Driver Ratings - Monaco Grand Prix

The Monaco Grand Prix may be one of the biggest challenges on the F1 calendar but the drivers handled it perfectly. Here’s how we rated the drivers on the streets of Monte Carlo… Max Verstappen - 9 Verstappen knew he needed a win, and that's exactly what he got. The red flag caused by Leclerc cost him pole position, but it didn't matter come race day, as he was in a class of his own. Has he started the title battle we've been waiting for? Carlos Sainz - 9 Despite being on a new team, Sainz made Monaco look easy. Starting P4 allowed him to get off the line and into a strong position to challenge Bottas and Verstappen. He made the most of the opportunities presented to him and claimed his first Ferrari podium. Lando Norris - 9 What a season Lando Norris is having. Looking like the star of the show in the Gulf livery was followed up with a classy drive to P3 not only in the race, but the drivers standings too. Sergio Perez - 8 Again, a weekend of two halves for Perez. Ninth-fastest in qualifying before he had an excellent recovery drive to claim P4 thanks to a brilliant overcut strategy and strong race pace. He wasn't quite quick enough to catch Norris, but his result did get Red Bull to the top of the constructors championship. Sebastian Vettel - 9 A question that has been asked for a year now: Does Vettel still have it? Yes, yes he does. He got all he could out of the car across the weekend before making a daring move on track to claim P5 at the flag. Pierre Gasly - 7 Finishing two places back from where he started may not sound great, but it was a decent showing for Gasly. He held off a charging Lewis Hamilton and fought hard to try and take places back off Vettel after the pit stop window. It could be a very different season for Alpha Tauri, but Gasly will keep doing his bit to help them in the midfield battle. Lewis Hamilton - 5 One of the worst weekends we've seen from Hamilton in a long time. A poor Saturday was followed by a race where he couldn't keep up with Gasly. He needs to bounce back in the next race to ensure the damage is as limited as possible. Lance Stroll - 7 A mixed weekend, but points on the board will keep him and the team happy. Starting in P12 and finishing P9 is a great result, especially at a track like Monaco. He is very quickly becoming a tyre saving specialist, a skill he will need if he wants to score big points in the future. Esteban Ocon - 8 Another impressive weekend from Ocon and Alpine. Qualifying ahead of his teammate on Saturday was followed by two points on Sunday, a decent show all round Antonio Giovinazzi - 9 Giovinazzi is consistently impressing and very much under the radar. Making into Q3 was a huge achievement, as well as keeping it in the top 10. More races like this and he will be in with a chance of the Alfa Romeo seat for another season. Kimi Raikkonen - 6 An odd weekend for Kimi. He was out-qualified by his team-mate on Saturday and then out-scored by him on the Sunday. The question I have is why? Why did Alfa Romeo keep him for another season? Daniel Ricciardo - 5 His best result so far this season was followed by his worst. A tough weekend all around, especially with his teammate getting on the podium. He got stuck behind Kimi at the start, before losing all pace on the medium tyres. Hopefully he can get back to his old self sooner rather than later. Fernando Alonso - 5 A strange season so far for Alonso, he's being consistently out-performed by Ocon across the weekend. Going out in Q1 was a surprise to many, and despite gaining four positions at the start, the damage was already done. George Russell - 7 A familiar story for Russell. Get into Q2 before bringing it home in the top 15. He didn't have the machinery to challenge those ahead, but wasn't troubled by those behind, same old story. Nicholas Latifi - 6 A tough weekend for Latifi, he crashed in FP3 and wasn't able to compete with his teammate in qualifying. He did gain a few places in the race before bringing it home unscathed. Yuki Tsunoda - 5 Tsunoda had never driven the track in any category before, so this was a big test for him. Qualifying didn’t go well with him being knocked out in Q1, and things only got worse after a poor start lost him more positions. Nothing was notable after that, but he does need to pick it up ahead of next week. Nikita Mazepin - 5 A pretty meh race for Mazepin. He was slow compared his teammate (Schumacher made up 30+ seconds on him) and that was about it. Mick Schumacher - 6 An odd weekend for Schumacher, crashed in FP3 meant he missed qualifying, but come Sunday, he had a lot of pace (especially when compared to his team mate). It didn't feel fair for the team to not let him race for position, after the team ordered a driver swap due to engine issues, but he acted with maturity and followed instructions. Did not finish Valtteri Bottas - 8 Sometimes, F1 is all about luck, and Valtteri Bottas doesn't seem to have much of it nowadays. Quick all weekend before a wheelnut rendered his car undriveable. Charles Leclerc - N/A Another tough weekend at Monaco for Leclerc. He only had himself to blame for not starting the race.