The casual start to the 2023 Formula 1 season is over. After three races in five weeks, the grands prix come thick and fast from now on.
The sport will host five races in the next six weekends and 10 races in the next 14. Drivers and teams must hit the ground running from this weekend’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix if they want any hope of generating some form for the crucial middle phase of the season.
So who starts this crucial next chapter of the season in good form, and who needs to improve?
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The power rankings have reordered the drivers based on their form over the first three rounds. Results count, but results relative to their teammate and results relative to the capability of the car count too.
Head-to-head comparisons in the races include only those grands prix both teammates finished, while the qualifying pace comparisons compare each driver’s fastest laps regardless of in which qualifying segment they were eliminated.
1. FERNANDO ALONSO
Points: 45 (third)
Head to head (Stroll): 3-0 in qualifying, 2-0 in race
Qualifying pace: 0.295 seconds ahead of Stroll
Some questioned Fernando Alonso’s comeback in his difficult first season with Alpine in 2021, but a switch to the surging Aston Martin team has silenced those doubters. Just months shy of his 42nd birthday, the Spanish veteran is at his ferocious best.
His swashbuckling Sunday performances to three consecutive podiums demonstrate he’s getting the most out of the car, and in qualifying he’s been off the front two rows only once.
While few expected Lance Stroll to give him much trouble, the fact he’s comfortably covered his teammate at every weekend — and the Canadian has undoubtedly stepped up this year — makes Alonso the undisputed form man so far.
2. MAX VERSTAPPEN
Points: 69 (1st)
Head to head (Pérez): 2-1 in qualifying, 2-1 in race
Qualifying pace: 0.179 seconds behind Perez
The only thing separating title leader Verstappen from Alonso in these rankings is that he hasn’t absolutely had teammate Sergio Pérez’s measure this year.
In Bahrain they were closely matched on race pace, albeit both were in cruise-home mode early. In Saudi Arabia they were identical, as evidenced by their escalating duel in the second half of the race. Only in Australia did Verstappen look comfortably faster, though Pérez had the job of battling from the back of the field after a qualifying crash.
It’s not enough reason to doubt Verstappen’s upper hand at Red Bull Racing, but he’s yet to really put his foot down in 2023.
3. GEORGE RUSSELL
Points: 18 (7th)
Head to head (Hamilton): 3-0 in qualifying, 1-1 in race
Qualifying pace: 0.182 seconds ahead of Hamilton
Russell has picked up from where he left off last season as the more adaptable driver of another difficult Mercedes car — or at least as the driver less affected by its particular issues.
He shone brightly in Saudi Arabia, where he easily outpaced teammate Lewis Hamilton, and he was excellent in Australia, qualifying second and putting himself in the frame for an improbable victory before the first red flag — though his engine blew up shortly afterwards anyway.
He’s also cutting a much more senior figure outside the car as his confidence grows. While Hamilton will strike back eventually, Russell is doing well to mark his own territory.
4. LEWIS HAMILTON
Points: 38 (4th)
Head to head (Russell): 0-3 in qualifying, 1-1 in race
Qualifying pace: 0.182 seconds behind Russell
Hamilton’s critics should be wary of reading too much into his form given his propensity to start seasons slowly.
It’s also not as though he’s miles off the pace — he’s been only fractionally slower than Russell in qualifying everywhere bar Saudi Arabia, where he was genuinely adrift, and he’s made the most of his chances in every race.
He will hit back, but there’s no doubt he’s been the second-best Mercedes driver in the opening three rounds, and given that’s all we have to go on for these rankings, he sits behind Russell here too.
5. SERGIO PÉREZ
Points: 54 (2nd)
Head to head (Verstappen): 1-2 in qualifying, 1-2 in race
Qualifying pace: 0.179 seconds ahead of Verstappen
Fifth might seem harsh for the year’s only other title contender, but his scrappy Australian Grand Prix counts against him.
Pérez blamed his car for crashing out of Q1 without a time, but there’s some suspicion he simply misjudged the combination of cold tyres on a cold track in a car that doesn’t heavily load the front axle.
His recovery through the field lacked the punch that Verstappen’s drive had done in Saudi Arabia, suggesting he wasn’t fully with the car all weekend.
Given he’s talked much about the car being a much better match for his driving style, it’s hard not to mark him down for that.
6. LANCE STROLL
Points: 20 (6th)
Head to head (Alonso): 0-3 in qualifying, 0-2 in race
Qualifying pace: 0.295 seconds behind Alonso
Stroll is teammates with one of Formula 1’s toughest competitors this season, and so far he’s stood up better than many forecast.
