Here are our F1 driver rankings following the Imola Grand Prix.
The rankings are based on the drivers’ currently expected levels. They are not an accumulation of grades, not solely based on previous performances, nor based on potential years into the future.
We simply try to determine, in order: Who is the best right now?
1. Max Verstappen
With his superior racecraft and ability to maximise the potential of the car, no driver is currently better than the Dutchman. He’s also willing to bend the rules to his advantage whenever needed – not unlike former greats such as Senna and Schumacher. Incredible overtake at the start in Imola and well-deserved win.
2. Oscar Piastri
Piastri has taken a huge step up this year, which is common for drivers in their third season. He previously lacked pace compared to Norris, but this gap has been closed completely. He also has more killer instinct than his teammate and makes fewer mistakes at the moment.
3. Charles Leclerc
One of F1’s most entertaining and admirable drivers. No one doubts his one-lap speed, and he improved his racecraft tremendously in 2024. But he still makes mistakes, and while other drivers make their own decisions, Leclerc is often hesitant and allows Ferrari’s horrible engineers to instruct him on strategy. He’s way ahead of Hamilton on pace, which is a good sign.
4. George Russell
Russell reestablished himself as a top-class driver in 2024. He’s super fast over one lap as well as over a race distance, and he’s now the lead driver of Mercedes. He had a solid start to the season, quietly accumulating valuable points and confidently beating his young teammate (as he should).
5. Lando Norris
The McLaren team gets more credit for Norris’s recent success than Norris himself. He could be F1’s fastest man based on pure speed, as long as there are no other obstacles. He lacks the ruthless winner mentality, though, and folds under pressure. The other drivers know they can race him aggressively, and they know their statements in the media will affect his confidence. Right now, his self-esteem seems low. There’s no doubt he’ll bounce back and possibly reach 2nd or 3rd in these rankings later, but right now this is the highest we can place him.
6. Lewis Hamilton
Hamilton is no longer at his peak but is still an incredible racer who gets there when the opportunity presents itself. He won the China sprint race and made some great overtakes in Bahrain. He also showed solid pace at the end of the race in Imola, although that was mainly due to fresh tyres.
7. Alex Albon
Albon’s style is perfect for the midfield. Along with Sainz, he provides Williams with a very strong lineup. Usually better in races than in qualifying, Albon is better than most drivers but probably not an ultra-elite talent. He could prove us wrong by beating Sainz over the course of the season. Albon started the season impressively in Australia, a place where he has traditionally been weak. So that bodes very well for the future. His points haul has been great.
8. Carlos Sainz
Sainz may struggle with the Williams at first. But over time, he should beat Albon. His start to the year has been troublesome. At Sakhir, he finally found some qualifying pace, but then lacked mental focus in the race. He finally beat Albon over the entire weekend in Saudi and followed that up with a great qualifying in Miami.
9. Esteban Ocon
Perhaps F1’s most underrated driver. He equalled Alonso and Gasly, has incredible racepace, and usually makes the most of his opportunities. As a standout midfield competitor, Haas made a great signing. Ocon might struggle in the Haas, but the team took a step forward in China. He will sometimes have an off-weekend, but most of the time, he performs very well.
10. Pierre Gasly
An excellent qualifier who is now the lone top dog at Alpine. Gasly has plenty of experience in the midfield and has the pace to compete for points whenever the car offers sufficient performance. Incredible performance in Bahrain.
11. Kimi Antonelli
He’s a future star, no doubt about that, but rookies face a learning curve, so we will be a bit conservative with his early ranking. By the end of the year, Antonelli could be seen as a top 10 driver. Safety car timing cost him a probable top 6 finish in Bahrain. Incredible pace in the sprint shootout and qualifying session in Miami! But he has down performances too, as seen in Imola.
12. Fernando Alonso
Like Hamilton, Alonso is a bit over the hill and no longer operates at his peak. Yet, he uses his experience to his advantage and has an easy teammate to “compete” with. Still a very solid driver, but no longer elite. His pace advantage over Stroll is getting smaller and he is no longer a huge difference maker. Alonso is usually just one tenth quicker than Stroll at this point.
13. Yuki Tsunoda
Tsunoda seems to improve every year, and if everything goes right, he will take another step forward in 2025. He beat both Ricciardo and Lawson on pure pace last season. The Red Bull is difficult to drive, but Tsunoda seems to be acclimatising decently and had a reasonable showing in Bahrain. At least he’s further ahead than Lawson was.
14. Oliver Bearman
He had a down year in F2 and was mainly promoted to F1 due to his great substitute performances for Sainz and Magnussen in 2024. His performances are very up and down. Sometimes he’s great, other times he sucks. Amazing performance in Japan, if he can repeat that, he will rise in these rankings. Points in Bahrain and beating Ocon in Saudi were two other solid performances.
15. Nico Hülkenberg
While it’s a shame that Hülkenberg never got a top seat while he was young, the Hulk is a bit overrated at the moment. He had a strong campaign for Haas in 2024, but how much of that was down to the car? He’ll probably beat rookie Bortoleto in qualifying, but not in races as the year advances.
16. Isack Hadjar
Isack Hadjar almost won F2 on his second try. He’s fast, but can he keep his head cool? We expect occasional impressive performances but also some stinkers from Hadjar in his rookie year. His first race could not have gone any worse, yet he has bounced back beautifully and put in a top-class performance in Japan.
17. Lance Stroll
How is Lance Stroll still in F1? If his father had any ambitions for Aston Martin, he should have replaced his son a long time ago. He’ll likely lose again to old Alonso. Stroll has more experience than the rookies and will currently perform better than some of them – until they develop, that is.
18. Gabriel Bortoleto
Bortoleto showed great racecraft and aggressiveness in the junior series. His record is impressive so far, but he won’t get the opportunity to show much of his talent in the horrible Sauber. Right now, it still seems like he’s quite a bit slower than Hülkenberg. He’s actually a bit slower than we thought, but with more time to develop, Bortoleto could still turn into a solid driver in F1.
19. Franco Colapinto
Colapinto was fairly overrated last year. As he returns, we rank him 19th on the grid, but there’s a chance he could advance a few places. At best, he would probably be ranked 14th or 15th, that is if he really impresses later in the year.
20. Liam Lawson
Lawson is not a top driver and never deserved the Red Bull seat. He gets the chance to redeem himself at Racing Bulls, but he seems slower than Hadjar. 2025 could be his only full season in F1, assuming they even let him complete the year at RB.