F1 Driver Ratings – British Grand Prix

Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes – 9

A record sixth home victory for Lewis Hamilton at Silverstone taken by a comfortable margin that didn’t tell the full story of the race. Hamilton was pipped to pole by Mercedes teammate Valtteri Bottas, who then managed to keep the Briton back through the opening stages. Hamilton managed his tyres superbly as he aimed for a one-stop strategy, with the Safety Car then playing straight into his hands. The fastest lap at the very end proved just how in control he was.

Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes – 9

Bottas became the first driver in five years to beat Hamilton to pole at Silverstone after keeping things clean in a difficult session, and was excellent in his defence through the opening stint. Committing to a two-stop proved to be his undoing, but his pace was such that he could still comfortably clear the cars behind.

Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari – 4

A very poor weekend from Vettel. Struggles in qualifying left him a lowly sixth on the grid before an early battle with Pierre Gasly (which he ended up losing). The Safety Car put Vettel in contention for the podium, only for him to blow it when he slammed into the back of Verstappen’s car under braking. Vettel took the blame, but it’s still another mistake to add to the list.

Charles Leclerc, Ferrari – 9

Charles Leclerc emerged as the cooler, calmer head yet again at Ferrari, outqualifying and beating Vettel in the race for the third grand prix in a row. He admitted his moves on Verstappen were “borderline” but always within the rules, making for a wonderful fight that was defused by the Safety Car and a duff strategy call from Ferrari. Leclerc got the jump on Gasly before moving up to third after the Vettel/Verstappen clash, giving him a fourth straight podium finish.

Max Verstappen, Red Bull – 9

Verstappen was within earshot of the lead runners in qualifying, blaming turbo lag for denying him a place higher than P4 on the grid, and he was able to hound Leclerc through the opening stint. Verstappen was on course for third after the Safety Car as Red Bull got the strategy spot on, only for Vettel to put paid to those hopes. He somehow avoided damage and got home fifth.

Pierre Gasly, Red Bull – 8

A big breakthrough for Pierre Gasly this weekend. He’s qualified well before, but was this time able to not only stay with the Red Bull/Ferrari train but even compete with them, putting a pass on Vettel. He was given the call to let Verstappen past after the Safety Car, but couldn’t keep Leclerc at bay, leaving him fourth. Nevertheless, an important, well-earned boost for the Frenchman.

Nico Hulkenberg, Renault – 6

Nico Hulkenberg had a Sunday to forget at Silverstone, but still managed to come home with a point to show for it. The Safety Car worked against him after an early stop before he was hit by Sergio Perez on the restart, causing him to lose two places, and then an engine glitch late on also cost him a place to Daniil Kvyat. He still managed to nab P10 on the penultimate lap, giving Renault a decent double-score.

Daniel Ricciardo, Renault – 8

Daniel Ricciardo returned to the points after two races away with a strong showing all weekend. He led the midfield in qualifying before a superb wheel-to-wheel fight with Lando Norris in the opening stages of the race, but was hurt by the Safety Car, costing him a position to Carlos Sainz. Ricciardo hounded Sainz to the flag, running within a second of the McLaren driver for the last 14 laps, but couldn’t find a way past.

Kevin Magnussen, Haas – 5

Another weekend of woe for Haas, which hit new lows as Kevin Magnussen and Romain Grosjean collided on the opening lap. Magnussen failed to reach Q2 and was given equal share of the blame for the clash, with the Dane retiring a few laps later after reporting something loose near his pedals.

Romain Grosjean, Haas – 4

Going all the way back to the Australia-spec setup strangely saw Grosjean advance to Q2, where he then went much slower – the Haas mystery continues. Again took his share of the blame for the Magnussen clash, but the real low point came on Friday when he spun his car in the pit lane and took the front wing off the car. Oh dear.

Carlos Sainz, McLaren – 8

A really impressive recovery drive from Carlos Sainz, who was left P13 on the grid after a difficult Saturday in which he said his issues had snowballed. A good start saw him jump the Alfas, after which he was happy to let the Soft runners push on in order to manage his Mediums. The Safety Car allowed him to vault the other midfield drivers, many of whom were forced into a second stop, before brilliant defence against Ricciardo to keep P6. Shame his defence against Ricciardo wasn’t as good pre-race…

Lando Norris, McLaren – 8

A race undone by the Safety Car, Lando Norris had been looking good for a tidy haul of points. He was leading the midfield after his early fight with Ricciardo, but McLaren’s failure to pit him for Hards under the Safety Car forced him into a second stop later in the race, by which point he could only return to the track down in P14. He recovered to 11th, but still a missed opportunity for the team.

Sergio Perez, Racing Point – 6

Despite qualifying down in P15, Sergio Perez was working his way into contention for points through the first stint before things started going badly wrong. He was the last driver to pit before the Safety Car, hurting his points chances before a steering wheel issue meant he had his brake balance wrong, causing him to hit Hulkenberg on the restart and receive damage that essentially ended his race.

Lance Stroll, Racing Point – 5

Fourteen Q1 exits on the bounce for Lance Stroll now, who fluffed a good chance to make it through to Q2 with an error on his final qualifying lap. Racing Point opted against pitting him under the Safety Car, but did bring Stroll in late on for a second stop, ending a forgettable weekend down in 13th place.

Kimi Raikkonen, Alfa Romeo – 7

Raikkonen made his one-stop strategy work well and benefitted from issues for Hulkenberg and Alexander Albon to gain some places, and defended nicely from Daniil Kvyat in the closing stages. Alfa didn’t appear to have the pace for points at Silverstone, so to come away with four in the bag is a good effort from Raikkonen.

Antonio Giovinazzi, Alfa Romeo – 5

Antonio Giovinazzi may have outqualified his teammate, but that’s as good as it got at Silverstone. A slow start caused him to lose five places in the opening four laps before an issue on his car sent him spinning off at Vale, ending his race early.

Daniil Kvyat, Toro Rosso – 7

Kvyat did well to battle up the order after starting P17, with Toro Rosso’s call to pit him under the Safety Car allowing him to run long on the Hards to the end. He certainly benefitted from Vettel, Albon and Hulkenberg’s problems, but was still in the frame to put pressure on Raikkonen late on.

Alexander Albon, Toro Rosso – 7

Albon is tricky to score given the severity of the issue on his car, with a battery problem meaning the car could not be touched through the second stint, forcing him to go 39 laps on a set of Mediums! Unsurprisingly Albon dropped down the order, eventually finishing P12 after showing good promise in qualifying. A tough break.

George Russell, Williams – 7

George Russell did everything he could at Silverstone, running the perfect strategy by starting on Mediums and pitting under the Safety Car. Once again he had the edge on Robert Kubica in the sister Williams car, going 10-0 up in qualifying.

Robert Kubica, Williams – 6

Russell may have been ahead in both qualifying and the race, but Kubica wasn’t as far adrift at Silverstone as he has been elsewhere, the gap only standing at 11 seconds come the end of the race.