The Belgian Grand Prix showcased a high standard of performance across the Formula 1 field, with every small shortcoming costing drivers dearly in Edd Straw's rankings. Some drivers faced far bigger issues, which were marked down accordingly. This ranking system, which reflects performance across the entire weekend, is not a measure of all-round driver qualities but rather how they performed on a given weekend. It's important to note that the rankings will fluctuate significantly from weekend to weekend, and with each car having different performance potential and 'luck' (factors outside a driver's control) contributing to the weekend's outcome, the rankings will also differ from the overall results.
Here's a breakdown of the rankings, with a focus on the key points and personal commentary:
Max Verstappen
Started: 2nd, Finished: 3rd
PROS:
- Made the most of Isack Hadjar's tow in Q3 to secure a front-row start against the odds.
- Briefly led the race before slipping to third, only to regain the lead over Leclerc due to the VSC timing.
- Extracted the maximum performance from his Red Bull.
CONS:
- Had the advantage of a team-mate without competitive ambitions in Q3, which simplified his weekend.
Verdict: Despite starting second, he finished third, showcasing his ability to make the most of his car's potential.
Charles Leclerc
Started: 1st, Finished: 1st
PROS:
- Dominated his team-mate George Russell throughout the weekend.
- Maintained his composure after losing the lead due to the VSC, pacing his re-pass on Leclerc effectively.
CONS:
- Only a couple of track-limits violations in the race.
Verdict: Imperious performance, even when misfortune affected his race.
George Russell
Started: 19th, Finished: 16th
PROS:
- Recovered well after a slow start, outqualifying team-mate Alex Albon and both Haas drivers.
- Strong pace, despite a grid penalty and a slow pitstop for a front wing change.
CONS:
- Clipped the back of Ocon at La Source, which could have been avoided.
Verdict: Another strong weekend, with only minor negatives.
Pierre Gasly
Started: 8th, Finished: 8th
PROS:
- Faster than Arvid Lindblad on underlying single-lap pace, despite Nico Hulkenberg's issues.
- Kept Lindblad at bay in the second stint after jumping from 11th to 8th.
CONS:
- Needed the VSC timing to gain a midfield position, having run longer than the Racing Bulls.
- Initially held 10th but lost a position to Gasly during the first stint.
Verdict: A strong weekend, but needed fortune to achieve the result.
Oscar Piastri
Started: 13th, Finished: 7th
PROS:
- Seemed more in control of the McLaren than Piastri from the start.
- Strong pace in qualifying and the race, with a podium finish likely without a grid penalty.
CONS:
- Small error on the final Q3 lap aborted his run.
Verdict: Another strong weekend, with the Q3 error as the only significant negative.
Esteban Ocon
Started: 11th, Finished: 10th
PROS:
- Strong start to the weekend, initially outpacing Pierre Gasly.
- Drove a strong race, passing Gasly and Liam Lawson on the Kemmel Straight.
- Won the four-car scrap for the final point.
CONS:
- Lapped marginally slower than Gasly in qualifying, but only by 0.061s.
Verdict: Bounced back to form after a couple of difficult weekends.
Sergio Perez
Started: 21st, Finished: 6th
PROS:
- Back-of-the-grid penalty meant reaching Q3 and towing Verstappen was a successful qualifying session.
- Felt most at one with the Red Bull and had decent underlying pace.
- Strong first lap to climb to 15th before the safety car.
CONS:
- Climb to sixth wasn't as dramatic as suggested by the 15 places gained.
Verdict: Podium potentially on the cards without the grid penalty.
Lewis Hamilton
Started: 7th, Finished: 9th
PROS:
- One of his strongest weekends pace-wise, akin to Montreal and Barcelona.
- Would have won the 'Class B' race after qualifying at the front of the midfield pack.
CONS:
- Left a tenth on the table in Q3 due to being too conservative on the brakes.
- Couldn't find consistent pace to close the gap to Bortoleto.
Verdict: Among his best work of the season so far.
Fernando Alonso
Started: 4th, Finished: 2nd
PROS:
- Had the edge over Hamilton in qualifying by a small margin.
- Did everything to stay clear of Antonelli, despite the Ferrari's lack of pace.
CONS:
- Hit Piastri, causing a clash that could have hurt him.
- VSC timing helped in the battle for second with Verstappen.
Verdict: Strong performance, but the Piastri clash could have been avoided.
Nyck de Vries
Started: 14th, Finished: 14th
PROS:
- Outpaced Ocon throughout the weekend, at or close to the car's maximum.
- Beating everyone he realistically could have in the race, despite a first-lap puncture.
CONS:
- A few thousandths could have seen him outqualify Sainz, but he knocked a switch, compromising his deployment.
Verdict: A largely strong weekend, with only a few rough edges.
