F1 Driver Ratings - Belgian Grand Prix

Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes - 8

Spa was always going to be a tough weekend for Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes given Ferrari’s power advantage. But the Briton managed to once again prove his prowess in wet conditions with a superb charge to pole on Saturday. He was powerless to stop Vettel passing on the first lap, with a small mistake costing him a chance to get back ahead on the restart. Realistically though, this was never Hamilton’s race to win.

Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes - 7

Hit with a grid penalty for a power unit change, Bottas knew he’d be fighting his way back up the order at Spa. A clumsy run into the back of Sergey Sirotkin on the run to Turn 1 meant he couldn’t capitalise on the other incidents and rise up the order, but the Finn battled through to P4 at the chequered flag. Damage limitation was achieved.

Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari - 9

This was a vital race for Sebastian Vettel’s title ambitions. Fluffed chances in Germany and Hungary had allowed Hamilton to pull out a decent lead, and it look like he may lose yet more ground when his rival took pole on Saturday. But Vettel played the start well and took the lead into Les Combes, from where he never looked back. The race was in his hands. A well-executed, essential victory.

Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari - 7

Bwoah! Another missed chance for Kimi Raikkonen to end his win drought. Ferrari was the team to beat, and this is a track he loves, having won here four times. His pace in practice made him a contender before a strategy gamble from Ferrari backfired in qualifying, leaving him sixth on the grid. This put him in the firing line when chaos unfolded behind, with Raikkonen being the final link in the chain of the incident, suffering a puncture and damage that ultimately forced his retirement.

Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull - 6

As Ferrari did with Raikkonen, Red Bull rolled the dice in qualifying, fuelling both Ricciardo and Max Verstappen short. It left them on the fourth row of the grid, with Ricciardo being the unfortunate one to get hit by Fernando Alonso’s flying McLaren. Rear wing damage was repaired, albeit with Ricciardo two laps down by the time it was completed, making it an elongated test more than anything which ended after 28 laps.

Max Verstappen, Red Bull - 8

It may not have been the dream result Verstappen had hoped for, but he finally hit the podium at Spa in front of the tens of thousands of Dutch fans who had made the trip across the border for the race. After dodging the start-line drama, Verstappen climbed up to P3 before the end of the first stint, which was really the best he could hope for. A job well done.

Sergio Perez, Force India - 9

Sergio Perez didn’t even know if he’d be racing this weekend when he arrived at Spa on Thursday. The turbulent situation surrounding Force India was resolved that evening, allowing the team to race as normal, albeit as a new entry and now last in the championship with zero points. Perez stunned in qualifying with a charge to P4 - had he not missed the flag by one second, he may have got a genuine shot at pole - and then did well in the race to lead Force India’s charge in fifth, only losing a place to Bottas in the closing stages. A weekend to remember for the Mexican.

Esteban Ocon, Force India - 9

Ocon spent the weekend in the same boat as Perez, albeit with the added caveat of uncertainty as to whether he’d even be at Monza with Lance Stroll looking set to take his seat. Ocon put all of the noise to the back of his mind to score his best F1 qualifying result in P3 on Saturday. He reckons he was just one more metre away from taking the lead on the run to Les Combes after getting a mega tow, only to back out and play it safe - he had to for the team. After dropping behind Perez, sixth was all Ocon could really manage. But his heroics will be remembered fondly. It’ll be a travesty if he’s not at Spa this weekend.

Lance Stroll, Williams - 6

A bit of a better weekend for Williams at Spa, but still no points to show for it. Stroll dropped out in Q1 before rising to 11th through the start-line drama, but then slipped back through the race, eventually finishing 13th behind teammate Sergey Sirotkin.

Sergey Sirotkin, Williams - 7

Sirotkin turned in a solid display at Spa, even if - like Stroll - he failed to reach the points. He qualified ahead of his teammate and ran P9 early on, but didn’t have the outright pace to stay inside the top 10, slipping back to 12th at the flag.

