F1 Driver Ratings from the 2021 United States Grand Prix

Each driver is scored out of ten with the rating being heavily weighted on their race day performance. Qualifying performance holds less weight when deciding the ratings

Max Verstappen (Qualified 1st, finished 1st) - 10

Another perfect drive from Verstappen to extend his lead in the championship to 12 points over Hamilton with just five laps remaining. He ran comfortably behind Hamilton in the first stint having lost the lead at the start, meaning Red Bull was forced to go on the aggressive with two pit stops to ensure he retained track position. As he usually does, Verstappen resisted immense pressure from Hamilton in the closing laps to take his eighth victory of the season. 

Lewis Hamilton (Qualified 2nd, finished 2nd) - 10

There’s not much more Hamilton could have done on race day as his fate was in the hands of Mercedes’ strategy team. His brilliant start was in vain as he lost track position through the pit stop phase. The seven-time champion reduced Verstappen’s lead to 0.9s in the closing laps but it wasn’t enough to get close enough to make a move for the win. Two spectacular performances from F1’s two top drivers.

Sergio Perez (Qualified 3rd, finished 3rd) - 8

A solid drive from Perez in the circumstances. Perez played the team game on the opening lap as he backed out from overtaking his teammate when he was dicing with Hamilton through the opening sequence of corners on the opening lap. His pace faltered as the race progressed but given that his drinks bottle failed early on and he was battling illness, he did well to secure the final spot on the podium.

Charles Leclerc (Qualified 5th, started 4th, finished 4th) - 10

Leclerc was in a league of his own on race day at the Circuit of the Americas, finishing 24 seconds ahead of Daniel Ricciardo in fifth. Ultimately, it was a lonely race for the Ferrari driver but superb nonetheless.

Daniel Ricciardo (Qualified 7th, started 6th, finished 5th) - 8

A fine drive from Ricciardo to comfortably beat Carlos Sainz in the second Ferrari and teammate Lando Norris. Ricciardo had a great scrap with Sainz on the opening lap, into Turn 17. The pair’s battle continued into the second half of the race, banging wheels at one point.

Valtteri Bottas (Qualified 4th, started 9th, finished 6th) - 6

A tricky weekend for Bottas as his race was compromised by another grid penalty for an engine change. The Finn lost out to Yuki Tsunoda at the start and was forced to give the place back to Pierre Gasly after he overtook the Frenchman off the track at Turn 1. Once Bottas got clear air, his pace was comparable to Perez and Leclerc. Bottas managed to overcut Norris, before overtaking Sainz for sixth in the closing laps. 

Carlos Sainz (Qualified 6th, started 5th, finished 7th) - 7

Starting on the soft tyres, Sainz was always going to have his work cut out in Austin to keep the two McLarens behind during the early stages of the race. He lost out to Ricciardo after an aggressive duel with the McLaren pair. The Spaniard picked up some minor front wing damage when he battled with Ricciardo in the second half of the race before losing out to Bottas. 

Lando Norris (Qualified 8th, started 7th, finished 8th) - 6

It was a dramatic opening lap for Norris as he went three-wide with Sainz and teammate Ricciardo into Turn 11. Had Norris braked any later, it’s likely he’d have hit Leclerc who was running just ahead of the trio. From then on, it was a quiet race for the Brit, running a couple of seconds behind Sainz before losing out to the faster Mercedes of Bottas through the pit stop phase.

Yuki Tsunoda (Qualified 10th, started 10th, finished 9th) - 8

Tsunoda continued his recent upturn in form with a strong drive to ninth. The Japanese rookie kept his teammate Gasly and Bottas at bay during the first stint, but couldn’t stop the faster Mercedes after the first pit stops despite giving it his best shot. Tsunoda resisted pressure from Raikkonen and hung on to score his first points since Hungary.

Sebastian Vettel (Qualified 12th, started 18th, finished 10th) - 8

Vettel maximised his lowly grid position after taking an entirely new power unit to secure the final championship point. A late second pit stop gave Vettel fresh tyres which allowed him to overtake Giovinazzi for 11th. He moved up to 10th after Raikkonen spun. 

Antonio Giovinazzi (Qualified 13th, started 12th, finished 11th) - 6

The Italian ran in 11th in the early stages behind the AlphaTauris and Bottas, before being ordered to move over for Raikkonen - which he did unlike at Istanbul Park last time out. After that, Giovinazzi battled hard with Alonso, with the pair switching positions due to both drivers completing overtakes outside the track. Giovinazzi lost 11th to Vettel with six laps to go.

Lance Stroll (Qualified 16th, started 13th, finished 12th) - 6

Stroll’s race was ruined on the opening lap when he was spun by the Williams of Nicholas Latifi. He recovered well to finish 12th despite running the race with significant damage. 

Kimi Raikkonen (Qualified 18th, finished 15th, finished 13th) - 5

After another poor qualifying, Raikkonen was faring better on race day, gaining three places on the opening lap. He picked up minor floor damage when overtaking Alonso at Turn 1 - off the track but it was deemed to be legal as he was pushed off by the Spaniard. With Vettel closing in, Raikkonen upped his pace but spun at the Essess in the first sector, giving up the final point to his former teammate.

George Russell (Qualified 15th, started 20th, finished 14th) - 7

Russell enjoyed a good start from the back of the grid as he moved up to 15th on the opening lap. Williams simply didn’t have the pace to run with the midfield, so it was no surprise that Russell could only beat his teammate and the Haas duo.

Nicholas Latifi (Qualified 17th, started 14th, finished 15th) - 4

His race was undone on the opening lap as he clattered into Stroll. Latifi blamed one of the Haas’ being up his inside for the contact but it was still an avoidable incident. Latifi had to pit for repairs so his task was focusing on beating the Haas pair, which he did with ease. 

Mick Schumacher (Qualified 19th, started 16th, finished 16th) - 6

Schumacher ran as high as 14th in the early stages but the Haas simply didn’t have the pace to sustain it. The German was nearly a factor in deciding who would win the race, keeping Verstappen behind until the final corner which allowed Hamilton to reduce the gap by 0.7s.

Nikita Mazepin (Qualified 20th, started 17th, finished 17th) - 5

It was a tough day for Mazepin after his headrest came loose on the opening lap, forcing him into an unscheduled pit stop. Due to the significant time loss, Mazepin couldn’t get close to his teammate. 

Fernando Alonso (Qualified 14th, started 19th, DNF) - 5

An early undercut allowed Alonso to get in the mix with the Alfa Romeos for 11th and 12th. Alonso couldn’t keep Raikkonen behind, with the Finn getting past on the outside of Turn 1 - Alonso tried to force him off the track, while Alpine was annoyed that Raikkonen had completed the move outside of track limits. It was a similar story with Giovinazzi, with Alonso going wide to complete the move before surrendering the position. Running outside of the point, Alonso had to retire prematurely due to rear wing damage.

Esteban Ocon (Qualified 11th, started 11th, DNF) - 6

Ocon’s race was ruined after contact with Giovinazzi on the opening lap, picking up front wing damage as a result. Ocon had to retire from the race after a problem with the rear of his Alpine. 

Pierre Gasly (Qualified 9th, started 8th, DNF) - 6

Gasly was running behind teammate Tsunoda after losing out to him at the start. He vented his frustrations over team radio as he requested team orders. Gasly remained behind his teammate after the first round of stops before retiring due to a suspension issue.