Tag: piastri

Belgian Grand Prix Driver Ratings

It was by no means a classic in Belgium this time around. Once again wet weather actually gets in the way of racing, when it used to produce some of the best action. F1 in 2025 is basically a dry weather sport, which is a damn shame. Once the track was dry enough for this risk averse race director to let us go, Piastri took advantage of the slipstream up to Lecombe to take the lead and not look back. Not much action happened behind unfortunately, apart from Lewis Hamilton rolling back the years to pull off some lovely overtakes on a comeback drive, gifting him points in the process.

Without further ado, let’s get into the ratings:

Oscar Piastri – 9.1

It was a masterful drive from Oscar in Belgium. Starting 2nd on the rolling start, he bravely followed Norris through Eau Rouge and slipstreamed past him on the Kemmel straight to take the lead, and crucially the strategy advantage on a wet-dry track. Once he had the advantage, he didn’t give it back. He held onto his degrading mediums, and didn’t give Lando a sniff, putting in metronomic lap times over the last 25 laps to win by 4 seconds.

Lando Norris – 7.5

A mistake ridden race from Norris which we haven’t seen for a while. He didn’t ace the rolling start, which lost him the lead and then made 3 costly mistakes when hunting down Piastri to take the lead back. He had to settle for 2nd on this occasion and a loss of momentum in the title fight.

Charles Leclerc – 8.7

Charles had a great weekend all round in this seemingly improved Ferrari. He ran third for the whole race, withstanding constant Verstappen pressure to take a very deserved podium.

Max Verstappen – 7.5

Max was hampered by the race officials on Sunday. Red bull opted for a high downforce setup, anticipating wet weather, which they got, but the race director didn’t let them use it. With the race being run in dry conditions for the majority, Verstappen wasn’t able to get past Leclerc on the straights, confining him to 4th.

George Russell – 7.7

A lonely one for George after he passed Albon on Lap 6. He was quicker than the Williams but slower than the cars ahead, eventually finishing 30 seconds off the lead and 16 behind the podium. George is worried about this Mercedes performance slump since his Canada win.

Alex Albon – 8.9

A cracking performance from Albon. His last gasp Quali lap to get him into 5th was mega! Not that we saw because of poor TV direction, but that’s not new. He couldn’t hold off George in the wet but did stop Hamilton in his tracks to take a fantastic 6th for Williams.

Lewis Hamilton – 7.9

I think this was Lewis’ best race for Ferrari despite starting 18th and finishing 7th. His progress up the field in the early stages threw us back to pre-2022. He carved his way through, his late braking moves and brace driving. His move on Gasly was confident! Something we haven’t been able to say for a long time. Fingers crossed this is actually the turning point we are hoping for.

Liam Lawson – 8.3

Another great drive from Lawson. He is stringing a few together now! A good qualifying got him into position and Racing Bulls got the strategy right to maintain 8th place.

Gabriel Bortoleto – 8.6

Bortoleto’s best all round performance to date. He out performed his teammate all weekend, got into Q3 and scored his 2nd ever points. He looked consistently quick and made some nice moves in the race.

Pierre Gasly – 8.1

Valuable point for Gasly and Alpine. Their aggressive strategy paid off, Gasly pitted on Lap 11 with Hamilton to jump up multiple places into 11th and then inherited 10th after Hulkenberg pitted twice.

Ollie Bearman – 7.8

Ollie was unlucky not to get points in the race, after Haas left him and his teammate out too long on the inters and they weren’t able to recover. Ollie just misses out in 11th, gutting.

Nico Hulkenberg – 7.4

Nico was another who missed out on strategy. Sauber decided to pit him a second time when running in 10th, which proved to be the wrong decision. He dropped down to 15th and could only recover to 12th. A valuable point dropped in the very close midfield battle.

Yuki Tsunoda – 7.6

This bottom half is going to follow a similar pattern. Another driver screwed by strategy. Yuki was arguably having his best weekend in a Red Bull, qualifying and running in 7th until a radio mishap meant he ran an extra lap with the inters, dropping him well out of the points. Still, light at the end of the tunnel.

Lance Stroll – 7.1

Honestly have no idea what happened to Stroll, apart from he climbed from 16th to 14th. On paper, not bad. He did make a lovely move on a Haas, which we saw on TV. Other than that, we know he definitely participated.

Esteban Ocon – 6.1

Esteban was not happy with his team, saying they made every mistake possible on Sunday. They left him out way too long on the intermediates and went the wrong way on setup which left him stuck. Ouch.

Kimi Antonelli – 5.3

A struggle for Kimi in Belgium. Wasn’t able to get out of Q1 in both sessions, started from the pit lane in the main race and progressed only to 16th. This Mercedes performance and his confidence have taken a hit. Summer break can’t come soon enough to allow Kimi to reset and go again.

Fernando Alonso – 5.1

Not even Fernando Alonso can cure this Aston Martin. Alonso qualified 19th, started from the pit lane and finished 17th. Even bigger ouch than Ocon.

Carlos Sainz – 5.9

Yet another driver screwed by strategy. Carlos pit on Lap 12 like the rest of the grid but gambled on another on Lap 26 which was, again, a mistake. He wasn’t running in the points so might as well have hit it didn’t work out. Scored points in the sprint though!

Franco Colapinto – 3.5

Another pitlane starter who didn’t trouble the main field. Not much else to say. Like Stroll, we definitely know he participated.

Isak Hadjar – 6.7

Both strategy and car issues put pay to Hadjar’s day. Despite running as the first Racing Bull on the road in the early stages, the team pulled Lawson in first. This cost Hadjar a lap and many positions as he came back out towards the back. However, not all was right with his car, an issue lost him lots of time and ate through his tyres. He finished a lap down.

British Grand Prix Driver Ratings

Silverstone does it again. You can always trust the British Grand Prix to throw up some drama, some rain and some unexpected results. Heavy rain earlier in the day threatened to disrupt the race, but the track was perilously close to drying up by the start. All the cars began the formation lap on intermediate tyres, but a few drivers opted to change to slicks before the start—a decision that would prove costly. From there, we were treated to 52 laps of high-speed drama, slipping, sliding and spinning. At the flag, McLaren emerged in their usual spot for 2025, securing a one-two finish, while other big names like Ferrari and Mercedes struggled with strategy.

It was Lando Norris who came out on top to win his first British Grand Prix after Piastri was harshly penalised for a safety car infringement when leading. The Aussie would have to settle for 2nd, but it was behind the two McLarens, where we will find the driver of the day: Nico Hulkenberg! The Sauber driver came from 19th on the grid to take his first podium, at the 239th time of asking. This has to take the lead as the most popular moment in recent F1 history; the whole paddock was basking in Nico’s success, which was lovely to see.

Now, let’s get into the driver ratings:

Lando Norris

Lando Norris claimed his first British Grand Prix victory, marking his eighth career win. Starting third on the grid, he did well to resist Hamilton’s advances on Lap 1. Soon Norris was on the back of Verstappen, and he overtook on lap 11 only to lose second place immediately during the pit stops. However, he regained the position after Verstappen’s mistake at the safety car restart. Norris ultimately inherited the lead after Piastri was penalised for a safety car infringement, but looked like he would have been able to take the fight to his teammate if not for the penalty. We will never know, though, and history will only remember a Norris victory.
Driver Rating: 8.5

Oscar Piastri

When Piastri took the lead from Verstappen on Lap 8 and stretched his lead to 12 seconds, he could be forgiven for thinking a win was his. The safety cars scuppered him, though; first, nullifying his lead, followed by a controversial penalty for erratic driving that cost him the victory. Despite this, he drove a strong race and was unlucky to miss out on the top step of the podium.
Driver Rating: 8.2

Nico Hulkenberg

Nico Hulkenberg delivered the drive of the day, and likely drive of the year, starting 19th and finishing 3rd. His strategy was flawless, pitting for fresh intermediates just as the rain intensified and switching to mediums at the perfect time. Hulkenberg was one of the few drivers to make no discernible mistakes and capitalised on others’ errors to secure his first podium in 239 races. Once he got into his podium position, he drove expertly to pull away from the pack and secure Sauber’s first podium in 13 years.
Driver Rating: 9.7

Lewis Hamilton

Lewis Hamilton showed promise early in the weekend, topping practice sessions and narrowly missing out on pole position. However, the Ferrari really struggled in the wet conditions, and Hamilton battled balance issues throughout the race. He lost time in the final pit stops and couldn’t catch Hulkenberg, finishing fourth. Despite the challenges, it was one of Hamilton’s better results this season.
Driver Rating: 8.1

