EXCLUSIVE: The Top 10 F1 drivers of 2023 – as chosen by the drivers

Red Bull’s three-time world champion Max Verstappen has been voted driver of the year for the third time in a row by his peers in our exclusive poll.

In the sixth edition of our Drivers’ Driver of the Year vote, we once again asked this year’s field to assess their rivals’ performance on track and rank their top 10 drivers of 2023.

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The rules permit drivers to vote for themselves – and, as has been the case in previous votes, not all of them chose to do so – with each list submitted on the proviso it would remain secret.

Scores were given based on the current F1 points system, with the top driver on each list earning 25 points down to one point for the driver in 10th. We then combined the scores to create an overall top 10.

Verstappen sealed top spot after a commanding campaign that saw him win the title in Qatar with five Grands Prix – and two F1 Sprints – to go.

While his team mate Sergio Perez was second in the drivers’ championship – giving Red Bull their first ever 1-2 finish in the standings – the Mexican was down in 10th in the drivers’ poll, two places lower than last year.

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Instead, it was Verstappen’s former title rival Lewis Hamilton who was voted into P2 by the drivers, up one place on 2022 after he secured third in the drivers’ standings with a Mercedes that lacked performance.

Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso was third, up three places on last year, with McLaren’s Lando Norris in fourth, the duo scoring eight and seven podiums respectively in very competitive individual campaigns.

Charles Leclerc – who was P2 in this ranking last year – was fifth, ahead of Ferrari team mate Carlos Sainz, who shared P6 with Alex Albon, the latter scoring points seven times to guide Williams to P7 in the constructors’ championship.

Rookie Oscar Piastri was a fine P8 in the McLaren with Pierre Gasly another new entry in ninth, two places higher than he managed in the drivers’ championship in his debut campaign with Alpine.

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The drivers who took part in the vote (in alphabetical order) were: Alex Albon, Fernando Alonso, Valtteri Bottas, Pierre Gasly, Nico Hulkenberg, Charles Leclerc, Kevin Magnussen, Lando Norris, Esteban Ocon, Sergio Perez, Oscar Piastri, Daniel Ricciardo, George Russell, Carlos Sainz, Logan Sargeant, Lance Stroll, Yuki Tsunoda, Max Verstappen, Zhou Guanyu.