Putting it down to the value of incumbency doesn’t give him enough credit considering the Aston Martin car has gone through three considerable philosophical changes in the last 18 months. The Canadian has lifted significantly this season to ensure he’s not been completely forgotten in Alonso mania.
He’s also marked up for racing to sixth in Bahrain with two broken wrists and a broken foot — injuries he carried into Saudi Arabia and Australia too. It’s been a commendable opening stanza.
7. CHARLES LECLERC
Points: 6 (10th)
Head to head (Sainz): 2-1 in qualifying, 0-1 in race
Qualifying pace: 0.189 seconds ahead of Sainz
Leclerc’s qualifying pace has continued to put his Ferrari car in places it doesn’t belong, and his single-lap advantage over teammate Carlos Sainz would’ve been considerably larger were it not for a substandard weekend in Melbourne.
Ironically it suggests the SF-23 is probably a little worse than it looks despite not looking great.
But the need to make up for the deficiencies of his machinery doesn’t bring out the best in the Monegasque, and what we saw from him in Australia was a desperation to do better than is possible.
That ultimately resulted in a non-score following a first-lap crash. It wasn’t a big mistake, but it was entirely his fault.
8. YUKI TSUNODA
Points: 1 (16th)
Head to head (De Vries): 3-0 in qualifying, 3-0 in race
Qualifying pace: 0.421 seconds ahead of De Vries
It’s hard not to be impressed with how well Tsunoda has responded to the pressure of being placed alongside the much-hyped Nyck de Vries, who AlphaTauri boss Franz Tost talked about in Verstappen-invoking terms during the off-season.
The Japanese driver has always had the pace we’ve seen this season, but his consistency has been superb, and there’s never really been a sense that he isn’t getting the most from his flawed machinery.
It’s been suggested Pierre Gasly’s departure and the breaking up of their practically brotherly relationship has played a role in Tsunoda’s maturation as an F1 driver. Whatever the reason, it’s immensely promising for his future in the sport.
9. OSCAR PIASTRI
Points: 4 (13th)
Head to head (Norris): 1-2 in qualifying, 1-1 in race
Qualifying pace: 0.029 seconds ahead of Norris
Piastri has had a quieter Formula 1 debut than maybe he would’ve liked — certainly quieter than the title campaigns he mounted in his rookie Formula 3 and Formula 2 seasons — but it’s been rock solid and in line with expectations in a compromised McLaren car.
You could argue his pace advantage over Norris is misleadingly flattering due to the Briton’s Saudi Arabia crash, but in fairness Piastri made only one small mistake in each of Bahrain and Australia to leave him off the pace there.
At worst he’s thereabouts. At best he’s bang on Norris’s pace — which is a massive achievement for a rookie after only three rounds.
10. CARLOS SAINZ
Points: 20 (5th)
Head to head (Leclerc): 1-2 in qualifying, 1-0 in race
Qualifying pace: 0.189 seconds behind Leclerc
Carlos Sainz will fairly argue that he’s improved this season, but it so far hasn’t been by enough to make a significant impact in the tight frontrunning battle.
He’s decisively off Leclerc’s pace in qualifying, and though he’s thereabouts on Sundays, he failed to capitalise on being within striking distance of the podium in Australia, where he got penalised out of the points for tipping Fernando Alonso into a spin.
Sure, the effect of the penalty was unduly harsh, but it was a clear mistake on his part, and given the fine margin that will decide the Aston-Mercedes-Ferrari battle, it’s the sort of error the team really can’t afford.
11. NICO HÜLKENBERG
Points: 6 (9th)
Head to head (Magnussen): 3-0 in qualifying, 1-2 in race
Qualifying pace: 0.661 seconds ahead of Magnussen
Hülkenberg hadn’t raced anything full-time since leaving F1 in 2019. To think he now has the biggest qualifying pace advantage over his teammate of any driver in the sport is remarkable.
He’s arguably eclipsed Magnussen’s 2022 comeback purely based on the time he’s spent sidelines, and that he’s also had Kevin’s measure so far this year is an enormous surprise for that same reason — and a great F1 story.
12. ALEX ALBON
Points: 1 (18th)
Head to head (Sargeant): 3-0 in qualifying, 1-0 in race
Qualifying pace: 0.570 seconds ahead of Sargeant
We’ve got used to Albon pulling out big performance in qualifying and races when the conditions are right, and he started the year with a bang in Bahrain with points and a Q3 appearance in Melbourne.