Max Verstappen

Max Verstappen took pole position with a flawless lap but struggled in the race due to Red Bull’s gamble on a low-downforce setup, which was ill-suited to the wet conditions. Verstappen grappled with a tail-happy car and graining tyres, uncharacteristically spinning at the safety car restart and dropping to tenth. He recovered to fifth, but it was a day of damage limitation for the reigning champion.
Driver Rating: 7.7

Pierre Gasly

Pierre Gasly had a really solid race, making the right strategic decisions and gaining positions during pit stops. He fought with Hamilton and Russell for much of the second half of the race, but couldn’t match their pace ultimately. He dispatched Stroll to take 6th late one, an important result for Alpine, who languish at the bottom of the Constructors’ Championship
Driver Rating: 8.5

Lance Stroll

Lance Stroll ran as high as third during the race despite a sub-optimal strategy. He wasn’t able to hold on as he struggled with severe tyre degradation as the track dried, eventually finishing seventh. Despite the drop, it was a commendable performance from the Canadian, who often faces criticism, not least from me.
Driver Rating: 8.1

Alex Albon

Alex Albon scored points for Williams after a tricky couple of races. He stayed out of trouble and delivered a consistent performance to finish eighth.
Driver Rating: 7.9

Fernando Alonso

Fernando Alonso started seventh but could only manage ninth at the finish. He expressed frustration with the team’s strategy but still secured valuable points for Aston Martin.
Driver Rating: 7.8

George Russell

George Russell’s race was marred by poor strategy decisions from Mercedes, even before the race had started. He was one of the car to pit on the formation lap, and Mercedes chased strategy calls from there. It was a strange decision to go with new hards, twice, on a drying track when tyre temperature is crucial. They went early with their decision to go with dries towards the end, and got the decision wrong for the 2nd time, causing Russell to lose bundles of time. He would have to settle for a point when, at times, a podium looked like a possibility…miraculously.
Driver Rating: 7.5

Ollie Bearman

Ollie Bearman was the only rookie to finish the race, coming home in 11th. He had a few clumsy moments, which included hitting his teammate, and pulling off a beautifully choreographed double spin and Brooklands. Despite this, he did manage to finish ahead of Ocon.
Driver Rating: 7.1

Carlos Sainz

Carlos Sainz had an up-and-down race. His performance was hindered by strategic missteps and a late coming together with Leclerc when the Ferrari driver lost control at Stowe, pushing them both out of the points.
Driver Rating: 7.3

Esteban Ocon

Esteban Ocon was caught in several incidents, including a collision with his teammate. He finished 13th after a challenging race.
Driver Rating: 7.2

Charles Leclerc

Charles Leclerc had a nightmare race, pitting too early for slicks on the formation lap and struggling with pace throughout. It was one of his worst performances as a Ferrari driver with multiple mistakes and excursions across the grass and gravel traps.
Driver Rating: 5.2

Yuki Tsunoda

Yuki Tsunoda finished last on the road for the second consecutive race. He struggled for pace and was the only driver to be lapped. Just when the curse of the 2nd Red Bull seat looks like it hits rock bottom, the bottom falls out again. Where/when will this end?
Driver Rating: 4.5

Did Not Finishers

Kimi Antonelli

Kimi Antonelli was taken out early in the race after being hit by Isack Hadjar. He was unable to continue with most of his diffuser missing.
Driver Rating: 5.0

Isack Hadjar

Isack Hadjar caused the collision with Antonelli, which led to him losing control and crashing heavily at Copse. It was a slow weekend all round for the Racing Bulls team, a learning opportunity for their young drivers.
Driver Rating: 3.5

Gabriel Bortoleto

Gabriel Bortoleto was a victim of risky strategy after Sauber put him on mediums on the formation lap. Struggling with tyre warm up on a track that wasn’t ready, Bortoleto lost control while feathering the throttle at Turn 1, crashing into the barriers and destroying his rear wing. Race over on Lap 2.
Driver Rating: 4.0

Liam Lawson

Liam Lawson’s race ended on the first lap as three cars attempted to take the Loop side by side, when there was only room for two. Lawson was the unlucky victim, as a thump from Ocon, the meat in the sandwich, broke his rear suspension.
Driver Rating: 4.0

Franco Colapinto

Franco Colapinto did not start the race due to transmission issues on the reconnaissance lap.
Driver Rating: N/A

Austrian Grand Prix – Driver Ratings

SPIELBERG, AUSTRIA - JUNE 29: Race winner Lando Norris of Great Britain and McLaren on the podium during the F1 Grand Prix of Austria at Red Bull Ring on June 29, 2025 in Spielberg, Austria. (Photo by Zak Mauger/LAT Images)

Lando Norris led home a comfortable McLaren 1-2 in the Styrian mountains following a pretty mundane Austrian Grand Prix. There was drama on the first lap, as Kimi Antonelli missed his braking point into Turn 3 and had to take evasive action, but in the process, he locked his rears and ran into the side of Max Verstappen, ending both their races, much to the agony of the large Dutch contingent that made the trip.

Once the two cars had been removed, the race fell into a rhythm with gaps appearing between the front runners and the chasing pack. The McLarens were in a class of their own, pulling a minimum of 0.3 seconds per lap to the rest of the field, and had a nice battle on Lap 11, swapping positions a few times before the first stops, with Norris coming out on top. From there, the gap stayed around 6 seconds, only narrowing through traffic but Norris wasn’t troubled to the flag.

Behind the McLarens, the Ferraris drove quietly to 3rd and 4th. Russell was 5th, also in a race of one, but behind was when the fun really began. A fantastic 6th place for Liam Lawson, and 7th for Fernando Alonso, who both expertly ran the one-stop, against all data recommendations. A double points finish for the Saubers in 8th and 9th, with Bortoleto grabbing his first F1 points in front of his teammate and Esteban Ocon rounded off the top 10, in front of his teammate.

It was far from a classic in Austria this year but the 3 DRS zones do guarantee us some action, and I am happy to see the track will be on the calendar until 2041. Its a classic which creates good racing, something that needs to be protected. Lets get into the driver ratings before the best weekend of the year next week: The British Grand Prix.

Lando Norris – 9.1

Lando bounced back beautifully from his clumsy move at the Canadian Grand Prix. He led every session he took part in, taking pole by over half a second and holding off pressure from his teammate to take a commanding victory in Austria. His race craft was on show, performing a lovely switchback on Piastri through Turn 3 as the McLarens did battle. The only mistake we saw was running wide at Turn 10, which allowed Piastri the chance to overtake. Once the pit stops gave him a 6-second lead, he kept Piastri at arm’s length to take a momentum-building victory before his home Grand Prix.

Oscar Piastri – 7.9

Oscar was caught out by Gasly’s yellow flag in Q3, which left him lining up 3rd on the grid. He immediately jumped Leclerc at Turn 1 to set up the McLaren battle. Taking advantage of DRS, he kept in Norris’ shadow for the first stint, momentarily taking the lead on Lap 11 before losing it again. He made one last, slightly desperate lunge on Lap 20 into Turn 4, which was nearly disastrous as he narrowly avoided Norris’ diffuser. It was uncharacteristic of the usually unflappable Aussie, and he got a virtual slap on the wrist from the pit wall for it. From there, he didn’t get close to Norris and had to settle for 2nd.

Charles Leclerc – 8.5

It was a quiet afternoon for Charles, but he maximised the performance of the Ferrari in Austria. Once he lost 2nd place to Piastri, he was left in the distance by the McLarens but stretched away from Hamilton in 4th. Leclerc took his 5th podium in Austria, the most of any track for the Monegasque.

Lewis Hamilton – 8.2

A much more positive weekend for Lewis and it was nice to see him smiling post race, despite finishing 30 seconds off the lead. Another quiet race in a Ferrari, starting 4th and finishing 4th. He lost ground in the first stint to Leclerc, up to 10 seconds and he did close in slightly over the next two, but never getting within 5 seconds. A podium would have been lovely but lets save that for next weekend.

George Russell – 8.1

Mercedes knew Austria wasn’t going to be a strong weekend for their car. The hot temperatures causing high tyre degradation and as a result, Russell ended over a minute behind the McLarens. This was damage limitation for Russell and probably the best he was hoping for. The predicted high temps for the British Grand Prix could scupper any podium aspirations Russell has for his home event.