Liam Lawson
Started: 9th, Finished: 12th
PROS:
- Compared favorably with Lindblad, despite not having the cooling package upgrade.
CONS:
- The gap to Lindblad wasn't entirely explained by spec differences, especially in the second stint.
- Could have taken the final point, but slipped to third in the four-car battle.
Verdict: Spec offset made life harder, but he didn't extract everything from the car.
Lance Stroll
Started: 22nd, Finished: 19th
PROS:
- Outqualified team-mate Stroll by 0.175s and led for most of the race.
- Relieved that this was likely the last weekend with struggles at their worst.
CONS:
- Briefly fell behind Stroll on the Kemmel Straight, then lost another position.
Verdict: Troubled Aston Martin continues to make it impossible to fairly judge his performance.
Valtteri Bottas
Started: 17th, Finished: 18th
PROS:
- One of his more straightforward weekends, with good progress through practice and qualifying.
- Lapped 0.148s faster than team-mate Sergio Perez in qualifying.
- Clean race, but limited racing due to the Cadillac's position.
CONS:
- Perez's deployment problems and early demise meant there wasn't a clean pace comparison.
Verdict: Bottas's most straightforward weekend, showing good pace.
Lando Norris
Started: 6th, Finished: 5th
PROS:
- Track time lost on Friday due to hydraulic issues is a mitigating factor.
- Battled well after suffering damage from hitting Leclerc.
CONS:
- Struggled for confidence with the rear end, making him inconsistent and slower on single-lap pace.
- Never fully got on top of the car.
Verdict: A middling weekend by F1 driver standards.
Yuki Tsunoda
Started: 12th, Finished: 13th
PROS:
- Audi felt his race pace was similar to Bortoleto's, despite a 29-second deficit.
- Gearbox problems in qualifying meant he didn't make Q3.
CONS:
- Even with mitigations, he didn't appear as quick as Bortoleto on single-lap pace.
Verdict: Marginally the second-best Audi driver.
Kevin Magnussen
Started: 10th, Finished: 11th
PROS:
- Outqualified Colapinto by 0.061s.
- Drove a good first stint, climbing into the points after passing Bortoleto.
CONS:
- Friday crash at the exit of Fagnes did substantial damage, costing laps.
- Second stint turned a points shot into just missing out.
Verdict: Similar pace to Colapinto, but the crash and race setbacks cost him.
Nicholas Latifi
Started: 15th, Finished: 15th
PROS:
- Beat team-mate Sainz in the race, despite Sainz's grid penalty and slow pitstop.
- The Williams was the ninth-fastest car, so there wasn't a huge amount left on the table.
CONS:
- Qualified 0.040s off Sainz, having looked quicker in practice.
- Underlying pace was slightly off Sainz's once into the business end of the weekend.
Verdict: Second-best of the Williams drivers.
Esteban Ocon
Started: 20th, Finished: DNF
PROS:
- Had a solid race, ahead of Alonso for a few laps after passing him on the Kemmel Straight.
CONS:
- Lapped 0.175s slower than Alonso in qualifying.
- Similar race pace disadvantage to Alonso's qualifying deficit.
Verdict: Lost the battle with his team-mate, which he had to fight.
George Russell
Started: 5th, Finished: 4th
PROS:
- Pace suggested he might beat Leclerc before the FP3 crash.
- Dealt well with race damage and a Ferrari error.
CONS:
- FP3 crash affected qualifying and the race.
- Five-second penalty for the Turn 5 collision with Russell was harsh, but he has a stake in what should have been considered a racing incident.
Verdict: Saturday crash had a knock-on effect on qualifying and the race.
Sergio Perez
Started: 18th, Finished: DNF
PROS:
- Mitigation of a drag problem meant the comparison with Bottas wasn't fair.
CONS:
- Inboard suspension problem meant he retired, but Perez was the second-fastest Cadillac driver.
Verdict: Ranking low due to lack of opportunity rather than shortcomings.
Pierre Gasly
Started: 16th, Finished: 17th
PROS:
- Deployment problems cost straightline speed, contributing to the unrepresentative gap to his team-mate.
- Relatively consistent performance, despite car problems.
CONS:
- Gap to Bearman was bigger than it should have been, even without deployment issues.
- In the wars on the first lap, but more circumstantial than through misadventure.
Verdict: Stuck in the spiral of car problems that have characterized his season.
Charles Leclerc
Started: 3rd, Finished: DNF
PROS:
- Russell's qualifying pace deficit wasn't half a second due to deployment troubles.
- Mitigating factor for the first-lap clash, given Mercedes deployment problems.
CONS:
- Simply wasn't at Antonelli's level.
- First-lap move on Hamilton was risky and backfired.
Verdict: Mitigating factors, but Russell couldn't get close to Antonelli.