But those high highs are matched by the low of crashing out of the Australian Grand Prix while running sixth, causing great damage to his car and also his standing in these rankings.
13. LANDO NORRIS
Points: 8 (8th)
Head to head (Piastri): 2-1 in qualifying, 1-1 in race
Qualifying pace: 0.029 seconds behind Piastri
He performed strongly in Australia, but it was off the back of arguably a career-worst weekend in Saudi Arabia, crashing out of qualifying chasing Piastri’s performance and then wallowing in the race.
True, his Sunday was undone by first-lap damage, but he lacked the sort of incisiveness expected from him.
Given the risk McLaren’s season may not get going this year, it’s not what you want to see from a senior driver when the chips are down.
14. ZHOU GUANYU
Points: 2 (15th)
Head to head (Bottas): 2-1 in qualifying, 2-1 in race
Qualifying pace: 0.117 seconds ahead of Bottas
Zhou’s season has been stronger than it’s looked. He was denied a qualifying sweep over teammate Valtteri Bottas only by a small mistake in Bahrain, which was the only race at which he finished behind the Finn.
It’s the step he’s needed to make to argue his case for a third year in F1, albeit the jury remains out for now given Bottas’s inexplicable downturn in the last two races.
15. PIERRE GASLY
Points: 4 (14th)
Head to head (Ocon): 1-2 in qualifying, 1-1 in race
Qualifying pace: 0.451 seconds behind Ocon
Gasly has shown the flashes of brilliance but far too erratically to call it form. His woeful 20th in qualifying in Bahrain was barely forgivable on the grounds he’s new to Alpine. He made up for it with a cracking drive and was decent in Saudi Arabia, but it’s hard to get past him clumsily wiping out teammate Esteban Ocon in Melbourne after locking up and running off the track.
16. ESTEBAN OCON
Points: 4 (12th)
Head to head (Gasly): 2-1 in qualifying, 1-1 in race
Qualifying pace: 0.451 seconds ahead of Gasly
Ocon has been a consistent qualifier this year, on average hovering ninth fastest, but he’s yet to convert that to race-day performances. His comedy of errors in Bahrain — owned partly by the team — was wasteful, and though his speed in Jeddah was reasonable, he was off Gasly’s pace in Melbourne.
Greater Sunday consistency would stamp some authority on the team, but he’s left himself open to Gasly taking control.
17. VALTTERI BOTTAS
Points: 4 (11th)
Head to head (Zhou): 1-2 in qualifying, 1-2 in race
Qualifying pace: 0.117 seconds behind Zhou
Bottas had a great start to the year in Bahrain with four points, but he’s been oddly nowhere since then. He was way, way off the pace in the race in Saudi Arabia and didn’t have an answer for his teammate’s form in Australia either.
There’s surely much, much more to come from Bottas, but he’s undeniably had a shocker on balance to start the year.
18. LOGAN SARGEANT
Points: 0 (19th)
Head to head (Albon): 0-3 in qualifying, 0-1 in race
Qualifying pace: 0.570 seconds behind Albon
It’s not surprising to see rookie Sargeant swept by Albon, though the qualifying gap between them would’ve been much smaller had he not made the minor mistake of crossing the pit entry line in qualifying in Saudi Arabia, where he looked set for Q2.
The American clearly has reasonable pace; he’s just lacking the polish to convert into results — no serious indictment after only three grands prix.
19. KEVIN MAGNUSSEN
Points: 1 (17th)
Head to head (Hülkenberg): 0-3 in qualifying, 2-1 in race
Qualifying pace: 0.661 seconds behind Hülkenberg
It’s hard to know where things have gone wrong for Magnussen. Has he underestimated the challenge Hülkenberg would bring? Or has he got complacent after keeping a firm hold on Mick Schumacher last year? Whatever the case, he needs to bounce back strongly lest this year damage his reputation and tarnish the halo of what looked like an excellent 2022 comeback.
20. NYCK DE VRIES
Points: 0 (20th)
Head to head (Tsunoda): 0-3 in qualifying, 0-3 in race
Qualifying pace: 0.421 seconds behind Tsunoda
Maybe it’s unfair to put a rookie last, but De Vries has been on the receiving end of one the most comprehensive teammate beatings of the season to date. And while he’s an F1 rookie, he’s arrived with far more experience than a regular debutant, having raced successfully in sportscars and Formula E.
While few expected him to be immediately on the pace, most thought he’d be closer by now.