Liam Lawson – 9.2

A brilliant performance from Lawson and a thoroughly well-deserved 6th place in Austria. I’m sure he had a smile on his face to out-qualify former teammate Verstappen on Saturday. It could have been a very different race as he came extremely close to being caught up in the first lap collision and lost 3 positions, but once clear, he performed the one-stop beautifully to well and truly finish best of the rest, getting back up to his starting position.

Fernando Alonso – 9.1

Another points finish for the leading Aston Martin and another successful one-stop strategy to take 7th place. Alonso just missed out on Q3 but was able to leapfrog into the points and held off his client, Bortoleto, to hold onto 7th in the final laps. All Aston Martin needs is a second Fernando Alonso for their other car…

Gabriel Bortoleto – 9.2

Bortoleto got the result his driving has deserved this year. He has shown moments of quality and great qualifying performances previously, but it all came together in Austria. His first Q3 appearance was followed by taking his first points of his F1 career on Sunday. He showed consistent pace throughout the race and made good overtakes when he needed to, but couldn’t quite get past his manager, Fernando Alonso, in the final laps.

Nico Hulkenberg – 9.1

This is going to be a hard one to rate below his teammate. Nico started right at the back of the grid and came home 9th. Both Saubers showed great speed in the race, and the car is showing real signs of improvement. Nico undercut at the first stops and overcut at the second and finished 7 seconds off his teammate. It’s double 9s for the Saubers!

Esteban Ocon – 8.6

Another quality performance from the back of the grid! Ocon started 17th and bided his time early on, making up a few places early on but then hanging onto his tyres to create a nice offset. He used this to his advantage, overtaking his teammate for 11th before lap 30 and then overtaking Hadjar late on to take 10th and the final point.

Ollie Bearman – 8.3

Bearman just missed out on points in Austria with another good drive from lower down the field, taking advantage of the incidents ahead. He was the first person to pit on Lap 11, starting on the softs and used the double hards strategy well from there, keeping out of trouble but couldn’t quite take home any of the spoils.

Isack Hadjar – 7.5

An unusual weekend for Hadjar in his rookie season, he was comprehensively outperformed by his teammate. He qualified 13th and finished 12th, continuing this small mid-season slump for the Frenchman. He had to take avoiding action at Turn 3, Lap 1, which dropped him down the order and he wasn’t able to threaten the points from there.

Pierre Gasly – 7.6

A frustrating race for Pierre as he made it into Q3 on Saturday, but tyre issues hampered him in the race. He was one of the few at the top to start on the softs, which degraded quickly, and he found no grip when he switched to the hards. Unfortunately for Gasly, we only really saw him getting overtaken on Sunday.

Lance Stroll – 5.3

Lance continued his streak of getting knocked out in Q1 in Austria and didn’t really trouble the TV screens during the race. He was rudely bundled off the track by Tsunoda at Turn 3, but that’s about it really. Another inconspicuous event for the Canadian.

Franco Colapinto – 4.5

A bumpy race for Colapinto. Every time he was shown on TV, he was in a scrap with Tsunoda. Both would end up with penalties, Franco’s for driving Championship leader Piastri off the road on the exit of Turn 3, not realising he was there. He would be spun around by Tsunoda later on to leave him last on the road, but he got that position back when Tsunoda had to take his penalty.

Yuki Tsunoda – 3.1

A terrible race from Tsunoda. Say what you like about the 2nd Red Bull and its issues, but this performance wasn’t all car issues. Yuki was knocked out in Q1 again, but kept making silly mistakes in the race. His dive bomb on Lance Stroll was clumsy at best and stupid at worst. He came from way too far back but didn’t fully commit, pushing Lance off at the exit and getting a slam dunk penalty. He repeated the move on Colapinto, this time at Turn 4. Diving late to the inside, but not fully committed, he has Colapinto to thank for not crashing at the apex, but then Tsunoda understeered wide, clipping and spinning Colapinto on the exit. He got a 10-second penalty for that indiscretion which put him dead last.

Alex Albon – 6.9

Really unlucky finish for Alex, he made up 6 spots at the start, was running in 6th place and looking likely to end his pointless streak before a technical issue forced him to retire on Lap 14.

Max Verstappen – 5.0

Max’s 31-race points scoring streak ended on Lap 1 on Sunday, through no fault of his own. He was minding his own business on the outside of Turn 3 before an out-of-control Antonelli came flying in, taking them both out. Unfortunate for Max and the Orange Army at Red Bull’s home race.

Kimi Antonelli – 2.5

A rookie error from Kimi, which is going to happen…as he is one. He got caught out by the cars in front braking earlier than expected, locked the rears and couldn’t slow down before colliding into Verstappen. He gets 2 penalty points on his license and a 3 place grid penalty for the British Grand Prix for his troubles. He will learn from this.

Carlos Sainz – N/A

A rare Did Not Start for Sainz. He was unable to pull away for the formation lap, causing an aborted start. Once he did get going, he brought it back to the pits, only for his brakes to catch alight, ending his race before it could start. Really tricky period for the Williams team. Hopefully they can pick things back up at their home Grand Prix.

Alright, decent Austrian Grand Prix, but can’t wait for the best weekend of the year, the British Grand Prix. Get us to Silverstone, where I fully expect the McLarens to continue their championship battle. Mixed weather is forecasted as well, could be spicy. See you next time.

Monaco Grand Prix Driver Ratings

MONTE-CARLO, MONACO - MAY 25: Race winner Lando Norris of Great Britain and McLaren and Third placed Oscar Piastri of Australia and McLaren celebrate on the podium during the F1 Grand Prix of Monaco at Circuit de Monaco on May 25, 2025 in Monte-Carlo, Monaco. (Photo by Rudy Carezzevoli/Getty Images) *** BESTPIX ***

The Monaco harbour was basked in its usual summer glow as Lando Norris won his maiden Monaco Grand Prix on Sunday, but the action didn’t reflect the glorious setting. Formula 1 tried a different tactic to spice up the racing at Monaco, however, their mandatory two-stop rule only seemed to highlight that Formula 1 has outgrown Monaco and there isn’t anything they can do to fix their biggest issue. You just can’t overtake.

I liked the idea of F1 trying something different at Monaco as the traditional one-stop, track-position-is-king, procession has gotten very old. It came to a head in 2024 as a first lap red flag gave everyone the chance to conduct their mandatory tyre swap, all going onto the hards and going to the end. Ive watched pretty much every race since 1970 and this was the worst boring, by far.

Unfortunately, despite the chaos that the mandatory two-stop brought, it wasn’t the right chaos and didn’t fix the age-old problem for Monaco. The top 10 largely finished where they started, with the only actual overtake happening on track, on the last lap, as Stroll went around the outside of Hulkenberg.

Best to just get on with the ratings as we don’t need to review pit stops and Trulli trains (sorry Jarno)

Lando Norris

Lando Norris was the star of the weekend, securing a brilliant pole position and executing a calm, controlled race to take the win. His only misstep was a double lock-up into Turn 1, but he got away with it. Norris held off Charles Leclerc under pressure, showcasing his maturity and skill on the most demanding circuit of the season.
Rating: 8.8

Charles Leclerc

Charles Leclerc was in the hunt for victory all afternoon, staying within four to five seconds of Norris but unable to find a way past on Monaco’s tight streets. A strong qualifying performance put him on the front row, and Ferrari looked quicker than expected. A solid drive, but just shy of the top step.
Rating: 8.7

Oscar Piastri

Oscar Piastri claimed his second podium of the season with a solid third-place finish. He was a couple of tenths off Norris all weekend and looked a bit scruffy at times, which is uncharacteristic for the Australian. Still, he continues his impressive run of scoring points in every race this season.
Rating: 7.9

Max Verstappen

Max Verstappen and Red Bull were a couple of tenths off the pace all weekend, which was expected given the circuit’s characteristics. Verstappen hung around in fourth, hoping for a red flag or safety car that never came. A relatively quiet weekend by his high standards.
Rating: 7.5

Lewis Hamilton

Lewis Hamilton was one of the few drivers to make progress on Sunday. Starting seventh after a qualifying penalty, he used the overcut to jump Esteban Ocon and Isaac Hadjar in the pits. However, he was stuck in no man’s land for much of the race, too quick for the cars behind but too far back to challenge the leaders.
Rating: 7.7

