Near the end of a hot and fast race, a Safety Car period created opportunities and frustrations for different drivers.
Some reacted better than others, and for some it proved the making of their race. But who performed best over the whole weekend? Here’s RaceFans’ rating.
Lando Norris
Qualified: 2nd (1 place behind team mate, +0.209s)
Grid: 2nd (1 place behind team mate)
Start: -1 place
Strategy: Three-stop (S-M-S-S)
Finished: 2nd (1 place behind team mate)
▶ Not his cleanest lap in Q3 but didn’t look quick enough to beat Piastri
▶ Lost second place to Verstappen at the start, then reclaimed it later in first stint
▶ Stayed close enough to Piastri to avoid the threat from Verstappen behind during pit stops
7/10: Consistent and clean, just not quite as quick as his team mate
Oscar Piastri
Qualified: 1st (1 place ahead of team mate, -0.209s)
Grid: 1st (1 place ahead of team mate)
Start: Held position
Strategy: Three-stop (S-M-S-S)
Finished: 1st (1 place ahead of team mate)
▲ Strong through practice and brushed off Norris’s cheeky Q3 tactics to claim pole position
▶ Started cleanly, upped his pace when needed and controlled the race from start to finish
8/10: Superb pace meant he was never tested at the front
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Charles Leclerc
Qualified: 7th (2 places behind team mate, +0.086s)
Grid: 7th (2 places behind team mate)
Start: +2 places
Strategy: Three-stop (S-M-M-S)
Finished: 3rd (3 places ahead of team mate)
▶ Took a brave decision to sacrifice grid position to have more fresh tyres for the race
▲ Passed both Mercedes at the start, then was waved by Hamilton into fourth
▶ Wasn’t able to keep Verstappen behind and didn’t look likely to catch him
▶ Safety Car handed him the chance to attack Verstappen for third, which he claimed
9/10: Wrung the most out of the Ferrari and capitalised on Safety Car opportunity
Lewis Hamilton
Qualified: 5th (2 places ahead of team mate, -0.086s)
Grid: 5th (2 places ahead of team mate)
Start: +1 place
Strategy: Three-stop (S-M-S-S)
Finished: 6th (3 places behind team mate)
▶ Decent fifth on the grid somewhat flattered by Leclerc not doing a second soft tyre run in Q3
▼ Lacked pace on used soft tyres, better on mediums
▼ Lost fifth place to Hulkenberg with two laps to go
6/10: Pace was patchy: Good on some tyres, less so on others
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Max Verstappen
Qualified: 3rd (17 places ahead of team mate, -0.587s)
Grid: 3rd (16 places ahead of team mate)
Start: +1 place
Strategy: Four-stop (S-S-M-S-H)
Finished: 10th (3 places ahead of team mate)
▶ Experimented with a different approach on his first lap in Q3 which didn’t pay off, but rebounded for third
▲ Passed Norris off the line despite starting on older tyres
▶ Allowed Norris through into second, then focused on attacking via three-stop strategy
▶ Wasn’t able to jump past either McLaren driver
▼ Nearly spun on hard rubber when raced resumed, losing a place to Leclerc
▶ Went off while defending from Russell and correctly judged he should keep his place
▼ Followed Red Bull’s instruction to let Russell through – but made contact with his rival
▶ Resultant penalty dropped him to 10th place
1/10: Still can’t control his temper. Unprovoked and intentional Russell clash was ugly
Yuki Tsunoda
Qualified: 20th (17 places behind team mate, +0.587s)
Grid: 19th (16 places behind team mate)
Start: Held position
Strategy: Four-stop (M-S-S-S-S)
Finished: 13th (3 places behind team mate)
▼ Mystified by a lack of grip throughout practice
▼ Couldn’t solve problem in time for qualifying, where he lapped half a second off Verstappen, leaving him last
▶ Team ran him on similar three-stop strategy to Verstappen, albeit starting on mediums and pitting after just eight laps
▶ Gained some places but when he hit free air he was still far from Verstappen’s pace
▶ Wasn’t threatening for points when he had to make a fourth pit stop under the Safety Car
3/10: Had same stock of new soft tyres as Hulkenberg yet failed to get into the points
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Andrea Kimi Antonelli
