2019 Season - Rate the Drivers

[Penfold]

Monaco - Scores but few words.... 

Merc:
Hammy - 8 - Did well enough on tired tyres, but it was hardly Mansell/Senna in '92.
Val - 7 - Second if not for Max in the pits.

Ferrari:
Seb - 7 - Drove around.
'It is I' - 5 - Too aggressive but entertaining to watch.

Red Bull:
Greasy Peril - 7
Max - 7

Renault:
Ricky Hairdo - 7
Hulk - 5

Haas:
Big Jean - 7
Son of Magnus - 6

McLaren:
Chuck Norris - 6
Rally Guy's Son - 7

Racing Point:
Perez - 6
The Stroller - 4 - Slower than Perez, just for a change.

Alfauber:
Kimi - 6 - One of the teams that elected not to pit under safety car.  Don't know why.
Adam Ant - 3 - Another classic performance.

Toro Rosso:
Blur - 7
The Torpedo - 7



Williams: (Feel they've fractionally closed the gap to the other teams)
Jack - 7
One-Armed Bandit - 6

[Chrill]

Alright. Kanada. Möntrëäl. (no thats not how we spell it in Swedish)

Mercedes AMG Petronas Motorsport:
Lewis Hamilton - 7/10 (Failed to secure pole, and made multiple mistakes chasing Vettel mainly into the turn 10 chicane. Erratic victory if anything)
Valtteri Bottas - 4/10 (Invisible. Barely managed to pass a Renault. Poor)

Scuderia Ferrari:
Sebastian Vettel - 9/10 (Would have been 10/10 except for that one costly mistake. Other than that he kept a faster car behind all race long)
Charles Leclerc - 7/10 (In the end he was mere seconds away from stealing P2 from Vettel. Ran mostly alone all race long, never challenging the top two and never challenged from behind)

Aston Martin Red Bull Racing:
Pierre Gasly - 3/10 (You know, starting P5 and with a Renault ahead of him he should really have finished fourth. He finished eighth. Wow)
Max Verstappen - 8/10 (You know, missing Q3 and with Bottas and Gasly ahead of him he should really have finished sixth. He finished fifth. Cool beans, bro)

Renault F1 Team:
Daniel Ricciardo - 9/10 (Qualified faster than Gasly and Bottas (and Verstappen), finished ahead of Gasly after battling with the top guys for a while. Hot diggity)
Nico Hülkenberg - 8/10 (Like Daniel but lower starting position. Good race, very good)

Rich Energy Haas F1 Team:
Romain Grosjean - 5/10 (I guess the car is to blame? Nonetheless, this was poor by any way of measuring it)
Kevin Magnussen - 1/10 (He crashed his own car. His mechanics built a new one from a spare chassis overnight. He then moaned like a little shit all race about how poor the car was. Unsportsmanlike behaviour. Gunther Steiner told him to shut up over the radio mid-race, and that was brilliant. All praise Gunther)

McLaren F1 Team:
Lando Norris - X/10 (I mean.. Did he MELT the car? Huh)
Carlos Sainz Jr. - 7/10 (Had to pit after 4 laps due to something blocking a brake duct. Did well to run in the points at all, but that insane stint on hards finally dragged him away from points)

SportPesa Racing Point F1 Team:
Sergio Perez - 5/10 (Did not have what it took to find the points in Canada)
Lance Stroll - 8/10 (Wow. I mean, he pretty much started last didn't he? And with little running in practice due to an engine failure he still held it together to score two points for Force Racing Poindia. Great home race, kid)

Alfa Romeo Racing:
Kimi Räikkönen - 4/10 (You know, this was poor by whatever measurement you use)
Antonio Giovinazzi - 6/10 (A fair bit better than Kimi in Canada, but still the Alfauber seems to be lacking just like the Haas)

Red Bull Toro Rosso Honda:
Alexander Albon - X/10 (Front wing taken off at the start, never managed to catch up)
Daniil Kvyat - 7/10 (Salvaged a point at a track where the Honda did not really look as competitive as even the Renault)

ROKiT Williams Racing:
George Russell - 7/10 (Solidly outperforming Kubica, this trend is looking rather permanent)
Robert Kubica - 4/10 (Very dead last, one lap down on K-Mag and Russell even. This is sad to see, Kubica with one arm cannot match Kubica with two arms)

[Penfold]

The Merc was the faster car over the whole lap, but the Ferrari was too quick in a straight line for Hammy to get close even with DRS.