Isaac Hadjar

Isaac Hadjar had another strong weekend, qualifying sixth and starting fifth after Hamilton’s penalty. His team used strategy effectively, with Liam Lawson holding up the field to help Hadjar build a gap. A well-executed race earned him a solid sixth place.
Rating: 8.1

Esteban Ocon

Esteban Ocon delivered an understated but impressive performance. He qualified seventh and finished seventh, rarely seen during the race but consistently quick. A great weekend for Ocon that went somewhat unnoticed.
Rating: 7.9

Liam Lawson

Liam Lawson played the team game early on, sacrificing his strategy to help Hadjar. He qualified ninth and finished eighth, earning solid points. A welcome result for Lawson, who showed both speed and teamwork.
Rating: 7.7

Alex Albon

Alex Albon qualified ninth and finished ninth, playing the team game with Williams. He was cheekily overtaken by George Russell when he deliberately skipped the Novelle chicane, and would receive a penalty. Albon’s two points were well-earned in a tricky race.
Rating: 7.0

Carlos Sainz

Carlos Sainz had a similar race to Albon, qualifying eleventh and finishing tenth. He initially let Albon ahead to play the team game, then swapped back to secure a point. A solid drive, but missing Q3 limited his potential.
Rating: 7.3

George Russell

George Russell had a disappointing weekend, retiring in qualifying due to an electrical issue and starting fourteenth. He made up positions to finish eleventh but was stuck in the Monaco train for most of the race. Mercedes missed a trick by not splitting strategies and he was rightly penalised for intentionally skipping the chicane to pass Albon in hope of improving his position.
Rating: 6.2

Ollie Bearman

Ollie Bearman qualified last and finished twelfth, stuck in the Monaco train for the entire race. A tough weekend with little opportunity to make progress, but took advantage of the Lap 1 virtual safety car to gain a pit stop over most of the midfield.
Rating: 6.0

Franco Colapinto

Franco Colapinto pitted early to gain track position but was also stuck in the Monaco train. He finished thirteenth in a race where overtaking was nearly impossible.
Rating: 6.0

Gabriel Bortoleto

Gabriel Bortoleto recovered well after a first-lap crash, pitting under the virtual safety car to gain time. He finished fourteenth, ahead of his teammate, in a race where his crash ironically helped his strategy.
Rating: 6.5

Lance Stroll

Lance Stroll made one of the few overtakes of the race, passing Hulkenberg around the outside at the Nouvelle Chicane on the final lap. A small but impressive moment in an otherwise uneventful race.
Rating: 6.8

Nico Hulkenberg

Nico Hulkenberg was unlucky with strategy, pitting early and dropping back to fifteenth. A decent qualifying session was the highlight of his weekend.
Rating: 7.2

Yuki Tsunoda

Yuki Tsunoda was involved in an early crash with Pierre Gasly, which left him with significant car damage. He finished seventeenth, stuck in traffic and unable to make progress.
Rating: 5.5

Kimi Antonelli

Kimi Antonelli crashed in qualifying and started near the back. He was stuck in the Monaco train all race, finishing eighteenth in a disappointing weekend for Mercedes.
Rating: 5.2

Fernando Alonso

Fernando Alonso’s unlucky streak continued, retiring from sixth place due to an engine failure. He was on course for his first points of the season before the issue struck.
Rating: 7.7

Pierre Gasly

Pierre Gasly’s weekend was ruined by a brake issue that caused him to crash into Tsunoda on the first lap. He retired early, making it impossible to grade his performance fairly.
Rating: 5.2

Overview

The Monaco Grand Prix once again highlighted the challenges of overtaking on the tight, twisting streets of the principality. While the mandatory two-stop strategy added some intrigue, it also emphasized the need for rule tweaks to make the race more exciting. Despite its flaws, Monaco remains the jewel in Formula 1’s crown, and its place on the calendar is secure. Next up, the triple header concludes in Barcelona, where McLaren and Verstappen are expected to battle it out on a circuit with medium to high-speed corners. See you there!

Emilia Romagna Grand Prix: Driver Ratings

IMOLA, ITALY - MAY 18: Race winner Max Verstappen of the Netherlands and Oracle Red Bull Racing and the Oracle Red Bull Racing team celebrate during the F1 Grand Prix of Emilia-Romagna at Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari on May 18, 2025 in Imola, Italy. (Photo by Clive Rose/Getty Images) // Getty Images / Red Bull Content Pool // SI202505180494 // Usage for editorial use only //

Max Verstappen expertly won an interesting and absorbing Emilia Romagna Grand Prix on Sunday. Having started second, Verstappen performed arguably one of his best overtakes of his career, masterfully out-braking Oscar Piastri around the outside into the Tamburello chicane, holding it together with the Australian giving him space to take the lead into the first corner.

From there, Verstappen really had control of the race, which was helped by McLaren’s interesting strategic decisions. The race had the full safety car contingent, virtual and full safety car, which helped Verstappen in the first instance to extend his lead after Oscar Piastri took an early stop which did not work out for him. The full safety car bunched the field back up on lap 46 but still no one could get close to Verstappen as he drove away by six seconds. Behind him, both McLarens were two-three, Lando Norris ahead of Oscar Piastri, which is becoming routine for the McLaren team now. Following that came a fantastic battle between the two Ferraris and Alex Albon towards the end. Lewis Hamilton took fourth, Alex Albon fifth for the second fifth in a row, really cementing his place as best of the rest in the driver’s championship, followed by Leclerc who was caught by the two behind him after staying on old hard tyres with the second safety car.

George Russell took 7th on a quiet day for the Briton, in front of Sainz, Hadjar and Tsunoda who came from a pit lane start to take the last point.

Overall this was quite an exciting edition of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix by recent standards with the split strategy providing lots of opportunities for overtakes but Verstappen really was the class of the field.

Right, on to the ratings!

Max Verstappen

Max Verstappen pulled off a fantastic overtake over Oscar Piastri into turn one and never really looked back. He pulled out a two-second lead before Piastri pitted early for the undercut, but Red Bull held on getting through the graining and Verstappen increased his lead. From there, it was all looking very easy, very rarely seeing the Red Bull driver. The late safety car brought the field back to him but didn’t bother him in the end. He just keeps reminding us why he’s a four-time world champion and in the echelon of one of the best drivers of all time. These types of performances feel routine for him and look routine, but I imagine they’re very much not.

Rating: 8.9

Lando Norris

Lando continues to be hampered by his Saturday performances, qualifying fourth in this Grand Prix and getting stuck behind George Russell in the first twelve laps. By the time he got past, he was seven seconds behind the front two and really that’s quite a big gap in this title fight. He was unlucky with the virtual safety car, pitting thirty seconds before it came out, and then got stuck behind his teammate after the second safety car. Once he was past him, he was six seconds back from Verstappen, which was too far.

Rating: 8.1

Oscar Piastri

Oscar will be kicking himself for breaking a bit too early in the first corner. From there, the team didn’t help him, pitting Piastri early for the undercut, but he got stuck behind traffic and wasn’t able to eat into Verstappen’s lead. If anything, he lost time post pit stop. He was running in a distant third once the virtual safety car and all had rolled out. McLaren decided to keep him out during the second safety car and wasn’t really able to challenge Verstappen on much older tires after the restart. Not a great Sunday for Piastri. It could have been very different if he’d kept the lead into turn one, but unfortunately, he didn’t.

Rating: 7.9

Lewis Hamilton

A much better Sunday after a disappointing Q2 exit on Saturday. Hamilton was much more at ease with the car at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. Having been stuck behind Kimi Antonelli for much of the first half of the race, but once able to get past he made good progress. He put mediums on at the second safety car and was able to make up places over his teammate and Alex Albon to claim fourth. Generally, a much better race for Hamilton. He said after the race, it was the most comfortable he’d been, and he looked quick with some decisive overtakes.

Rating: 8.1

Alex Albon

Another fantastic weekend for Alex Albon and the Williams team. This is the second time in a row Alex has finished fifth and the third time all season. He was also a beneficiary of going long in the first stint. Albon took advantage of the virtual safety to pit, jumped Piastri and was running as high as third for much of the race. Piastri would then overtake him in between the two safety car periods. Albon pitted again at the second safety car and wasn’t quite able to hold on to fourth. So another fifth place for Alex Albon and a fantastic performance. Williams is really looking a very solid car.