Qualified: 6th (2 places behind team mate, +0.263s)
Grid: 6th (2 places behind team mate)
Start: -1 place
Strategy: Two-stop (S-M-S)
Finished: Not classified
▶ A few tenths off Russell’s pace, reached Q3, but only had enough new soft tyres for one run
▶ On course for seventh in uneventful race when his power unit failed
6/10: A generally average weekend curtailed by misfortune
George Russell
Qualified: 4th (2 places ahead of team mate, -0.263s)
Grid: 4th (2 places ahead of team mate)
Start: -2 places
Strategy: Three-stop (S-M-S-S)
Finished: 4th
▶ Frustrated by team’s failure to arrange a tow for him in Q3, particularly after losing third place to Verstappen in a dead heat
▼ Passed by both Ferraris at the start
▶ Got back ahead of Hamilton by making last pit stop before him
▶ Attacked Verstappen after Safety Car but forced him wide at turn one
▶ Bemused to be hit by Verstappen when the Red Bull driver was told to let him through
7/10: Didn’t look like a contender for a podium and did well to salvage fourth
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Lance Stroll
Stroll withdrew from the weekend due to injury, so he does not receive a rating.
Fernando Alonso
Qualified: 10th (4 places ahead of team mate, -0.535s)
Grid: 10th (10 places ahead of team mate)
Start: Held position
Strategy: Three-stop (S-M-S-S)
Finished: 9th
▶ Showed Aston Martin had the potential in Q3 and delivered
▶ Dropped behind Hulkenberg on lap two
▼ Skidded off at turn five during his first stint, lost places to Hadjar and Bortoleto
▲ Grabbed his chance when the Safety Car came out, passing Ocon, Bortoleto and Lawson
7/10: Strong in qualifying, battled well in the race but Safety Car was a blessing after turn five error
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Franco Colapinto
Qualified: 19th (11 places behind team mate, +0.253s)
Grid: 18th (10 places behind team mate)
Start: Held position
Strategy: Three-stop (S-M-S-S)
Finished: 15th (7 places behind team mate)
▲ Faster than Gasly before their final runs in Q1
▶ Wasn’t able to do a final run as his car broke down
▶ Tried to run long opening stints to avoid traffic but ended up losing time because of blue flags
▶ Was 20 seconds behind the next car when the Safety Car came out
5/10: Unlucky in qualifying but lacked pace in the race
Pierre Gasly
Qualified: 8th (11 places ahead of team mate, -0.253s)
Grid: 8th (10 places ahead of team mate)
Start: Held position
Strategy: Three-stop (S-S-M-S)
Finished: 8th (7 places ahead of team mate)
▲ Strong eighth on the grid in competitive qualifying session
▶ Ran a three-stopper but extended his third stint and the Safety Car arrived with perfect timing
▼ Hadjar always looked likely to out-run him but he lost another place to Hulkenberg
7/10: The cards fell his way but points were fully deserved
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Esteban Ocon
Qualified: 17th (2 places behind team mate, +0.127s)
Grid: 16th (2 places behind team mate)
Start: Held position
Strategy: Two-stop (S-M-M)
Finished: 16th (1 place ahead of team mate)
▶ Sat out first practice as Hirakawa drove
▼ Narrowly missed the cut for Q2
▶ Ran a two-stop strategy and was poised to benefit from others pitting when the Safety Car was deployed
▶ Team didn’t pit him for a new set of softs when the Safety Car came out and he plummeted to last at the restart
5/10: Not pitting under the Safety Car was a curious gamble which failed
Oliver Bearman
Qualified: 15th (2 places ahead of team mate, -0.127s)
Grid: 14th (2 places ahead of team mate)
Start: -1 place
Strategy: Three-stop (S-M-M-S)
Finished: 17th (1 place behind team mate)
▶ Car came good in qualifying, felt he could have reached Q3 with another set of new softs
▶ Made a very early first pit stop and never got in the hunts for points from there
▼ Penalised 10 seconds for gaining an advantage by leaving the track while racing Lawson
▶ Reached Q2 but set best time in Q1, 0.241s faster
▼ Received a 10 second time penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage in the grand prix
