sunday’s Singapore Grand Prix as Formula 1’s hot new darlings, the papaya-drenched team that just may be the ones to finally dethrone Red Bull and Max Verstappen.

Red Bull and its Dutch driver have had ironclad grips on both the drivers championship, and, the more lucrative constructors title for best car, since Verstappen won his first title in 2021. Verstappen now has three consecutive titles and leads the driver standings; Red Bull has back-to-back constructors titles but, headed into the weekend, no longer leads the standings.