Rating: 8.5

Charles Leclerc

A frustrating afternoon for Charles who thought he could probably get more out of the race after qualifying eleventh on Saturday. Made a good start, made a couple of places up, and was running nicely on the mediums in the first stint and triggered the first set of pit stops pitting on lap 11. Initially, this looked like a great decision as he undercut Russell and Piastri to take a net third on the road. But the safety car timings really screwed him with those around him taking a cheap stop. At the safety car, he decided to stay out as he had no fresh tyres available. This gave him track position, but left him vulnerable to Albon and Hamilton behind when he was eventually overtaken by both. So he finished sixth but a promising race for the Ferrari team overall, if not a bit frustrating for Charles.

Rating: 8.1

George Russell

A tricky weekend for Russell and the Mercedes team. Even though he started third on the grid after a great qualifying performance, the pace in the car really wasn’t there on Sunday. He suffered from high degradation in the first stint after being pushed hard by Lando Norris. He pitted early on lap 12, triggering the other two stoppers and was a victim of the safety cars. With the hot conditions causing Mercedes problems, we are going to see more of this.

Rating: 7.6

Carlos Sainz

Again, another solid weekend from Carlos. Argued that he was screwed by his team’s strategy putting on to the two stop when clearly the one stop was the right way to go on Sunday and was further exasperated by the virtual safety car coming out at the right time for the one stoppers. Another point scoring position could arguably have been sixth or seventh on another day.

Rating: 7.8

Isack Hadjar

Another point scoring position for the ever impressive rookie. Started eleventh, was running as high as fourth with Alex Albon during the early stages of the race, but wasn’t able to hang on to that position as the safety car and virtual safety car were not very well timed for him. He lost positions to Sainz and Russell during the safety car period and wasn’t able to make those positions back. More points for the young Frenchman.

Rating: 7.8

Yuki Tsunoda

A great recovery drive from Yuki from the pit lane after a humongous crash on Saturday, where he flipped his Aston Martin and was lucky to climb out of that uninjured. Went long in the first stint, made use of the virtual safety car and safety car to find his way back into the points at the flag.

Rating: 7.7

Fernando Alonso

Fernando was unlucky again, still not having scored a point in 2025. The Aston Martin looked much better after upgrades, and Alonso qualified fifth. However, an early pit stop and poorly timed safety cars left him unable to full recover, finishing eleventh.

Rating: 7.8

Nico Hulkenberg

Nico Hulkenberg had a great performance, running in the low teens for most of the race. He took advantage of the safety car periods and was running in tenth at the restart but couldn’t hold on, finishing twelfth.

Rating: 7.7

Pierre Gasly

Pierre Gasly had a tough race, pitting very early and dropping back after battling with Charles Leclerc. He was running in the mid-teens for most of the race, finishing thirteenth.

Rating: 7.6

Liam Lawson

Liam Lawson had a quiet race, qualifying fourteenth and finishing fourteenth. He was thoroughly outperformed by his younger and more inexperienced teammate.

Rating: 7.1

Lance Stroll

Lance Stroll had an unfortunate race after qualifying in the top ten. He was caught out by the safety cars and finished fifteenth.

Rating: 6.5

Franco Colapinto

Franco Colapinto had a tricky weekend on his second debut, crashing in qualifying and finishing sixteenth. He was tentative at the start and never really recovered.

Rating: 6.1

Ollie Bearman

Ollie Bearman had a quiet race, running towards the back for most of it and finishing seventeenth. He was unlucky in qualifying with his fastest time in Q1 being chalked off due to the red flag coming out just before he finished his lap.

Rating: 5.8

Gabriel Bortoleto

Bortoleto finished last on the road, outperformed by his teammate, Nico Hulkenberg. He had a few good battles towards the back, but couldn’t move forward.

Rating: 5.5

Kimi Antonelli

Kimi Antonelli had a scrappy weekend, retiring on lap 46 while running around fifth to eighth. He had some good battles but ended his race prematurely.

Rating: 7.2

Esteban Ocon

Esteban Ocon retired on lap 28 with an engine failure, impacting the race more than his driving did.

Rating: 5.5

In what could be the last time Formula One arrives in Imola for a while, this iconic circuit produced a decent race with plenty of action into Turn 1. Verstappen takes the honours of four consecutive wins at the Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari, tying off its inclusion in the calendar for now. Next, the second leg of the triple header takes us to Monaco, where a mandated two-stop race could see some crazy strategies. Verstappen leaves Italy very much in the title fight, putting down a marker to McLaren that he isn’t going anywhere.

Miami Grand Prix Driver Ratings

MIAMI, FLORIDA - MAY 04: Race winner Oscar Piastri of Australia and McLaren and the McLaren team celebrate during the F1 Grand Prix of Miami at Miami International Autodrome on May 04, 2025 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Hector Vivas/Getty Images)

Oscar Piastri took the spoils on Sunday as McLaren completed the perfect weekend, winning both the sprint and the main race in Miami. Piastri capitalized on the first-lap drama, which saw Max Verstappen and Lando Norris go wheel-to-wheel into the first couple of corners. Verstappen forced Norris wide at Turn 2, gifting positions to Kimi Antonelli and Piastri. Jack Doohan and Liam Lawson collided at the first corner, causing the first virtual safety car of the race and ending Doohan’s day with a puncture.

Piastri delivered an assured drive in the clearly fastest McLaren. After getting ahead of Antonelli, he pursued Verstappen, made a decisive pass, and drove off into the distance. Norris recovered from the first-corner scuffle, which pushed him down to sixth, and managed to pass the two Mercedes and Verstappen after a great battle. However, Piastri had already built a nine-second lead by that time. Norris closed the gap to just over three seconds by the flag but couldn’t catch his teammate.

George Russell took the final podium position, benefiting from the second virtual safety car to leapfrog Verstappen in the pits. Williams had a much-improved weekend, with Alex Albon finishing fifth and Carlos Sainz ninth. Kimi Antonelli made history by becoming the youngest driver to take pole in any Qualifying format, and still has two years to break Sebastian Vettel’s record for the youngest pole-sitter for a main race.

The race in Miami was full of intrigue, with rain on Saturday spicing up the sprint. However, the threatened rain on Sunday never arrived, leaving the race humid and tense. McLaren’s dominance was clear, and they took full advantage.

1. Oscar Piastri

Piastri completed the hat-trick of wins in Miami, to overtake his teammate in the F1 wins list. He took advantage of the squabbling in front at the start, made decisive passes, and drove off in the fastest car. He extends his championship lead to 16 points and is starting to look like THE title contender.
Rating: 8.6

2. Lando Norris

The safety car helped Norris in the sprint, but there was no such luck on Sunday. After a better start than Verstappen, he was pushed wide at Turn 2 and dropped to sixth. He made some nice passes to recover to second but couldn’t catch Piastri in the end.
Rating: 8.3

3. George Russell

A great result for Russell, who took advantage of the virtual safety car to leapfrog Verstappen in the pits and secure third, despite not being fully on the pace all weekend. He held off the Dutchman to the end and even a Red Bull appeal post-race.
Rating: 7.9

4. Max Verstappen

Not Max’s finest race. Despite holding off Norris from pole at the first corner, he couldn’t keep the McLarens back once they found their groove and was unlucky to lose third during the virtual safety car. Max knows he needs to be aggressive against the McLarens as his car simply doesn’t have the pace to challenge in the long term.
Rating: 7.7

5. Alex Albon

A great result for Williams. Albon qualified seventh, had a nice battle with his teammate early on before pulling away and securing a comfortable fifth place at the flag. He was working around a water pressure issue all race, so this result is even more impressive. My driver of the day.
Rating: 8.7

6. Kimi Antonelli

A fantastic sprint qualifying saw Antonelli take pole, but he couldn’t hold the lead in the damp conditions. In the race, he started third but couldn’t keep pace with the frontrunners. He lost time in the pits, trying an undercut just at the wrong time, with the virtual safety car coming out the next lap. Helped his teammate jump Verstappen, though, so good inadvertent teamwork from the rookie.
Rating: 8.1

7. Charles Leclerc

A tricky weekend for Ferrari. Leclerc crashed in the sprint reconnaissance lap and ran in the lower points throughout the race. The most excitement seemed to come on the radio as the Ferrari drivers scabbled over who should lead their attack but neither was able to make an impression.
Rating: 7.3

8. Lewis Hamilton

A podium in the sprint was Lewis’ weekend highlight, but he cut a frustrated figure during the main race. He got stuck behind Ocon for the first half but showed great pace once on the mediums, but got stuck again, this time behind his teammate and Sainz. Once released, he wasn’t able to pull away and had to let Leclerc back through. Bit of a mess from Ferrari there.
Rating: 7.4

