Charles Leclerc (F1i.com)
The return of Formula 1 marked the end of Max Verstappen's streak of dominance, yet it continued the reoccurring trends that have become the norm this season: Ferrari on pole, Red Bull with the victory.
Truth be told, after Red Bull's strategic error during Saturday's qualifying jeopardized Verstappen's starting position, the midfield became the true hot topic of the weekend, particularly the battle for 4th in the Constructors' Championship. Incumbents McLaren reversed a seemingly insurmountable gap, picking up 22 points via Lando Norris and Daniel Ricciardo to go 4 points clear of Alpine.
Regardless, the first GP in 3 weeks marks the return of the Sincere Sports power rankings. Generally, the scores were quite low at this race, as other than the drivers at the top, there weren't too many signature drives.
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!
Sergio Perez (F1i.com)
1. Sergio Perez, Red Bull
Race Position: 1st
Score: 9.1
Sergio Perez agonizingly finished 2 hundredths slower than Charles Leclerc on his final Q3 lap after a slow final sector. However, that wasn't the stopping the Mexican veteran, who was eager to assure that a Drivers' Championship was still mathematically possible this season.
Perez got the jump on Leclerc at the start on Sunday, switching into gear quicker than the Monegasque could and then pulling off the overtake into Turn 1. From there, 'Checo' did everything possible to keep Leclerc behind. It was a world-class performance from the lead; the likes of which we often see from his more celebrated teammate. The only error that Perez made was during the Safety Car Period, when he approached closer than 10 car lengths and was given a 5-second penalty.
However, that wasn't stopping 'Checo,' who led Leclerc at the line by nearly 8 seconds.
T2. Charles Leclerc, Ferrari
Race Position: 2nd
Score: 8.2
Yet another pole, yet another missed victory for Leclerc.
Perhaps lucky that both Red Bull drivers couldn't string together a competent final sector to their early-lap dominance, he was nevertheless the most consistently excellent driver on Saturday.
However, despite a pretty quick reaction time at the start on Sunday, 'Checo' got the jump and relegated Leclerc to P2.
From there, the Ferrari man had to hope for a superior strategy call, which as we all know is not Ferrari's strong suit. Perhaps Leclerc could have made it more interesting if he didn't have a 5.3 second pit stop, but at the end of the day, he didn't seem to have enough overtaking pace to get close to Perez in turbulent air.
T2. Lando Norris, McLaren
Race Position: 4th
Score: 8.2
McLaren needed a top performance from Norris, particularly after seeing that both Alpines retired with reliability issues. Boy, did he deliver.
Yet again, the Briton was best of the rest, challenging Sainz for the final podium at times. Consider that this was a track where McLaren expected to struggle and you will understand the judges' high praise for Lando.
Sure, he was helped out by his pit strategy in a rare McLaren masterclass. However, he is one of the few drivers on the grid who can consistently outperform where his car is expected to be and he did it yet again in Singapore.
T4. Fernando Alonso, Alpine
Race Position: DNF
Score: 7.9
Though Alonso was doomed to yet another engine-inflicted retirement, the result shouldn't take away from his performance. He helped make up ground for Alpine after Ocon's disastrous qualifying session. His defense against Verstappen may have cost the Dutchman a heavy points haul. Alonso was even challenging Hamilton on occasions.
The Spaniard's racecraft is on a different level and he is now putting together the qualifying performances to give himself an even better chance. If Alpine can sort out their reliability issues in a hurry, my hot take is that Alonso is more likely to take a win this season than Hamilton.
T4. Pierre Gasly, AlphaTauri
Race Position: 10th
Score: 7.9
Pierre Gasly's P10 doesn't look incredible on the surface, but against the scope of a very average race performance from his competitors, it warrants a top-5 shout on the power rankings.
A signature Gasly qualifying performance gave me flashbacks to 2021 AlphaTauri, as he comfortably put his car up in the top 10. After that, Gasly drove a fairly drama-free race, though an early stop for slicks didn't help his chances.
Either way, I thought Gasly conducted his car in a very professional manner this race.
6. Lance Stroll, Aston Martin
Race Position: 6th
Score: 7.8
The Canadian driver picked up his best result of the season, doubling his points tally on the year. An ill-advised gamble by Aston Martin to try the slicks in Q2 doomed Stroll to an exit before the final qualifying session. However, Stroll had excellent race pace to make up for the disappointing exit.
It was a pretty low-key Sunday for Stroll, yet remarkable nonetheless. He never eased off the gas, putting himself in the right position to grab a handful of points.