Scores at some point.

[Chrill]

Agreed, but all it takes is one poor passage through that hairpin from Vettel. That never happened. Hamilton locked up there 4-5 times. Still, I very fairly deducted a point for his blatant miss that led to the 5-second penalty. Support or dislike the penalty, Vettel did make a silly mistake.

[Penfold]

I think Vettel would've needed to completely fluff the exit from the hairpin to give Hamilton even a look at making a move.


Anyway, this is the first day in what seems like an age that I haven't been coughing incessantly, so I shall take this opportunity to commit pen (fingers) to paper (keyboard) and baffle/amuse you with my scores for Canada (the race, not the place):

Merc:
Hammy - 8 - Had the quickest car in race trim but never going to drive past the Ferrari.  Harried Seb into yet another mistake.
Val - 4 - Wow.  I mean he barely deserves four points with that effort.

Ferrari:
Seb - 8 - Point off for his little slither across the grass, otherwise an extremely good performance.
'It is I' - 7 - Could've pushed harder to secure second place but Ferrari 'forgot' to tell him about Vettel's five-second penalty - such acts remind me why I despise this team.

Red Bull:
Greasy Peril - 3 - I'm with Chrill on this one...
Max - 8 - ... and also on this one.

Renault:
Ricky Hairdo - 9 - Great race for Renault and a top notch drive from Ricky.
Hulk - 8 - Couldn't match the Hairdo's Saturday pace, but was with him for the Sunday outing.

Haas:
Big Jean - 5 - Yet another awful track for Haas.  At least Paul Ricard has lots of corners.
Son of Magnus - 2 - Knob.

McLaren:
Chuck Norris - X - Beat Carlos in qualifying, was running well in the race, but apparently isn't able to drive without both rear wheels.
Rally Guy's Son - 7 - Screwed by early pit-stop.

Racing Point:
Perez - 6 - Seemed to be stuck behind Grosjean for most of the race.
The Stroller - 8 - Strategy worked well for him but he also made it work.

Alfauber:
Kimi - 3 - I have to mark him down extra hard just for finishing behind Ant.
Adam Ant - 5 - He beat Kimi.  Must be the highlight of his season thus far.

Toro Rosso:
Blur - X - Seems fair.  Front wing removed by Adam Ant at turn one, race effectively over.
The Torpedo - 7 - At least he got a point.



Williams: (Feel they've fractionally closed the gap to the other teams)
Jack - 7 - Well ahead of Robert.
One-Armed Bandit - 3 - Painfully slow.

[Penfold]

Must summon enthusiasm to do the Frenchie GP scores; problem is this will entail thinking about the race!


Merc:
Hammy - 9 - Pole & no mistakes on Sunday but victory came too easily to get a 10.  Lack of fighting amongst the top six will cap how high their points go.
Val - 6 - Too generous?  At least he was only 18 seconds behind the guy in an identical car....

Ferrari:
Seb - 6 - Screwed it on Saturday, couldn't catch Max on Sunday.
'It is I' - 8 - Great qualifying and ran Bottas close towards the end of the race.

Red Bull:
Greasy Peril - 4 - He came tenth in a Red Bull so perhaps this is overly kind, but as soon as he needed to run softs to reach Q3 his race was doomed - doomed I tell ya!
Max - 8 - Strong form continues.

Renault:
Ricky Hairdo - 6 - One off for overtaking off the track.
Hulk - 6 - Needs to match Hairdo in qualifying, otherwise you end up stuck behind a Kimi Raikkonen for an entire race.

Haas:
Big Jean - 5 - Car seems so poor at certain tracks that judging driver performance is almost impossible.
Son of Magnus - 5 - What he just said.

McLaren:
Chuck Norris - 7 - Plus one point for stoic defence with a broken car, minus one point for losing out to Carlos off the grid.
Rally Guy's Son - 7 - Did nothing wrong.  Said he drove well within his and the car's pace after Max sped ahead.

Racing Point:
Perez - 6
The Stroller - 6

Alfauber:
Kimi - 8
Adam Ant - 5 - Unlucky to reach Q3 and thus start race on softs.