9. Carlos Sainz

A solid weekend with double points for Williams. He wasn’t able to keep his teammate behind and then got stuck behind the Ferraris to pick up ninth place. He is showing more consistent pace though, which is encouraging for him and the team as they secure best of the rest status.
Rating: 7.9

10. Yuki Tsunoda

A relatively under-the-radar weekend for Tsunoda, who qualified and finished tenth but is definitely heading in the right direction. They should have given him the second Red Bull seat from the start.
Rating: 7.5

11. Isack Hadjar

Another decent performance from Hadjar, who is battling Antonelli for rookie of the year honours. He was unlucky to miss out on points, finishing just 0.2 seconds behind Tsunoda.
Rating: 7.6

12. Esteban Ocon

Ocon qualified ninth but finished twelfth, unable to hold onto a points-paying position as some faster cars came past. A better weekend after being thoroughly outperformed by his teammate in Jeddah.
Rating: 7.4

13. Pierre Gasly

A solid recovery drive from eighteenth to thirteenth, but Gasly never troubled the points. This alpine is proving quite inconsistent.
Rating: 7.2

14. Nico Hulkenberg

Not much to say for Hulkenberg, who started sixteenth and finished fourteenth.
Rating: 6.9

15. Fernando Alonso

Another tough weekend for Alonso, who crashed in the sprint and finished fifteenth after a lazy spin in the early stages. Still no points in 2025 for the Spaniard.
Rating: 6.2

16. Lance Stroll

Stroll finished last on the road, continuing a season where he is becoming increasingly irrelevant.
Rating: 6.1

Retirees

17. Liam Lawson

Liam was involved in the first corner collision with Doohan, which put him to the back and the Aussie out of the race. He wasn’t able to recover before retiring on lap 37.

Rating: 5.5

18. Gabriel Bortoleto

Gabriel retired on lap 30 with engine issues after running towards the back until then. Did outqualify his teammate and got into Q2 but that’s where his weekend peaked.

Rating: 5.8

19. Ollie Bearman

A tricky weekend for Ollie, he qualified last and wasn’t able to finish the race, retiring on lap 27 with an engine failure. Never good when your biggest moment is the novelty of seeing an engine failure, which is rare nowadays.

Rating: 5.2

20. Jack Doohan

Another race for Jack that ended before it could get going. He did well to outqualify his teammate but collided with Lawson at Turn 1 as they tussled over the same piece of tarmac. Their contact caused a puncture, and he retired before he could complete one circuit.

Rating: 5.2

The Formula One circus now moves to Italy for the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix at Imola. Expect McLaren to be quick on this fast, flowing, old school circuit. See you next time!

Saudi Arabian Grand Prix Driver Ratings

Oscar Piastri claimed victory at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, and the lead in the world championship after a dramatic Turn 1, which was really the peak of the excitement in Jeddah. Max Verstappen effectively shot himself in the foot, handed Piastri the advantage, and the Australian driver never looked back. Oscar got a great start from second on the grid, drawing alongside Verstappen, and took the high ground at the apex. Instead of conceding, the Red Bull driver ran wide and cut the corner to hold onto the lead, and more importantly, the clean air. Verstappen was handed a five-second penalty for the incident, and Piastri dutifully stayed within that window during the first stint. After leapfrogging the Red Bull during the pit stops, Piastri maintained a steady gap, managing the race well to secure his third win of the season.

Behind Piastri, Lando Norris delivered a strong recovery drive, climbing from tenth on the grid to finish fourth after a crash in Q3. Charles Leclerc secured Ferrari’s first podium of the year with a solid third-place finish, while George Russell and Kimi Antonelli rounded out the top six for Mercedes. There was some action behind, particularly on the main straight into Turn 1, but overall, it was a relatively straightforward affair with a one-stop strategy dominating the field. Now to the ratings.

Driver Ratings

Oscar Piastri – 8.3

Piastri’s commanding drive from second on the grid was a beautifully managed race, if not a tad boring. He capitalized on Verstappen’s indiscretion at Turn 1, stayed within the five-second penalty window, and executed a crucial overtake on Lewis Hamilton at Turn 22 to secure a comfortable lead while performing the undercut. With this win, Piastri has now won a tenth of all the races he’s ever competed in. Decent.

Max Verstappen – 7.9

Verstappen doesn’t really want to learn his lesson with these new overtaking rules. He basically replicated his situation with Norris in Austin last year and expected a difference result with the roles swapped around in Jeddah. The stewards didn’t agree with him this time and he earned himself a five-second penalty. Despite a fantastic qualifying performance, he couldn’t close the gap to Piastri in the second stint after losing the lead in the pits. While he showed good pace, the penalty ultimately cost him a shot at victory. However, is me having to write that show actually how good a job Verstappen is doing in that Red Bull?

Charles Leclerc – 8.4

Leclerc delivered Ferrari’s first podium of the year with a composed drive from 4th on the grid. He managed his mediums really well, pitting late on Lap 29 to create a nice tyre advantage and overtook George Russell to secure third place at the flag. This was Leclerc’s best performance of the year.

Lando Norris – 7.4

Norris recovered well from an eventful qualifying session to finish fourth. Starting tenth after crashing in Q3, he worked his way through the field methodically and was only 1.1 seconds behind a podium at the flag. These mistakes continue to cost him valuable points in the championship, mistakes which his rivals just aren’t making. Long way to go though.

George Russell – 7.5

Russell struggled with tyre overheating throughout the race, limiting his ability to challenge for the podium, despite running in 3rd for the first stint. While he finished fifth, it was a difficult performance by Mercedes’ standards in 2025 and a potential problem on the horizon as track temps will continue to rise as we get into the season.

Kimi Antonelli – 8.1

The Italian rookie impressed once again, finishing sixth after starting fifth. Despite a late brush with the wall, Antonelli showed pace and consistency, further cementing his reputation as one of the season’s standout drivers. You can argue against such a high score compared to Russell, but context is key here, he’s performancing beyond his experience.

Lewis Hamilton – 6.9

Lewis had a quiet race after a promising start, finishing seventh. He struggled with the Ferrari’s balance which has been a theme of 2025, finishing 30 seconds behind his teammate. The seven-time champion appears to be at odds with himself.

Carlos Sainz – 8.4

Sainz had a much-needed strong weekend, qualifying sixth and finishing eighth. He was the lead Williams driver throughout the weekend and played a key role in helping the team secure double points replicating his DRS tactic from Singapore 2023 to keep his teammate ahead of Hadjar.

Alex Albon – 7.9

Albon was outperformed by his teammate but still managed to score decent points for Williams as they took the best-of-the-rest honours. His ninth-place finish helped the team take fifth in the constructors’ championship.

Isaac Hadjar – 8.1

The French rookie continued to impress, finishing in the points again. He took advantage of the first lap crash to move up into the points and was threatening the Williams for more. Hadjar is staking a strong claim for Rookie of the Year, consistently delivering solid performances.

Fernando Alonso – 7.6

Alonso had a better race but still missed out on points. He narrowly avoided a collision with Gabriel Bortoleto, showed glimpses of pace, and took advantage of Lawson’s penalty but didn’t threaten the top ten.

Liam Lawson – 7.5

Lawson was unlucky to receive a ten-second penalty for running ever-so-slightly wide at Turn 1 overtaking Doohan which dropped him from 11th to 12th. Despite that setback, he showed better race pace.

Ollie Bearman – 7.8

Baerman was the leading Haas driver once again, finishing 13th. The young Englishman continues to impress in his rookie season against a solid F1 teammate.

Esteban Ocon – 6.2

Ocon was outperformed by his rookie teammate and failed to make an impact in the race. It was a quiet weekend for the French driver.

Nico Hulkenberg – 7.1

Hulkenberg finished 15th in what is arguably the slowest car on the grid. He did well to finish ahead of several drivers despite starting 18th.

Lance Stroll – 5.2

Stroll had another forgettable weekend, qualifying 16th and failing to make progress in the race. His lack of impact in Formula 1 continues.

Jack Doohan – 5.1

Doohan overtook Bortoleto on the final lap to hand over the wooden spoon to the Brazilian. That’s about it.

Gabriel Bortoleto – 5.1

Same as Doohan really, Bortoleto ran at the back all race, moved off the bottom during the pits but couldn’t hold on.

Pierre Gasly – 5.0

Pierre’s race ended on Lap 1 after a race incident with Yuki Tsunoda. As Martin Brundle says “2 into 1 doesn’t go” at Turn 4 with both ending in the barriers.

