Miami F1 driver ratings: Who ranked higher - Hamilton's current or ex-teammate?

F1 Miami GP winner Max Verstappen - 10

(Qualified 3rd, finished 1st)

The reigning F1 world champion made amends for his mistake on his final lap in qualifying with the perfect race performance in Miami. Verstappen got ahead of Sainz at Turn 1 before overtaking the other Ferrari with the use of DRS into the same corner on Lap 9. From then on, Verstappen controlled the race from the front to claim his third victory of the season to reduce Leclerc’s championship lead.

Charles Leclerc - 9

(Qualified 1st, finished 2nd)

Leclerc was once again at his very best in qualifying as he secured pole position ahead of teammate Sainz and Verstappen. Ferrari simply didn’t have the race pace on the mediums as he surrendered the lead on Lap 9. Ferrari seemed more suited to the hards as he pressured Verstappen for several laps following the Safety Car but Red Bull’s superior straight-line speed meant he couldn’t get close enough to make a move.

Carlos Sainz - 8

(Qualified 3rd, finished 3rd)

Sainz resisted Perez’s early pressure to maintain third after the opening laps after losing out to former teammate Verstappen on the opening lap. The Spaniard once again didn’t have the pace of the leading duo, leaving him in third - his first podium since the second race in Saudi Arabia.

Sergio Perez - 8

(Qualified 4th, finished 4th)

A race of ‘what if’ for Perez after a loss of power on Lap 20 put him out of contention for the podium. He was the only one to switch to the mediums under the Safety Car but couldn’t maximise them because he was managing the aforementioned power issue which, according to Christian Horner, cost him 30hp.

George Russell - 7

(Qualified 12th, finished 5th)

Russell struggled in qualifying as he was knocked out in Q2, securing 12th on the grid. Fortune was on his side as he went long on the hards and made the most of the Safety Car caused by Gasly and Norris’ crash on Lap 49. The fresh mediums allowed him to breeze past Hamilton to continue his impressive streak of finishing every race in the top five.

Lewis Hamilton - 8

(Qualified 6th, finished 6th)

Hamilton lost out to Gasly and Alonso at the start but within six laps was back behind former teammate Bottas. The seven-time champion couldn’t get close to the Finn and was on for a comfortable sixth. The Safety Car gave Russell fresh tyres, leaving Hamilton defenceless in the closing 10 laps. A positive weekend for Hamilton given his struggles at Imola.

Valtteri Bottas - 8

(Qualified 5th, finished 7th)

Bottas was enjoying his best weekend as an Alfa Romeo driver after qualifying fifth on the grid and then maintaining that position at the start. The Finn ran three seconds ahead of Hamilton before the late Safety Car period. Bottas struggled for tyre warm-up, dropping behind the two Mercedes drivers as he ran wide at the final corner.

Esteban Ocon - 7

(Qualified 20th, finished 8th)

Ocon was running a solid race but he was fortunate to benefit from the late Safety Car caused by Gasly and Norris’ contact. The Frenchman was 10th under the Safety Car before dropping a position to Vettel. He then moved back up the order when Vettel and Schumacher collided.

Alex Albon - 8

(Qualified 18th, finished 9th)

Albon secured Williams’ second points finish of the season with another fine drive to 10th. More fortunate than his point in Australia, Albon kept his nose clean and moved up the order as Schumacher and Vettel collided.

Lance Stroll - 7

(Qualified 10th, PL start, finished 10th)

Stroll starred in qualifying to make Q3 for Aston Martin. He wasn’t able to start the race from 10th after a fuel-related issue occurred for both Astons ahead of the race with it not at the right temperature, forcing him to start from the pit lane. The Canadian ran solidly but an incident with Magnussen towards the end of the race cost him a shot at the top 10.

Fernando Alonso - 6

(Qualified 11th, finished 11th)

It was an eventual race for Alonso in Miami as he tapped former teammate Hamilton on the opening lap after making a storming start from 11th on the grid up to seventh. Alonso tried an opportunistic lunge on Gasly on Lap 39, colliding with the AlphaTauri driver and giving him damage in the process. Alonso got the move done but was handed a five-second penalty for the overtake, dropping him behind Ocon. He was given another five-second penalty after the race.

Yuki Tsunoda - 6

(Qualified 9th, finished 12th)

An early pit stop onto the hards didn’t work out for Tsunoda as he dropped down to 19th in the first half of the race. The Safety Car and subsequent carnage allowed him to make his way back through the field to secure 13th at the end of the race. 

Daniel Ricciardo - 5

(Qualified 14th, finished 13th)

Ricciardo endured another difficult weekend as he was knocked out in Q2 whereas teammate Norris qualified inside the top 10. The Australian didn’t make too much progress in the race as he finished a lacklustre 11th at the end of the race, benefitting from the chaos after the Safety Car.

Nicholas Latifi - 5

(Qualified 19th, finished 14th)

Another underwhelming weekend for the second Williams of Latifi. The Canadian didn’t feature too much during the race, ultimately finishing 14th after issues for the two Haas drivers.

Mick Schumacher - 5

(Qualified 15th, finished 15th)

Schumacher showed great pace all weekend but came away with no championship points. The German was running in the top 10 under Safety Car but collided with good friend Vettel into Turn 1. The stewards deemed it to be a ‘racing incident’ but Schumacher should have been more careful given points were on the line which is reflected in his rating.

Kevin Magnussen - 5

(Qualified 16th, finished 16th)

It was a mixed day for Magnussen who ran in the tail end of the points before dropping back after a number of incidents in the closing laps. Magnussen ran ahead of teammate Schumacher for much of it but was forced to let him past after the German showed better pace.

Sebastian Vettel - 6

(Qualified 13th, PL start, DNF)

A mistake in Q2 meant he was unable to match teammate Stroll’s heroics. He was also forced to start from the pit lane due to a fuel issue which meant he was forced to drive a defensive race, battling the Haas cars. The Safety Car handed Vettel a chance of scoring points but he lost out on ninth after being crashed into by Schumacher in the closing laps at Turn 1.

Pierre Gasly - 7

(Qualified 7th, DNF)

Gasly got back into the top 10 in qualifying with a fine lap but struggled for race pace. He managed to keep Alonso at bay before colliding with the Spaniard - Gasly was entirely innocent given it was his corner. The Frenchman was driving around slowly with damage before colliding with Norris.

Lando Norris - 7

(Qualified 8th, DNF)

After qualifying inside the top 10, Norris’ race was undone during the pit stop phase as a length stop dropped him down the order, where he was stuck behind the Haas pair. Norris’ race ended on Lap 41 after contact with Gasly, who was struggling with damage to his AlphaTauri.

Guanyu Zhou - N/A

(Qualified 17th, started 15th, DNF)

Zhou was unfortunate to miss out on Q2 after encountering traffic on his first run in Q1. Zhou was forced to retire from the race in the early stages.