ANALYSIS: Perez, Albon and Russell have caused the most damage so far in 2024
Red Bull driver Sergio Perez has caused the highest amount of damage-induced costs so far during the season, having been involved in a series of incident in the opening 21 rounds of the 2024 F1 season. F1Technical's lead journalist Balázs Szabó delivers his latest analysis.
Although there used to be little talk about the costs that drivers caused with crashes and other incidents, it has become much more crucial in recent years since the introduction of the financial ceiling.
Teams are required to complete the season from a budget of $135 million with the cap having been introduced four years ago.
From all the parts that make up an F1 car, the chassis is the most expensive. It is believed to cost around $675,000 (approximately €615,000). Interestingly, the gearbox is the second most expensive part of an F1 car, with its price estimated $500,000 (approximately €455,000). Further elements that can easily pick up damage are the floor, the front and rear wings, and the wheel.
Among the drivers, Red Bull's Sergio Perez finds atop the list that includes drivers who have caused the most damage to their single-seater.
The damage caused by the Mexican is around $4,861,000 since the beginning of the season. The majority of that came from an incident with the two Haas drivers that happened on the first lap of the Monaco Grand Prix.
The six-time F1 race winner was hit by Kevin Magnussen, who was slightly overambitious on the run up to the Massenet hill. The incident caused heavy damage to the chassis of Perez's RB20 which is the most expensive part of a modern F1 car.
Reflecting on the damage, Red Bull's motorsport advisor Dr. Helmut Marko said that the Monaco incident might force the Milton Keynes-based outfit to limit its expenditures in the final stages of the season: "This clearly affects us, because there are considerations about what to do with the car."
“This is costing us about two to three million and with the budget cap, that is of course a big handicap. If we have to do something extra due to the greater competitiveness of Ferrari and McLaren, we are naturally handicapped."
Alex Albon finds himself in second place on the list, having caused Williams a cost of around $4,664,750. Although the London-born Thai driver does not often make mistakes, his incident at Melbourne caused heavy damage to the chassis of his FW38. Williams was forced to withdraw Albon's car at the Australian Grand Prix, but he could continue to race on that weekend after the British outfit had elected to hand over Logan Sargeant's car to the Thai driver.
Two weeks after the Melbourne round, Albon was again involved in an accident, this time on the first lap with Australian driver Daniel Ricciardo, costing the Grove-headquartered team $880,000 (approximately €803,000).
Most recently, Albon suffered a huge crash in qualifying at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix, having lost control of his FW46 into the first corner. Such was the damage that Williams was forced to withdraw Albon's car from the Interlagos race.
Mercedes driver George Russell hardly caused any damage to his car during the opening part of the season, but he endured tough fortunes at the United States and the Mexico City Grands Prix. The Briton lost control of his car during the last segment of qualifying in Texas and in Free Practice 2 in Mexico City, with both incidents having led to enormous costs.
Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas have caused the least amount of damage so far. The Briton's W15 sustained damage to his floor in Austria which cost around $320,000. Despite his tough season in 2024, the Finn only suffered a minor incident that saw his Kick Sauber pick up a damage ofaround $125,000 (approximately €114,000).
Alpine driver Pierre Gasly is the only driver who has not suffered any damage since the beginning of the season.