6/10: Quicker than Ocon but should have avoided his Lawson penalty
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Isack Hadjar
Qualified: 9th (4 places ahead of team mate, -0.302s)
Grid: 9th (4 places ahead of team mate)
Start: Held position
Strategy: Three-stop (S-M-S-S)
Finished: 7th (4 places ahead of team mate)
▲ Grabbed a place in Q3 after narrowly avoiding a first-round elimination
▲ Jumped Gasly through the pit stops
▼ Couldn’t keep Hulkenberg behind after the restart
8/10: Another impressive performance in qualifying and the grand prix
Liam Lawson
Qualified: 13th (4 places behind team mate, +0.302s)
Grid: 13th (4 places behind team mate)
Start: Held position
Strategy: Two-stop (S-M-S)
Finished: 11th (4 places behind team mate)
▶ Was puzzled by his lack of pace after failing to accompany Hadjar into Q3
▲ Put a vital pass on Bortoleto when the Sauber driver started to struggle
▶ Safety Car was deployed moments after he passed the entry line
▶ He restarted on older tyres and was passed by Alonso with two laps to go
6/10: Slower than Hadjar but deserved points
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Alexander Albon
Qualified: 11th (7 places ahead of team mate, -0.159s)
Grid: 11th (6 places ahead of team mate)
Start: -3 places
Strategy: One-stop (S-S)
Finished: Not classified
▲ Came very close to reaching Q3 but blaming Haas for his loss of time was a stretch
▶ Had to pit for a front wing replacement early on after contact with Hulkenberg
▼ Collected an unnecessary 10-second time penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage while racing Lawson
▶ Served his penalty before retiring
▼ Received a 10 second time penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage in the grand prix
5/10: Decent if unfortunate in qualifying, over-drove somewhat in the race
Carlos Sainz Jnr
Qualified: 18th (7 places behind team mate, +0.159s)
Grid: 17th (6 places behind team mate)
Start: Held position
Strategy: Three-stop (S-S-M-S)
Finished: 14th
▶ Lost time swerving past Colapinto in Q1 which he said compromised his preparation, and failed to reach Q2
▶ Like his team mate, picked up front wing damage at the start and made an early first pit stop
▶ Encountered Williams’ familiar overheating problem in traffic
▶ Was 11th before the Safety Car came out but only regained one place from Ocon after the restart
6/10: A generally frustrating weekend when the car simply wasn’t as quick as usual
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Nico Hulkenberg
Qualified: 16th (4 places behind team mate, +0.145s)
Grid: 15th (3 places behind team mate)
Start: +4 places
Strategy: Three-stop (S-M-S-S)
Finished: 5th (7 places ahead of team mate)
▼ Beaten into Q2 by his team mate, said he picked up understeer at the end of his final lap
▲ Gained four places on lap one, partly through being forced off, and then passed Alonso for good measure
▲ Ran the longest stint of anyone and kept posting competitive times
▲ Went on the attack after the restart, using his fresher tyres to pass Hadjar and Hamilton
8/10: Admitted his stock of fresh soft tyres helped pull off a terrific and unlikely result
Gabriel Bortoleto
Qualified: 12th (4 places ahead of team mate, -0.145s)
Grid: 12th (3 places ahead of team mate)
Start: Held position
Strategy: Two-stop (S-M-S)
Finished: 12th (7 places behind team mate)
▲ Deservedly pleased with his qualifying performance after claiming 12th
▶ Lost a place to Hulkenberg at the start
▶ Dropped back from his team mate and Alonso in the opening stint
▼ Lap times fell off badly in the first stint and was passed by Lawson
▶ Pace was better on the medium tyre compound
▶ Made second pit stop six laps before the Safety Car appeared, so he stayed out
▶ Passed by Alonso after the restart
6/10: Good in qualifying and on mediums in the race but first stint was poor
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Over to you
Vote for the driver who impressed you most last weekend and find out whether other RaceFans share your view here:
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