Max Verstappen took the victory (F1i.com)
Max Verstappen won his 4th consecutive race in front of his adoring home fans at Zandvoort. Yet again, Ferrari had an absolute disaster class. So, it's just about a normal Formula 1 race in 2022.
We're starting to get into a rhythm with F1. Every Sunday, the result is overwhelmingly predictable. While last year was definitely too toxic, at least you never knew who was going to win. There has been some good racing and overtaking, though, in recent races.
Now that we've seen the second stage of this European triple-header, it's time for another edition of the Formula 1 power rankings.
As usual, I added all the drivers' scores together to find the top 10 drivers for this particular race and on a season-long basis.
If you've forgotten, we take machinery entirely out of the equation and simply judge the drivers based on how well they did with the equipment they possessed.
Let's begin!
1. Max Verstappen, Red Bull
Race Position: 1st
Score: 9.1
Nobody is on Max Verstappen's level right now. Though his weekend at Zandvoort wasn't spotless and his victory wasn't as comprehensive as he is capable of, it was another pole position and 26 point haul to add to his growing championship lead.
A gearbox failure in FP1 jeopardized his weekend, but a smooth qualifying lap and a well-executed strategy on Sunday gifted him a fairly straightforward win.
2. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes
Race Position: 4th
Score: 8.7
This looked destined to be Hamilton's first race win of the season. The W13 is rapidly improving as a race car and Hamilton has finally settled into a groove.
If not for Sergio Perez's late spin in Q3, Hamilton might have challenged for the front row. Add that to some impressive pace in the twists and turns of the Zandvoort circuit, everything was lined up for Hamilton to break his race win drought. Even still, it took some bad luck and unfavourable strategy calls to rob him of another podium.
T3. George Russell, Mercedes
Race Position: 2nd
Score: 8.5
"Mr. Consistent" once again found his way on to the podium, though at this rate, there is the possibility that Russell will soon be able to fight for race victories. His Mercedes looks like it has race-winning potential in the near future.
While there isn't much of a title fight anymore, there very well could be a battle for second place in the driver's championship. After gathering 18 points after tying his career-best race result, Russell is now just 13 points behind Leclerc and Perez for P2 in the WDC.
T3. Fernando Alonso, Alpine
Race Position: 6th
Score: 8.5
Qualifying didn't work to Alpine's strengths. The twisty turns of Zandvoort simply worked against what the team had built. However, despite starting from P13, behind his teammate Ocon, there was nothing stopping the wily Spaniard on Sunday.
Starting the race on softs, Alonso breezed past some early resistance. As drivers further up the grid pitted during the safety car period, Alonso used his underrated tire management to make up many positions. Once Carlos Sainz's penalty was applied, Alonso was boosted to an impressive P6.
5. Lando Norris, McLaren
Race Position: 7th
Score: 8.1
During a weekend in which Daniel Ricciardo showed exactly why he has been dropped by McLaren, his teammate, Lando Norris, put forth yet another strong result.
Norris qualified in a position that his McLaren had no business being anywhere near. He was mixing it with the big boys from FP1 onwards. The race was fairly unremarkable for the Briton, which is what he hoped for.
All in all, another weekend that showed Lando's potential.
6. Charles Leclerc, Ferrari
Race Position: 3rd
Score: 7.8
It's frankly unbelievable that Charles Leclerc, the man with the most pole positions in 2022, hadn't stepped on the podium since July 10. In that time, Ferrari's awful strategies, some personal mistakes and unforeseen circumstances have hindered him. Still, ending the drought must have been a relief.
Zandvoort was supposed to be a track that suited Ferrari. However, other than a tight duel between himself and Verstappen in Q3, Leclerc never looked to be in contention for anything more than a podium scrap.
7. Lance Stroll, Aston Martin
Race Position: 10th
Score: 7.6
Stroll has started to find himself in the past few weeks. He comfortably outpaced Sebastian Vettel across the whole weekend in the Netherlands. That alone is worthy of consideration in the power rankings.
It's a fifth P10 of the season for Stroll, which certainly isn't remarkable, but it does prove that he is capable of fighting in the points. With Alonso coming in next season, Stroll is going to have to continue to raise his level.
8. Alex Albon, Williams
Race Position: 12th
Score: 7.5
While it may not have been the flashiest weekend for Albon this year, I was still pretty impressed by how he conducted himself. At such a twisty circuit, this was always expected to be a problematic race for Williams and their straight line speed. This was evidenced by Nicholas Latifi finishing last in every single session.
However, Albon fought amongst the big boys, getting caught in a few DRS trains and making a few overtakes on quicker vehicles. It was a strong day for the Thai driver.
T9. Carlos Sainz, Ferrari
Race Position: 8th
Score: 7.3
This weekend for Carlos Sainz was comically unlucky. On Sunday, Ferrari were such an utter disaster. Every decision they made was a sucker punch to their star Spaniard, whether it be their 12 second pit stop or releasing him into traffic in the pit lane.
Sainz put together a battling drive to try to minimize the damage that was done to him by his team, but in truth, he wasn't phenomenal when it counted. Even without Ferrari's errors, a podium seemed to be out of reach for Sainz. Still, it wasn't the driver's fault that he finished in P8.
T9. Yuki Tsunoda, AlphaTauri
Race Position: DNF
Score: 7.3
Tsunoda was at the center of one of the strangest moments in F1 this season. An appearance in Q3 was something to be proud of, but unfortunately, an odd mechanical problem on Sunday eliminated all hopes of points for the Japanese sophomore.
Accusations of a loose wheel, a seemingly useless pit stop and then the retirement at the side of the road was a sequence of events that stopped Tsunoda from battling with Stroll for P10.
JUST MISSED
Mick Schumacher defends against Vettel (F1i.com)
Though it wasn't as dynamic of a race as his teammate drove, Esteban Ocon had a pretty impressive race performance. Qualifying was a bit of a disaster, but the Frenchman executed a different strategy to a high degree of effectiveness, picking up 2 points in the process.
Under increasing amounts of pressure surrounding his seat, Mick Schumacher put forth an excellent qualifying performance. It looked like he was on pace for a surefire power rankings placement. However, Schumacher completely dropped off on race day, falling out of the points.
THE OVERALL STANDINGS
Hamilton and Verstappen following the Safety Car (F1i.com)
The top 10 continues to solidify as we go further along in the season. There have been a couple of minor shifts in the order, the drivers from the Belgian Grand Prix are all present after Zandvoort. Despite that, it is worth noting that after some poor race performances, Valtteri Bottas is in danger of falling off the overall leaderboard. Williams' Alex Albon is now just 0.1 points behind him in the season average.
1. Max Verstappen, Red Bull
Season Average: 8.9
Last GP: 1st
2. Charles Leclerc, Ferrari
Season Average: 8.5
Last GP: 2nd
3. George Russell, Mercedes
Season Average: 7.9
Last GP: 3rd
T4. Carlos Sainz, Ferrari
Season Average: 7.7
Last GP: 4th
T4. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes
Season Average: 7.7
Last GP: T-5th
T4. Fernando Alonso, Alpine
Season Average: 7.7
Last GP: T-5th
7. Sergio Perez, Red Bull
Season Average: 7.5
Last GP: T-5th
T8. Lando Norris, McLaren
Season Average: 7.4
Last GP: 9th
T8. Esteban Ocon, Alpine
Season Average: 7.4
Last GP: 8th
10. Valtteri Bottas, Alfa Romeo
Season Average: 6.9
Last GP: 10th
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