F1 2023 mid-season driver ratings: Max Verstappen perfect & Lewis Hamilton great

12 races have produced 12 easy wins for Red Bull with all hope of an exciting title battle disappearing by the end of May.

Nevertheless, there have been some intriguing developments further down the grid, with some drivers exceeding expectations while one performed so poorly he’s already been kicked to the kerb.

Metro Sport takes a look at all 21 drivers to grace the track so far this season, rating their performances – bearing in mind the machinery they’re racing:

• 10 = Perfection
• 9 = Outstanding
• 8 = Great
• 7 = Good
• 6 = Decent
• 5 = Acceptable
• 4 = Underwhelming
• 3 = Poor
• 2 = Very Poor
• 1 = Back to Formula 2

Max Verstappen (Red Bull) – 10/10

Six podiums in the opening eight races established him as Red Bull’s nearest challenger, but with Aston Martin’s pace beginning to flounder the chances of ending his decade-long wait for a win are starting to slip.

Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) – 8/10

Sir Lewis Hamilton may not have the car he wants but unlike last year he’s been able to get every last ounce of pace out of it, recording four podiums and a sensational pole in Hungary.

Whether he will end his own win drought remains to be seen, but the British sporting legend is now in a much better position to do so.

Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) – 7/10

Two poles and three podiums, show that Charles Leclerc and Ferrari can thrive when the stars align – something that just hasn’t happened much this year.

Retirements in Bahrain and Australia – neither of which were his fault – derailed the Monegasque’s season before it had barely begun, and the man who looked like a title contender 12 months ago will be wondering when his luck will change.

George Russell (Mercedes) – 7/10

After a superb maiden year at Mercedes, George Russell has fallen behind his teammate this time round, with a solitary podium in Spain his only real highlight.

A couple of sloppy mistakes, most notably in Canada, and multiple failures to reach Q3 haven’t helped, with the young Brit 49 points off Hamilton.

Carlos Sainz Jr. (Ferrari) – 6/10

No podiums isn’t entirely his fault given how underwhelming Ferrari’s SF-23 has proved to be, but the Spaniard has failed to deliver a memorable performance so far in 2023.

Lando Norris (McLaren) – 7/10

If we were basing these ratings off the last four grand prix, Lando Norris would score an easy eight or nine. Alas his remarkable podiums at Silverstone and Hungary are off set by horrific results in the opening rounds.

That can be put down to his car though and with the MCL60 looking reborn as a frontrunner, there’s every chance a maiden win is around the corner.

Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) – 5/10

Lance Stroll is not a bad driver per say but having Alonso as his teammate has underlined the yawning chasm of quality between them – with the two-time champion having scored over three times as many points.

If his dad didn’t own the team the Canadian would’ve been out ages ago, but now more than ever Lawrence Stroll is learning the harsh truth that his son just doesn’t quite have what it takes to race alongside the very best.

Esteban Ocon (Alpine) – 6/10

Esteban Ocon’s outstanding podium in Monaco underlies that on his and Alpine’s day they can run near the front of the grid.

Those days haven’t come often though with eighth his next best finishing position and the Frenchman has failed to finish four races so far – more than any other driver.

Oscar Piastri (McLaren) – 6/10

Pierre Gasly (Alpine) – 5/10

Alex Albon (Williams) – 7/10

The FW45 is not the slowest Williams we’ve ever seen but nor is one that can challenge for points too often, which makes Alex Albon’s consistently quick performances all the more special.

Nico Hulkenberg (Haas) – 6/10

2023’s ‘Mr Saturday’, Nico Hulkenberg has marked his return to full-time F1 by frequently qualifying within the top 10. Just one points finish however.

Valtteri Bottas (Alfa Romeo) – 5/10

Alfa Romeo’s C43 is woefully slow and as a result there’s not much Valtteri Bottas can do. The Finn will be hoping to stick around for when Audi takeover the team.

Zhou Guanyu (Alfa Romeo) – 5/10

He may trail Bottas by a point, but Zhou Guanyu has arguably been marginally more impressive than his far more experienced teammate, though his disappointing race in Hungary after qualifying fifth shows he still has much to learn.

Yuki Tsunoda (AlphaTauri) – 6/10

Kevin Magnussen (Haas) – 4/10

The Haas VF-23 ain’t quick, but even so Kevin Magnussen has scarcely shown the pace we know he’s capable of and could be at risk of losing his seat.

Logan Sargeant (Williams) – 4/10

Yet to score his first points in F1, we can cut Logan Sargeant some slack given he is a rookie, but signs of improvement need to be shown in the second-half of the season.

Nyck de Vries (AlphaTauri) – 2/10

Given that he lost his seat after just 10 races, Nyck de Vries is certainly eligible for a rare 1/10 rating, but even though performances were pretty awful it should be acknowledged that he was driving the worst car on the grid and was hardly given a fair shot to prove himself.

Daniel Ricciardo (AlphaTauri) – 5/10

We only have two races to judge Daniel Ricciardo’s F1 comeback on and in both he looked better than De Vries though still cannot get near the points. With some more time to get back in the swing of things, the Aussie should be alright.

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