Toro Rosso:
Blur - 5 - Strong qualifying, weak race.
The Torpedo - 6   



Williams: (Feel they've fractionally closed the gap to the other teams)
Jack - 6
One-Armed Bandit - 6

Rest are coming.... and they're done.

[Chrill]

I'll try to join you in rating, but frankly I am sick and tired of this season already.

[Penfold]

With modern F1, sometimes you just have to push through the misery....

[Chrill]

Alright. Paul Ricard, Le Castellet, France. None of my extensively boring comments for the ratings today, because it's been a while since the race.

Mercedes AMG Petronas Motorsport:
Lewis Hamilton - 9/10
Valtteri Bottas - 7/10

Scuderia Ferrari:
Sebastian Vettel - 7/10
Charles Leclerc - 8/10

Aston Martin Red Bull Racing:
Pierre Gasly - 2/10 (Only scored points since Ricciardo made a mess of it all)
Max Verstappen - 7/10

Renault F1 Team:
Daniel Ricciardo - 8/10
Nico Hülkenberg - 6/10

Rich Energy Haas F1 Team:
Romain Grosjean - 6/10 (I'm sure they got the most...)
Kevin Magnussen - 6/10 (...out of a useless car)

McLaren F1 Team:
Lando Norris - 9/10 (Massively mature drive despite being basically a child)
Carlos Sainz Jr. - 8/10 (Like above but having to struggle less with a broken car)

SportPesa Racing Point F1 Team:
Sergio Perez - 7/10
Lance Stroll - 6/10

Alfa Romeo Racing:
Kimi Räikkönen - 8/10
Antonio Giovinazzi - 5/10 (Suffered from reaching Q3)

Red Bull Toro Rosso Honda:
Alexander Albon - 5/10
Daniil Kvyat - 6/10

ROKiT Williams Racing:
George Russell - 7/10
Robert Kubica - 8/10 (Actually defended valiantly against Russell, so wehey)

[Penfold]

That's a pity as I do enjoy your "extensively boring comments"; but then with a race this extensively boring it's a credit to both of us for even bothering to score it.

Austria shaping up to be far, far more interesting.

[Chrill]

I'll definitely provide comments for my reasoning when rating their Austrian performances.

[Chrill]

Mercedes AMG Petronas Motorsport:
Lewis Hamilton - 4/10 (Well this was a refreshing change of pace. He had nothing on those around him, even losing out to a Vettel pitting one more time than him)
Valtteri Bottas - 6/10 (Like Hamilton but not losing out to that Vettel we mentioned before)

Scuderia Ferrari:
Sebastian Vettel - 6/10 (Could not make his hard tyres work, but switched to a two-stopper and regained that P4 he was in when pitting)
Charles Leclerc - 9/10 (Did everything right today, apart from keeping Verstappen behind when it mattered most. Mature drive)

Aston Martin Red Bull Racing:
Pierre Gasly - 1/10 (You cannot, and I don't know how to stress this enough, you cannot be lapped by your own team mate)
Max Verstappen - 10/10 (Honda's first win as an engine supplier in F1 since I was a virgin. I deducted one point for the poor start, but he still gets 10/10 because, well, he overtook every single driver in the top two teams on course to winning. 6th win, but still has not secured a pole position ever)

Renault F1 Team:
Daniel Ricciardo - 6/10 (The Renaults were off the pace, and even a decent strategy could not propel Ricciardo to the points)
Nico Hülkenberg - 4/10 (Like Daniel, but not the same strategy and not as strong a drive. So nothing like Daniel, then)

Rich Energy Haas F1 Team:
Romain Grosjean - 5/10 (At least he was not Kevin Magnussen)
Kevin Magnussen - 1/10 (Ouch. Failed to park within his grid spot, failed to actually drive the car. Russell beat him, fair and square)

McLaren F1 Team:
Lando Norris - 9/10 (Well now. P3 after the start, obviously he could not fight those guys in the long run but he kept Gasly behind all race. Great stuff. Are you sure Lando Calrissian is in his debut F1 season?)
Carlos Sainz Jr. - 9/10 (Made his strategy, same as Ricciardo's, work really well and moved from dead last on the grid to a P8 finish. Some sweet overtakes, which were not shown on TV since those pesky frontrunners battled all race long)

