It is an outstanding achievement for Sainz to finish fifth ahead of his team-mate Charles Leclerc in his first season at Ferrari. Up until his last year at McLaren, the verdict on the Spaniard would have been lukewarm: good, but not in the top division.
He has become more comfortable over the course of the season, with very few weaknesses in his armory. The data suggests that Leclerc may have been better at getting the best out of the car than it was the weakest, but Sainz delivered year-round.
From the Grand Prix of Styria, he finished in the points in every race, with nine top six placements and three podium places. This consistency has earned him the reward of the best of the rest outside of Red Bull and Mercedes. Today, Sainz is a serious competitor. If Ferrari were to continue its upward trend in 2022, it could be a contender.
Qualification record: 9-13
Total points of the championship: 164.5 (5.)
Value added assessment: -7 (16.)
7. Fernando Alonso, Alpine (564 points) – The old crafty master is back
It may have taken him a couple of races to get up to speed after a two year absence, but the double world champion reminded us that he is still a very capable F1 driver throughout the season (in case anyone had any doubts about him).
His podium in Qatar was well deserved, but perhaps his best drive of the year was holding Hamilton in Hungary to help his team-mate Ocon win.
Given all the other things that have happened this season, it may not be remembered for that long, but it was a timely reminder of its prowess at the age of 40. It was a pleasure to have him back at the front.
Qualification record: 11-11
Total points of the championship: 81 (10.)
Value added assessment: 44 (7.)
6. George Russell, Williams (575 points) – A driver who deserves Mercedes to drive much earlier
Given the Williams’ limitations – it was perhaps the ninth fastest car at raw pace, but lacked on Sundays – there were few occasions when Russell didn’t get close to the FW43B’s maximum. His qualifying performances were exemplary again. His start in the front row in Belgium (in the race that never existed) and third place on the grid in Russia show his talent under difficult conditions.
A podium finish at Spa might have been difficult if the race had gone, but it almost felt like justice to Russell considering how well he has done over the past two seasons. There were also three other top 10 finishes: Hungary, Italy and Russia.
Finally lost his perfect qualifying record towards the end of the season and his performance also deteriorated a bit. With the hard work that brought Williams to eighth place in the table and signed a Mercedes contract alongside Hamilton for 2022, that’s almost excusable. Let’s see what he can deliver next year.
Qualification record: 20-2
Total points of the championship: 16 (15.)
Value added assessment: 82 (4.)
5. Charles Leclerc, Ferrari (633 pts) – Another strong season despite Sainz hot on his heels
Leclerc finished fifth again in 2019, mainly because he got the best out of a poor Ferrari and pounded his teammate Vettel. He’s fifth again this year, largely due to a stellar first part of the season with outstanding performances in Portugal, Spain, Azerbaijan and the UK, where he almost got his third win without Hamilton’s brilliant attack.
Turkey was another highlight towards the end of the season and he may be unlucky not to finish fifth overall. But Sainz, Norris and Leclerc, who are only 5.5 points apart, are difficult to separate. His fight with Sainz will be seen next year.
Qualification record: 13-9
Total points of the championship: 159 (7.)
Value added assessment: 38 (11.)
4. Pierre Gasly, AlphaTauri (670 points) – An improvement even on a fantastic 2020
Fourth last year, fourth again this year. Since his expulsion from Red Bull, Pierre Gasly has been one of the most outstanding players in midfield.
Yes, the AlphaTauri was under him to get these results, but you still have to deliver. He didn’t succeed at Red Bull and that’s the paradox. Much like Perez, he was faster and performed better in a slower car than he did during his sub-season at Red Bull.
His dominance over his teammate was almost absolute. 110 points to 32, 21-1 in qualifying and 15 points to six. They wonder if he might be fighting for second Red Bull place if he continues like this, or with another top team elsewhere. Exceeds our added value rating.
Qualification record: 21-1
Total points of the championship: 110 (9.)
Value added assessment: 111 (1.)
