Spanish GP driver ratings: One out of contract F1 star delivers impressive drive
Crash.net F1 journalist Connor McDonagh's driver ratings for the Spanish Grand Prix.
Max Verstappen - 10
Verstappen continues to make the difference for Red Bull as he delivered another masterclass in Barcelona in what was not the quickest car.
Lando Norris - 8.5
Given McLaren had the fastest car this weekend, it’s hard to agree with the fans’ decision to hand Norris driver of the day. While his pole lap was magical, in the key moments on Sunday, he didn’t deliver - at the start and then in traffic later on.
Lewis Hamilton - 9
There’s just some tracks where Hamilton always delivers and Barcelona is one of them. He finally got his qualifying together with third on the grid before converting that into his first podium of the year despite a slow start.
George Russell - 8
Russell’s start was Alonso-esque as he swooped around the outside of Norris and Verstappen to take the lead. Unfortunately for Russell, his race pace seemed to be a little bit off compared to Hamilton’s. Even without the strategy variation, the seven-time world champion had the edge.
Charles Leclerc - 8.5
After struggling for pace up until Q3, Leclerc pulled it out of the bag to topple Sainz again. A mature drive to come away with fifth in the end which required significant tyre preservation.
Carlos Sainz - 7.5
In his own words, Sainz tried to be aggressive on home soil but it was all in vain as he finished sixth.
Oscar Piastri - 6
A poor weekend from Piastri, whose chances were completely ruined by an off at the final couple of corners in qualifying. While he recovered to seventh, it’s far from good enough in what was the best car in Barcelona.
Sergio Perez - 5.5
Perez’s mid-season troubles continued in Spain. He was back in Q3 but his grid penalty from the last race was always going to put him on the back foot.
Pierre Gasly - 9
Outside of Verstappen, there’s no doubt that Gasly was this weekend’s star performer. He excelled in qualifying before putting together a strong race. Had it not been for a slow pit stop, he’d have finished ahead of Perez.
Esteban Ocon - 7.5
A step behind Gasly but did well to come away with a point in an impressive weekend for Alpine.
Nico Hulkenberg - 7
Haas were never in contention for points in Barcelona so Hulkenberg put together a professional race to finish 11th.
Fernando Alonso - 6.5
Unfortunately for Alonso on home turf, Aston Martin were completely hopeless. No pace and deja vu in the development race if you look at last year.
Zhou Guanyu - 6
A change of chassis resulted in Zhou’s first Q2 appearance of the year so far. He was given a more conventional strategy than teammate Bottas, allowing him to mix it in the midfield.
Lance Stroll - 6
Not quite at Alonso's level on a weekend where Aston Martin never looked like scoring points.
Daniel Ricciardo - 6.5
A weirdly poor weekend for RB as their upgrade - so far at least - hasn't delivered. Still, a fairly solid race for Ricciardo.
Valtteri Bottas - 6.5
Bottas was brilliant in qualifying as he extended his advantage over Zhou to 10-0 in the head-to-head. The strategy deployed by Sauber was shocking though.
Kevin Magnussen - 5.5
Magnussen's chances of a solid race were ruined by a false start.
Alex Albon - 6.5
It Williams' worst weekend of the year. They were comfortably the slowest team in Barcelona.
Yuki Tsunoda - 5.5
A messy race for Tsunoda who was hit with a penalty for pit lane speeding.
Logan Sargeant - 5
Off the pace and anonymous. A weekend to forget for Sargeant and Williams.
