The aftermath of F1's biggest periods of dominance

With one of the biggest talking points heading into the 2024 Formula 1 season being if Red Bull can maintain its era of domination, making a firm prediction this far out remains a tricky task. So let’s look back at previous campaigns of supremacy and see if history points to what happens next…

Published Jan 9, 2024, 12:59 PM

The swing from Christmas lethargy into a sudden burst of energy often coincides with the change of the date's final digit. Thankfully, in a couple of weeks, the instantaneous desire to better one's self will have faded and the gyms will be less clogged up; the people who perch on the machines purely to doomscroll will pack it in - but they'll be back next January. Happy new year, folks.

Cynicism aside, the convenient segmentation of time into years offers the chance for change. Just look at Formula 1's history; empires and dominant streaks have fallen over the winter, diverting the course of the championship's storylines for the ensuring seasons after.

Author Jake Boxall-Legge

Jake Boxall-Legge Autosport’s Technical Editor. Having studied Automotive Engineering with Motorsport at the University of Hertfordshire, West Country-born Jake's original ambition was to design racing cars. During a year between studies in which he accidentally rekindled a love of writing, he took up a Master's in Motorsport Engineering at Oxford Brookes. Halfway through his master's year, he was offered a place on the Autosport Academy, conducting occasional freelance duties before becoming the press officer for Formula 2 and GP3 in 2018. Autosport offered him a return to the fold later that year to serve as its Technical Editor. His voice appears on a number of videos and podcasts, and can often be found writing about terrible Formula 1 cars in excruciating detail. In his spare time, Jake enjoys baking and blames his failure to make it past the Great British Bake-Off interviews on his tenuous grasp on choux pastry. His dream is to open a brunch cafe - and his willingness to make outrageous puns in inappropriate situations has earned him the contempt of his colleagues.