F1 Driver Ratings - 70th Anniversary Grand Prix

Here’s how we rated each driver in Formula 1’s British Grand Prix, as Max Verstappen beat the Mercedes duo to a sensational victory…

Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes - 7

Despite ultimately outracing Bottas, Hamilton loses marks compared to his teammate for being beaten to pole position. A ruthlessly fast sprint to the flag helped him charge past Leclerc and Bottas and extend his points advantage over the Finn.

Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes - 8

Was in prime position to take some points off Hamilton after landing a brilliant pole, and looked to be the faster of the two Mercedes drivers in the first stint until the team’s tyre struggles reached a critical stage. Was unhappy to end up behind Hamilton on what transpired to be a worse strategy for the second year in a row at Silverstone.

Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari - 4

Another torrid weekend for Vettel saw him fail to join teammate Charles Leclerc in Q3, before a spin at Abbey on the opening lap dropped him to the rear of the field and spoiled any chance of a decent result for the Ferrari driver.

Charles Leclerc, Ferrari - 9

Leclerc once again over-performed in an underdelivering car to take an excellent fourth by pulling off a rare one-stop strategy. While his drive was arguably more impressive than his British GP display last week, being outpaced by Gasly’s slower AlphaTauri in qualifying costs him a perfect score.

Max Verstappen, Red Bull - 9

Verstappen’s tyre management masterclass and aggressive approach enabled him to make full use of Red Bull’s strategy gamble and capitalise on Mercedes’ struggles to become the first non-Mercedes winner this season. It might seem harsh not to give the Dutchman a perfect 10, but his qualifying defeat to Hulkenberg was a slight blemish on what was otherwise a faultless display.

Alex Albon, Red Bull - 7

Albon’s race pace was impressive as he rose from P9 on the grid to take a strong fifth, but qualifying once again proved to be the Red Bull driver’s downfall, although there was improvement on his previous two Q2 eliminations.

Carlos Sainz, McLaren - 6

Managed to avoid an out-of-control Vettel as he gained one place on the opening lap, before a wheel gun issue at his first stop cost Sainz a chunk of time as the Spaniard finished out of the points. Failed to make it into Q3 for the first time this year.

Lando Norris, McLaren - 7

Probably got the most from his McLaren on his way to securing two points in ninth, having only been able to set the 10th fastest time in qualifying on a tougher weekend for the Woking squad.

Daniel Ricciardo, Renault - 7

Ricciardo lost positions early on and ultimately finished a lowly 14th after a costly spin while battling Sainz dropped him outside of the points. An eye-catching qualifying display to grab fifth on the grid prevents the Australian from losing more marks.

Esteban Ocon, Renault - 8

Ocon was able to make an unlikely one-stop strategy work as he rose up the order from 14th on the grid to claim a solid points haul in eighth. The Renault driver would have been marked higher had he not been knocked out in Q2 and penalised for blocking Russell’s Williams in Q1.

Pierre Gasly, AlphaTauri - 8

Another great qualifying display to take seventh wasn’t quite followed up in the race as Gasly was beaten to 10th place by AlphaTauri teammate Kvyat, although Franz Tost admitted his team got the Frenchman’s strategy wrong by pitting him early.

Daniil Kvyat, AlphaTauri - 8

Kvyat starred in the race to bounce back from a disappointing qualifying exit in Q1 in style. The Russian started on Hards and pulled off a two-stopper during his surge up into the points to lead home teammate Gasly.

Lance Stroll, Racing Point - 6

Unable to mirror the performance level of Hulkenberg as he was convincingly out qualified and outraced by the German. Losing out to Ricciardo on his way to sixth was an underachievement, while he only beat Hulkenberg in the race due to his extra pit stop.

Nico Hulkenberg, Racing Point - 9

In just his second F1 start since returning to the grid, Hulkenberg starred in qualifying to seal a superb third, out qualifying Verstappen’s Red Bull in the process. Was on course to lead home Stroll in the race until severe late vibrations prompted an unscheduled third stop which dropped him behind the Canadian to P7.

Kimi Raikkonen, Alfa Romeo - 7

Raikkonen was one of only three drivers to make a one-stop work as he recovered from a poor qualifying to lead Alfa Romeo’s charge and beat both Haas and Williams drivers. 15th was the best he could have achieved in normal circumstances.

Antonio Giovinazzi, Alfa Romeo - 6

Inflicted another qualifying defeat on Raikkonen but lacked pace after a promising early stint and ultimately faded behind his teammate and Grosjean’s Haas to 17th at the end.

Romain Grosjean, Haas - 7

Secured his best qualifying result of the year by reaching Q2 in his Haas. A bad start put Grosjean on the back foot as he lost time and damaged his tyres in traffic, denying him the opportunity to be the fourth driver to pull off a one-stop.

Kevin Magnussen, Haas - 5

Magnussen was off the pace of teammate Grosjean in qualifying and endured a pretty poor race which was compounded by a penalty for returning to the track in a dangerous manner when he took a swipe at Latifi having run wide at Stowe. Retired late on after reporting tyre problems.

George Russell, Williams - 8

A fourth consecutive Q2 appearance was followed up by a difficult race as Williams Sunday struggles continued. Russell was hampered by tyre wear on a three-stopper but beat his teammate once more and finished just behind Giovinazzi.

Nicholas Latifi, Williams - 7

A better overall weekend for Latifi. Was closer to Russell throughout the event and was only six-tenths behind his team-mate in 19th at the end of the race as both Williams struggled badly with tyre wear.