SportPesa Racing Point F1 Team:
Sergio Perez - 7/10 (He was trying to reach that P10, but the Force Point SpScore car just does not have the speed right now. Here's hoping for their B-spec car)
Lance Stroll - 5/10 (Could not match Perez here, really)

Alfa Romeo Racing:
Kimi Räikkönen - 8/10 (He was looking very strong very long, but he faded ever so slightly towards the end)
Antonio Giovinazzi - 7/10 (Points!! Look at that, he scored points! OK, just the one point. Still, it counts)

Red Bull Toro Rosso Honda:
Alexander Albon - 6/10 (A little bit better than the Russian, but still nowhere near the points)
Daniil Kvyat - 4/10 (What was I expecting? He was my third driver this week, so of course Toro Rosso would make a mess of this weekend)

ROKiT Williams Racing:
George Russell - 8/10 (Way ahead of his team mate, but also ahead of Magnussen. He's doing what he can with that Williams car)
Robert Kubica - 3/10 (He is not delivering. Oh man, it saddens me, but he just is not delivering. Sorry Robert, leave that seat to someone who deserves it more)


Driver of the race? Don't make me choose. I guess Verstappen.

[Penfold]

Didn't notice you'd posted this.  Hang on a mo while I cast my eyes across your scores and commentary.  Excellent.

Austria (aka The Best Race of 2019):

Merc:
Hammy - 6 - Long stop for a broken wing but ended only a few seconds behind Bottas, but two places is two places.  Both drivers constrained by engine issues. 
Val - 6 - In a race replete with memorable moments, Valerie's contribution was to let Max past with barely a whimper.

Ferrari:
Seb - 8 - Not bad from P9 on the grid.  One more lap and I reckon he would've been on the podium.
'It is I' - 9 - Pole and a lovely little drive complete with some stout defending, until Max could no longer be resisted.

Red Bull:
Greasy Peril - 2 - Hmm, not great.  Looking for positives... well, he didn't crash.  That's something, right?
Max - 10 - Don't know whether the start was his fault or a software issue, either way he gets full marks.  Superb.

Renault:
Ricky Hairdo - 6 - Finished where he started but only because the two Haas cars were so hopeless on Sunday.
Hulk - 6 - Finished two places higher than where he started thanks to the hapless Haas motors.

Haas:
Big Jean - 5 - At least he finished ahead of someone besides Kubica.
Son of Magnus - 2 - The car was awful, I think Kevin was even worse - came in one full minute behind Romain.

McLaren:
Chuck Norris - 9 - Nailed qualifying and didn't put a foot wrong all race.  I know, it is hard to believe he's a rookie.
Rally Guy's Son - 10 - Back of the grid all the way to 8th and would've been battling with Gasly & Norris had a section of front wing not broken around lap 60.

Racing Point:
Perez - 7 - Able to get himself ahead of both Renaults but not quite reach the hallowed land (top ten).
The Stroller - 5 - Was not able to get himself ahead of either Renault.

Alfauber:
Kimi - 8 - Finished four positions ahead of Hulk.  Surely that deserves at least an eight?
Adam Ant - 7 - An actual decent performance.  Shocker.

Toro Rosso:
Blur - 5 - Ahead of teamy and both Haas drivers.
The Torpedo - 4 - Beaten by a Haas.



Williams: (Feel they've fractionally closed the gap to the other teams)
Jack - 7 - Not easy to judge with this car but seemed a strong effort.
One-Armed Bandit - 2 - Oh boy.  More than a minute back from Georgie Porgie - this is just sad to see.

[Chrill]

Thank you!

This far into the season, the tables are settling quite a bit. Therefore, the biggest climber is split between 3 drivers climbing two places each:

Norris: P8 -> P6
Räikkönen: P9 -> P7
Russell: P10 -> P8

They do so thanks to Kvyat (P7 -> P11) and Albon (P6 -> P9). It's all tight in the midfield. Ranked 7th, at 7.042, is Räikkönen. Ranked 11th, at 6.750, is Kvyat and Perez.

Desperately last is still Giovinazzi despite his points, a 4.708 on average sees him sit far behind Gasly on 5.333.

At the top, Verstappen leads Hamilton with 0.5 (8.292 versus 7.792).

All ratings here, as always.

[Chrill]

Also, unless M4A1 and Matt return to rating I'll have you removed from the tables so I can see Penny and I more clearly.