Yuki Tsunoda – 5.0

See above with a better qualifying performance from Yuki, getting into the Top 10 again.

Championship Standings

With this win, Piastri becomes the first Australian to lead the championship since Mark Webber in 2010. Verstappen and Norris remain close behind, while Mercedes and Ferrari continue to chase McLaren in the constructors’ standings. The season now heads to Miami in two weeks, where the battle for supremacy is sure to intensify.

Bahrain Grand Prix Driver Ratings

There we go, that’s much better! The Bahrain Grand Prix extinguished any memories of last weekend’s Japanese Grand Prix to put on a show in the desert; showcasing the best of Formula One.

Oscar Piastri made it look easy at the front with a commanding victory from pole position, however, behind him was pure entertainment. Several competing strategies meant a mixed up order throughout with overtaking all over the track, and a safety car to bunch the field, giving us action all the way to the end. Lando Norris managed to climb back up to third after a poor qualifying session. The Ferraris looked quick, and Lewis Hamilton appeared to be getting on top of his car, while the Red Bulls still seemed a step behind.

A shout-out to the rookies, in particular Ollie Bearman, who came from last to earn points—a great drive from the young Brit. There were solid performances all around; Antonelli had a great race even though he didn’t score any points, and so did Jack Doohan, but strategy decisions derailed their races.

Overall, it was a great race, exactly what we needed and a timely reinforcement for my next article on why Formula One should enforce each car to use all three dry tyre compounds per race. Look out for that shortly.

Right, into the ratings.

Oscar Piastri

Oscar dominated the weekend, securing a commanding victory from pole position. He led from start to finish, easing into the race during the first stint before pulling away in the second and third. The safety car briefly brought the pack closer, but Piastri remained untroubled, showing great speed and consistency.

8.8/10

George Russell

George Russell had another strong weekend, qualifying second but starting third due to a strange team penalty for instructing their drivers to leave the garage before the pit lane opened in Q2 after Ocon’s crash. He made a great start, taking second in the opening laps and holding his position throughout the race. His strategy of soft-medium-soft worked perfectly, and he held off Lando Norris in the closing stages to secure second place.

8.8/10

Lando Norris

Lando had a scruffy weekend in Bahrain which started in qualifying, leaving him sixth on the grid, and then a five-second penalty for being out of his grid box at the start cost him valuable time in the race. Despite this, he fought back to finish third, but more points dropped. In a tight title battle, he needs to be more consistent.

7.8/10

Charles Leclerc

The Monegasque driver outperformed his car, qualifying third and starting second after Russell’s penalty. Ferrari’s alternate strategy of starting on mediums saw him lose positions early, but he fought back with strong overtakes when he had the tyre advantage later on. A late switch to hards cost him some pace, but he held off Norris for a long time before finishing fourth.

8.2/10

Lewis Hamilton

The seven-time champ had a better weekend, though qualifying remains an area he must improve upon, which is crazy to write. Starting ninth, he delivered a solid recovery drive, running medium-medium-hard, like his teammate. He showed strong pace in the middle stint, briefly climbing to fourth before settling for fifth. Progress with the car is evident, and he’ll look to build on this in Jeddah.


7.8/10

Max Verstappen

Max Verstappen struggled with a twitchy Red Bull, qualifying seventh and finishing sixth. Brake issues hampered his ability to attack, and team operational problems in the pits cost him time. Despite these challenges, you’ve got to expect he extracted the most from his car, and did show great speed in bursts.


7.8/10

Pierre Gasly

Pierre was a standout performer in Bahrain, qualifying fifth and finishing seventh. He showed great pace throughout the weekend, battling with the top teams and narrowly losing out to Verstappen on the final lap. His consistency and aggression were impressive, making him my driver of the weekend.


9.1/10

Esteban Ocon

Ocon delivered a strong race, starting 14th after his Q2 shunt but finished seventh. An aggressive strategy of pitting early for fresh tires gave him a great undercut, and he maximized his pace in the Haas. This continues the team’s strong turnaround after a worrying start to the season in Australia.

8.5/10

Yuki Tsunoda

Yuki Tsunoda had a better weekend, qualifying tenth and finishing ninth. He was involved in battles throughout the race, including a collision with Carlos Sainz that ended the Ferrari driver’s race. Despite some setbacks, Tsunoda showed improved pace and consistency.

7.5/10

Ollie Bearman

Ollie Bearman was another star of the race, starting last after a poor qualifying but finishing tenth to score points. His overtakes and tyre management were exceptional, showcasing his potential as a rookie. This performance will boost his confidence moving forward.


8.9/10

Kimi Antonelli

Kimi Antonelli was another standout rookie, qualifying fifth and showing great pace throughout the race. Mercedes’ strategy cost him track position, but he fought back from 14th to finish 11th. His aggression and precision were impressive, even if he missed out on points.


8.1/10

Alex Albon

Alex Albon was unlucky to finish 12th after a strong race. He was on course for eighth before the safety car came out just after he pitted, dropping him down the order. Despite the setback, he showed good pace and made significant progress from 15th on the grid.


7.6/10

Nico Hulkenberg

Nico Hulkenberg finished 13th in what is likely the slowest car on the grid. He took advantage of the chaos and safety car to move up the order, but there’s little more he could have done given the car’s limitations.


8.2/10

Isack Hadjar

Hadjar had a tougher weekend, qualifying 12th and finishing 14th. A slow start and aggressive strategy didn’t pay off, and he struggled to keep up with the pack after the safety car. It was a decent performance but not up to his recent standard.


7.3/10

Jack Doohan

Jack was unfortunate to finish 15th after running in the points for much of the race. A poorly timed pit stop before the safety car cost him track position, but he showed good pace and progress after a slow and, accident heavy, start to his F1 career.


7.4/10

Fernando Alonso

Alonso had a quiet race, qualifying 13th and finishing 16th. Aston Martin’s struggles continued, and there was little Alonso could do to make an impact. They are quickly becoming the forgotten team in 2025.


7.1/10

Liam Lawson

Lawson finished 17th after a race filled with battles and penalties. A ten-second penalty for a collision with Bortoleto summed up a difficult weekend for the man from Auckland. He is being shown up by the other rookies and needs to put in a performance quickly, before Helmut Marko gets another bout of itchy fingers.

6.2/10

Lance Stroll

Lance Stroll qualified 19th and finished 18th, reflecting Aston Martin’s struggles. He was largely invisible during the race, and there’s little to say about his performance. Again, sums Aston Martin up at the moment.


3.5/10

Gabriel Bortoleto

Gabriel Bortoleto finished 19th after being involved in a collision with Lawson. He struggled to make an impression really and made up the backmarkers throughout the race.


5.5/10

Carlos Sainz

Carlos Sainz was unfortunate to retire after a collision with Tsunoda damaged his sidepod. He had a strong weekend, outqualifying his teammate and running in the points before the incident.


7.6/10

P.S.

Nico Hulkenberg was disqualified post-race for excessive plank wear, but his performance remains unchanged in the ratings.

Chinese Grand Prix Driver Ratings

F1’s first Sprint weekend of the year was by no means a classic. Still, McLaren will leave feeling pretty pleased with the way 2025 is shaping up as Oscar Piastri took a domination victory in China, leading home his teammate for an equally dominant 1-2 for the team in the main race. The Sprint was won in equally dominant fashion by Lewis Hamilton for Ferrari but Sunday turned into a disaster for the Scuderia as both cars were disqualified after post-race inspections.

While I will take into account the Sprint when picking my ratings, it’s the main race that really counts. I see the Sprint as equal to a qualifying session, it can help your score but isn’t going to define it. Lets get into it.

Oscar Piastri – 8.5

Oscar looked the quickest McLaren, and so the quickest car, pretty much all weekend apart from a few sectors in Quali but most importantly he was able to put the laps together when it counted, which Lando didn’t. Once Oscar defended Russell’s advances into Turn 1 and broke DRS to his teammate over the next lap or two, he wasn’t bothered again. This was a significant victory for the young Aussie, similar to Norris’ at Singapore last year. A mature, controlling drive from the front, to prove that they could do it. Finishing 2nd to Hamilton in the Sprint was a nice added extra, overtaking Verstappen late on to put that cherry on top.