T7. Daniel Ricciardo, McLaren
Race Position: 5th
Score: 7.7
Daniel Ricciardo needed this. It's been a tumultuous few months for the Aussie, but Ricciardo managed to salvage something from what looked like another frustrating weekend. Another Q1 exit in contrast with his teammate's Saturday only emphasized the gap between Norris and Danny Ric in present times.
But Ricciardo made up the most places of any driver in the race, taking advantage of a really effective getaway and McLaren's best pit stop strategy in ages. While he wasn't as dynamic as Norris this weekend, performances of this nature are crucial if Danny Ric is to keep an F1 seat for 2023.
T7. Sebastian Vettel, Aston Martin
Race Position: 8th
Score: 7.7
Vettel will feel aggrieved to finish behind his teammate, but considering he got dealt a tough hand with Aston Martin's Q2 decision-making, the German can't complain with the points haul that he accrued.
Things simply went his way, which he reiterated after the race. Though Max Verstappen stole P7 off of him at the end, Vettel was nevertheless pleased with P8, notably finishing above former rival Lewis Hamilton.
9. Max Verstappen, Red Bull
Race Position: 7th
Score: 7.3
It was hard to bet against Verstappen going into this weekend, especially off the back of 5 consecutive race victories. He was billed as a possible candidate to break Vettel's record of 9 straight wins.
Unfortunately, chaos ensued. All that could have gone wrong for the Dutchman did. Atrocious management from Red Bull doomed him to P8 on the grid for Sunday's race, when pole position was very likely. At a track that has provided difficult to overtake at in the past, Verstappen likely didn't expect to pick up a 6th race win in the last 6 races. However, he had a good chance for P4 before a courageous divebomb on Lando Norris was ruined by a massive lock-up on his front tyres.
Despite the result, Verstappen has a really good chance to seal the Drivers' Championship in Japan, the home country of Red Bull engine provider Honda. It would be a poetic end to what has been another chapter in the tale of the Flying Dutchman.
10. Carlos Sainz, Ferrari
Race Position: 3rd
Score: 6.8
It may seem harsh to place the 3rd place finisher this far down, but Sainz's weekend in Singapore was possibly the least conspicuous of any podium finisher this year. The Spaniard made up for a disappointing P4 in qualifying by passing Hamilton in a controversial incident at Turn 2. However, once he reached that point, Sainz' race pace evaporated, as he held up the rest of the field.
The drop-off in speed between Sainz and his teammate Leclerc was unbelievable. That factor likely significantly influenced his low rating.
JUST MISSED
Lewis Hamilton (F1i.com)
Some fans were tipping Lewis Hamilton for victory in Singapore. A wide range of mitigating circumstances prevented the Briton from winning his first GP of the season. A frustrated Hamilton lost a place to Sainz at the start and it clearly affected his mental fortitude. He seemed shaken and angry when he eventually lost control of his Mercedes and hit a barrier, effectively ruining his chances at a top-5 finish.
Kevin Magnussen is a Singapore specialist, with two fastest laps under his belt at the Marina Bay Street Circuit. Thus, it was no surprise when the Dane forced his way into Q3 with a gutsy drive. Unfortunately, front-wing damage led to yet another black-and-orange flag for Magnussen, who simply couldn't make his way any further up than 12th after the early pit stop.
THE OVERALL STANDINGS
Pierre Gasly (F1i.com)
Other than Perez, none of the top 6 improved their score following the Singapore GP, in what was a fairly inconspicuous race for the Drivers' Championship frontrunners. Further down the order, Lewis Hamilton fell a place after his chaotic race weekend and Pierre Gasly kicked out Alex Albon as well as Valtteri Bottas to make the top 10 for the first time since the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
1. Max Verstappen, Red Bull
Season Average: 8.8
Last GP: 1st
2. Charles Leclerc, Ferrari
Season Average: 8.5
Last GP: 2nd
3. George Russell, Mercedes
Season Average: 7.8
Last GP: 3rd
T4. Carlos Sainz, Ferrari
Season Average: 7.7
Last GP: 4th
T4. Fernando Alonso, Alpine
Season Average: 7.7
Last GP: T-5th
T6. Sergio Perez, Red Bull
Season Average: 7.6
Last GP: 7th
T6. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes
Season Average: 7.6
Last GP: T-5th
8. Lando Norris, McLaren
Season Average: 7.4
Last GP: 8th
9. Esteban Ocon, Alpine
Season Average: 7.2
Last GP: 9th
10. Pierre Gasly, AlphaTauri
Season Average: 6.8
Last GP: NR
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