Nico Hulkenberg, Renault - 4

Hulkenberg had to start near the back after a grid penalty power unit changes, stemming from his practice issue in Hungary, meaning it would always be a fight to grab points - but what followed was unbelievably clumsy. After missing his braking point at La Source, Hulkenberg slammed into the back of Fernando Alonso’s car, triggering the incident that saw the Halo’s worth get proven for the first time in F1. A 10-place grid penalty for Monza was light, all things considered.

Carlos Sainz Jr, Renault - 6

Balance issues left Sainz struggling for grip through qualifying on Saturday, resulting in a surprise Q1 elimination. Renault took advantage of his low starting spot to take a fresh set of power unit components, dropping him to the back. Sainz dodged the start-line drama, but never had the pace in the race to quite reach the points, finishing 12 seconds back from Marcus Ericsson in P10.

Pierre Gasly, Toro Rosso - 8

Days after being confirmed as a Red Bull driver for 2019, Pierre Gasly proved again why the team is taking a punt on a driver with less than a season of F1 experience to his name. This was always anticipated to be a tough weekend for Toro Rosso, yet Gasly qualified 11th, started 10th, and finished eighth, managing his tyres well and keeping the Sauber of Ericsson at an arm’s length. 

Brendon Hartley, Toro Rosso - 6

Brendon Hartley had the pace to impress at Spa, but couldn’t quite match Gasly when it mattered in the race. After getting stuck behind the Ricciardo/Raikkonen clash, Hartley didn’t make up much ground on the first lap, with the New Zealander saying that’s where his race effectively ended. A reverse strategy didn’t work as hoped, leaving him one lap down in 14th come the finish.

Romain Grosjean, Haas - 8

Romain Grosjean’s future at Haas remains in the balance, but he helped his cause in Spa with a strong weekend. Grosjean took advantage of the wet conditions to qualify fifth on Saturday, but was powerless to stop Bottas or Verstappen passing through the race, leaving him eighth come the finish. A comfortable and clean weekend for the Frenchman.

Kevin Magnussen, Haas - 7

Magnussen didn’t quite get things right in qualifying like Grosjean, finishing 10th, but made a sensational start to leapfrog both Raikkonen and Ricciardo, who would get caught up in the aftermath of the Hulkenberg-Alonso-Leclerc smash. He tailed teammate Grosjean throughout the race, finishing just two seconds behind to give Haas an important double points score.

Fernando Alonso, McLaren - 6

Fernando Alonso ailed to his worst qualifying result of the season on Saturday at Spa, finishing 17th, but insisted it wasn’t a new low for McLaren this year as it had anticipated it would struggle here. His race lasted a matter of seconds as Hulkenberg slammed into the rear of his car, leaving Alonso a passenger in the crash. A tough weekend all around for McLaren.

Stoffel Vandoorne, McLaren - 5

As the pressure continues to ramp up on Stoffel Vandoorne at McLaren, he did little to convince the team on a poor home weekend. Vandoorne qualified last, and even in a race of attrition, finished a disappointing 15th as the last classified finisher, more than 20 seconds back from the Williams drivers. Curiously, we’ve seen Vandoorne at his most vocal this weekend, being honest about McLaren’s shortcomings. A sign of a man who knows his fate already?

Marcus Ericsson, Sauber - 8

Points for the third time in five races is an excellent achievement for Marcus Ericsson. The updated Ferrari power unit has given Sauber a boost, but the Swede managed to harness it well throughout the weekend, reaching Q2. Ericsson benefited from the incidents at Turn 1 to rise into the points, and did brilliantly to stay there, even if he lost out in the battle with Gasly for ninth. Another point to the pile for Sauber.

Charles Leclerc, Sauber - 7

Charles Leclerc was looking strong at Spa, leaving him disappointed to only qualify 13th on Saturday. Points were definitely in reach, as proven by Ericsson’s result, but Leclerc was denied any opportunity to move into the top 10 by the start-line smash. Leclerc said he felt “lucky” after the incident, with Halo appearing to help avoid a serious injury. It’s the first big impact in F1 for the youngster, who will look to come back stronger at Monza.