Lando Norris – 7.1

A scruffy weekend for Lando as he got to grips with adapting his driving style to better suit the McLaren MCL39. He didn’t hook up the laps when needed in both qualifying sessions which left him out of ideal position. We are seeing Lando abandon final laps in Quali more regularly than the other top drivers, which will need to be remedied, those little mistakes can cost in a championship fight. He went backwards in the Sprint to finish 8th but came home with very solid points in 2nd for the main race, after nursing a brake issue late. Despite the scruffiness, 19 points is a good return.

George Russell – 7.9

Gorgeous George is living up to his name and driving beautifully at the moment. He has maximised his weekends so far in 2025. His final, front-row-securing lap in Quali was awesome (Lando take note) and set him up for his podium finish. He kept the McLarens honest throughout the race and even undercut Lando at the stops to take back 2nd. While he did lose it again soon after, he made sure that if the McLarens fell into problems, he would be the one to pick up the pieces, which very nearly happened.

Max Verstappen – 7.5

It’s hard to determine the outright speed of the Red Bull as his teammate is absolutely nowhere at the moment, but you have to assume that Max is pushing its performance as far as it can go. Which means that it is the 3rd fastest car in the field. So a 3rd and 4th place over the weekend for Max is essentially overachieving. He was really in no man’s land for most of the race. Not quick enough for the McLarens and George but fast enough to find his way past the Ferraris when needed. His highlight overtake of Leclerc around the outside of Turn 3 was simply lovely and his pace on the Hards will encourage Red Bull into Japan.

Esteban Ocon – 8.1

Ocon finds himself best of the rest after the Ferrari disqualification, in a fantastic 5th place. This was a really strong performance from the Frenchman, taking advantage of an optimised strategy with great pace on the hard tyre after pitting on Lap 11. His overtake on Antonelli into Turn 14 was really brave, putting half of his car on the grass and keeping his foot in. The adjustments Haas have made to their car have all been positive and Esteban took full advantage.

Kimi Antonelli – 7.3

Not quite as spectacular a performance as his debut in Aus, but another solid weekend. The performance gap between himself and Russell was 0.4 in quali which translated to around 40 seconds in the race but I think Kimi can be satisfied with that. No big mistakes and solid points again for 7th and 6th in the races, which is more than some of the other rookies. Another good foundational step for the young Italian.

Alex Albon – 7.5

Mr Reliable will be Albon’s new nickname I think. With 6 or 7 spots at the front accounted for through McLaren, Verstappen, Ferrari and the Mercedes, there are smaller points to fight for, for the likes of Williams, and Alex used his Williams well. Was comfortable with the medium wear in the first stint from 10th on the grid, and was consistent in the second to finish 9th on the road, which moved him up to 7th after the Ferraris DSQs.

Ollie Bearman – 7.7

Much better from Ollie in China! Which isn’t saying much after a disaster in Australia. After outqualifying his teammate for Sprint, he wasn’t able to get out of Q1 which we can put down to some rookie inconsistency and inexperience as others improved their setups in between the sessions. However, in the race he took advantage of the alternate strategy; starting on the hards and switching to the mediums and used his tyre advantage beautifully, setting multiple drivers up for lovely switchback moves at the Turn 14 hairpin to finish 10th and take his first points for Haas, which turned into even more once the DSQs were handed out. A great haul for Haas and a confidence booster for Bearman.

Lance Stroll – 7.1

Honestly, we didn’t see much of Stroll on TV this weekend but he did beat his teammate in both races! I know Alonso retired from one of them, but still! Stroll likes an alternate strategy and it worked for him in China. He gave the rest of the grid the green light to go to a 1 stop with his long stint on the hards and I did glimpse a nice lunge into the hairpin to overtake Lawson. Lance will take the points when he can get them in this Aston.

Carlos Sainz – 5.5

Sainz admitted himself that he was off the pace in China, and I agree with him. He is lucky to get his first point for Williams from the weekend and really only has the Ferraris, Alpine and Racing Bulls to thank. I say ‘only’ and then name a quarter of the grid, but DSQs and bad strategy gifted him this point. He never got close to Albon and the top half of any session. We will caulk it down to a learning weekend for the Spaniard.

Isack Hadjar – 7.4

Isack continued his strong start to 2025 (forget the incident we shall not mention last weekend), showing great pace throughout, even outqualifying Yuki to line up 7th! This Racing Bull is showing great speed, but it’s the strategy calls that are letting them down, and costing them points. Isack was on his way to them before the team called him in for a 2nd stop, which those around him didn’t take, saving them 25 seconds that Hadjar couldn’t claw back before the flag.

Liam Lawson – 3.2

Another struggle for Liam in China. This 2nd Red Bull is definitely the Bermuda Triangle at the moment but qualifying last in 2 of the three sessions so far this season is hard to explain away. His race pace wasn’t much to write home about either, he barely progressed in the race and only finished in front of Doohan and the two Saubers. This will be the last we see of Lawson in the Red Bull as the team has taken the extraordinary decision to replace him after two races, which even for them, this is pretty brutal. Lets see if Tsunoda can do any better.

Jack Doohan – 4.9

Another rookie that improved his performance in China, but was starting from a pretty low bar. Jack was more involved this weekend but still made up the bottom third of the pack. He out-qualified his teammate for the sprint but then went backwards over the weekend. He was the last driver on the lead lap at the chequered flag and got a slap on the wrist from the stewards for some late moves in defending from Hadjar, which was fair. Small progress, but with Colapinto waiting in the wings, and Red Bull setting the precedent, if Jack doesn’t improve quick, he could be the 2nd victim of 2025.

Gabriel Bortoleto – 6.7

A quiet but good weekend for Bortoleto. This weekend is unfortunately more a clear representation of the Sauber speed, likely the slowest car on the grid but Bortoleto completed THE objective, out-perform your teammate. He finished each session ahead of his more experienced and very fast teammate, despite a clumsy spin on the first lap which put him 10 seconds back from the pack.

Nico Hulkenberg – 5.2

A really quiet weekend from Hulkenberg. Never finished outside the bottom two runners across the competitive sessions. This is all I have to say! Beaten by his teammate consistently but I’m going to say that is more on Bortoleto doing a good job, than Nico doing a bad one.

Yuki Tsunoda – 7.9

Another weekend, another strategy call that cost Yuki points. He was driving beautifully and looking set to finish 6th before his team brought him in for a second stop, which everyone else decided against. This brought him out 16th and with lots of time to make up, and he was making some progress until his front wing failed, to add insult to injury, and forced him to pit for a 3rd time, ending the race in last. Yuki can take confidence though from these weekends, despite not collecting any points, and he is going to need it to tame the Red Bull he now finds himself in.

Fernando Alonso – 6.5

A very short race for Alonso in China, lasting only 4 laps before a fiery brake made him call it a day. He was in and around his teammate all weekend, both taking up positions at the fring of the points but not quite getting there, until the Ferrari’s were disqualified. That’s two DNFs in two to start 2025 for Fernando but neither were really his fault.

Charles Leclerc – 7.6

An interesting weekend for Charles, he was thoroughly outperformed by Hamilton in the Sprint section of the weekend but then thoroughly outperformed Hamilton in the race, despite knocking part of his front wing off on the first lap, after colliding with…Hamilton. These Ferraris are going to be entertaining this year. I don’t think Charles would have challenged for a podium, despite his claim of being held up by Lewis for a number of laps, as he faded towards the end and was overtaken by Verstappen. Its a moot point anyway, as his car was found to be underweight post race, which instantly disqualified him.

Lewis Hamilton – 7.8

The first half of the weekend was classic Lewis Hamilton. Out performed his car to stick it on pole, and then calmly led the race, managing his tyres masterfully before pulling away to make it look easy to win the Sprint. However, Ferrari made some set up changes for the race, to help with tyre wear but screwed with the car’s balance and Lewis’ performance dropped off dramatically. Never really being able to show strong pace in the race, he let Charles go and couldn’t hold onto him, finishing 6th on the road. Again, moot point though, as he was disqualified for excessive wear on his car’s plank, there to stop the cars running too low to the ground. A poor judgement mistake from the team, so absolutely no points for Ferrari in the main race in China.

Pierre Gasly -7.3

Pierre was also penalised for an underweight car in China. He didn’t lose anything but pride as he finished 11th on the road, for the second weekend in a row, which was good progress from his 16th place starting position. The car looks solid in parts in the hands of Gasly, who is pushing its limits which is back end of the points at the moment. He wasn’t quite able to get into them before his disqualification but he is proving himself as the clear team leader at Alpine, just needs a bit of luck.