Feature
POWER RANKINGS: Where do the drivers rank after an entertaining 2023 British Grand Prix?
Share
Max Verstappen took his sixth consecutive victory of the season at this weekend’s British Grand Prix, but where does he come out in this week’s Power Rankings? Scroll down below to see the judges scores from Silverstone…
How it works
• Our five-judge panel assess each driver after every Grand Prix and score them out of 10 according to their performance across the weekend – taking machinery out of the equation
• Our experts’ scores are then averaged out to produce a race score – with those scores then tallied up across the season on our overall Power Rankings Leaderboard (at the bottom of the page)
Few can say they have led Verstappen in a race this season, and yet after a difficult start to the year, Norris can. It was a tremendous weekend from Norris at his home race, putting the upgraded MCL60 pace to effective use, qualifying second.
A brilliant start saw him lead Verstappen for the first few laps, but he could do little to keep the Red Bull driver behind when he came past. However, he showcased his defensive prowess as he kept Hamilton at bay in the closing stages, sealing a stunning second place.
READ MORE: Norris praises ‘amazing job’ from McLaren after recent updates net Silverstone podium
Also impressing at Silverstone was Piastri, who continued to showcase why he is so highly rated by many, with a mature drive to fourth. He was lightening quick all weekend as he pushed his McLaren to a career-high third place.
He nearly got past Verstappen at the start and drove brilliantly as he settled into third. However, he will be ruing the unfortunate timing of the Safety Car that saw him miss out on a podium. Yet still, it was a phenomenal outing from Piastri, and if Silverstone is anything to go by, that first podium is just round the corner.
It was another stunning drive into the points for Albon in what is fast becoming his trademark performance in Williams colours. The weekend started promisingly with the Thai driver finishing in the top three in all the practice sessions.
However, a reported mistake in the second sector on his final lap in Q3, saw him qualify eighth. He was running on the periphery of the top-10 for much of the race on Sunday, but came alive at the Safety Car restart pulling off an opportunistic move on Carlos Sainz to take eighth.
It was a sixth consecutive victory for the Dutch driver, but he has certainly had easier wins this season. He left it late to pip Norris to pole on Saturday before losing out on the run down to Turn 1 to the McLaren driver.
He eventually went back past Norris, and steadily built up a gap before having to manage the Safety Car restart to stay ahead. In the end, it was another first place trophy added to Verstappen's collection as he continues his march to a third world title.
It was another admirable three days of driving from the Williams driver, and despite missing out on the top-10 it was still an impressive performance from Sargeant. It started with him finishing fifth in FP2, although the American unfortunately could not make it into Q3.
And after a slow start that saw him drop down to 16th, he quietly made progress through the day, and was challenging for the points in the latter stages. However, he would cross the line in 12th before gaining a place due to Lance Stroll’s penalty.
After a difficult start to his home Grand Prix weekend, finishing third will feel like a great result for Hamilton. After finishing FP2 in 15th, Hamilton qualified seventh, before losing out at the start, where he ran wide at Turn 3, dropping him to eighth.
However, he gradually made progress through the race before benefiting from a Safety Car to find himself up in third. At the restart, he looked to make his way past Norris but just did not have the legs on his compatriot, leaving him to settle for a well-earned P3.
READ MORE: Hamilton and Russell taken aback by McLaren after front-running pace ‘comes from nowhere’
Another driver that felt hard done by with the Safety Car was the final Briton on the grid, Russell, who wound up fifth. Like Hamilton, it was not the greatest start to the weekend for the Briton, but a bold decision to start from sixth on the soft tyre worked out well.
He got up to fifth, splitting the Ferraris, but struggled to make his way past Charles Leclerc for fourth. After pitting for the mediums, he made his way past the Monegasque, but was forced to settle for fifth after being unable to overtake Piastri in the closing stages.
FACTS AND STATS: Red Bull match McLaren’s all-time record of 11 straight wins
It was another tough weekend for Aston Martin that left Alonso unable to make much of an impression on his rivals ahead. He qualified ninth, and while he was able to jump Albon and Hamilton at the start, he could not get further ahead.
After losing the position to Hamilton, he found himself running in eighth, before benefiting from pitting under the Safety Car. After losing a place to Sergio Perez, Alonso crossed the line in seventh, putting a cap on a weekend where he and Aston Martin would have been left scratching their heads.
After a podium outing in Austria, finishing ninth at Silverstone will be a tough pill to swallow for Leclerc and Ferrari. That pill would have been made tougher to swallow when at one stage on Sunday he would have been looking to finish on the podium.
However, he also lost out under the Safety Car, after pitting earlier than the other medium tyre runners and found himself in 10th place. He was able to make his way up to P9 after overtaking his team mate, Carlos Sainz, late on, but it is not the result that he would have had in mind when he woke up on Sunday morning.
If they were handing out awards for the unluckiest drivers on the grid, Gasly would be high on the list of candidates. After a strong weekend, where he qualified 10th, he made a solid start going up to ninth, as he challenged Alonso for P8.
However, he pitted right before the Safety Car came out leaving him down in 11th, and as he looked to make his way up into the top-10, he tangled with Stroll. This left the French driver with a broken suspension, dumping him out of the race. A tough end after a promising start.
Misses out
Carlos Sainz narrowly misses out on a place in this week’s top 10 after the Spaniard took the final points paying position at Silverstone. It was a difficult outing for Sainz, in which he was left lamenting his and Ferrari's bad luck.
Leaderboard
YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE
News Alonso explains why ‘sensitive’ Stroll is key to Aston Martin’s success
OpinionF1 Unlocked PALMER: I have no doubt Norris is world champion material – so has he made the right choice in committing to McLaren?
FeatureF1 Unlocked HINCH'S USA HEROES: James Hinchcliffe picks five US-based racers who deserve a shot in F1
News Formula 1 Channel to launch on streaming television in the USA
