Formula One Driver Power Rankings
With the launch of the Formula One 2021 season, this newsletter is also launching a Power Rankings alongside the opening race in Bahrain. The Power Rankings will look at which drivers are in the best form and are best placed to continue scoring good points positions or perform well.
This will take into account DNFs, Qualifying, Team Performances and, of course, Race Results.
The 2021 season hasn’t yet started but that doesn’t mean we can’t still look ahead using last season’s most recent results and performances, as well as pre-season testing and which drivers look best suited to succeed at their new teams — after all, there was a big shakeup in the grid between the 2020 and 2021 seasons.
The Power Rankings don’t need to list all 20 F1 drivers, that’s simply unnecessary. This will look at the top 10 drivers in F1.
To clarify, before we begin, that top 10 does not mean that these are the 10 best drivers in F1 but that they are the most in form and most suited to succeed in the upcoming races.
These rankings will not be updated after every race either, this is something that will be updated every so often. There is no set schedule. It all depends on how drivers perform and how drastic the races change up the order of things.
So, without going any further, let’s crack into the Unofficial Definitive Driver Power Rankings of F1 Drivers 2021 (UDDPR F1 2021 for short, obviously)
10. Pierre Gasly
Gasly had a redemptive 2020 season, the highlight of which was his first ever F1 race victory in Monza. The Alpha Tauri driver showed everyone last season why he received the call up to the Red Bull team for 2019.
Alpha Tauri only managed seventh in the Constructors Championship and were a distance away from the packed midfield battle for third. However, Gasly pushed that pack throughout the season and raced hard against drivers in much quicker cars.
The Frenchman’s 75 points over 2020 was good enough for 10th place in the Drivers Standings. This meant he finished ahead of Lance Stroll, Sebastian Vettel and Esteban Ocon, who all competed in cars that finished higher in the Constructors Standings. His final three results of 2020 were sixth, 11th and eighth.
The Alpha Tauri looked good in testing too, so Gasly looks well placed to potentially surprise a few people and compete for decent points positions on a consistent basis.
9. Esteban Ocon
The second Frenchman running, Ocon also looks well placed for 2021. He struggled to keep up with Daniel Ricciardo in the first half of the 2020 season, but by the end he was competing with the Australian, who himself is a proven race winner.
Ocon also earned his first ever F1 podium at the Sakhir Grand Prix, the penultimate race of the 2020 season. His performances looked to be back to the standard he set during his time at Force India/Racing Point, which sets him up nicely for a combative teammate duel with the returning Fernando Alonso.
Alpine finished fifth in the Constructors Standings last season, under the name Renault, but have gone through management changes at the top of the pecking order. Cyril Abiteboul has left after joining the team in that role in 2014.
In has come Davide Brivio and Marcin Budkowski to replace the role as team principal. They will share the duties with Brivio focusing on the race day side of things and Budkowski looking at the day to day operations at the Enstone factory where the cars are developed.
Ocon is now up against it with Alonso a formidable teammate to have, but his end of season form suggests that he is now ready to take on the two time world champion.
8. Charles Leclerc
Leclerc’s performances in 2020 were far better than that of his four time world champion teammate. The Ferrari was way down on its 2019 performances and the results followed that accordingly.
Despite the lack of power, Leclerc still managed eighth in the Drivers Standings and achieved two podium places and two fourth places finishes.
The Monagasqué’s final few races were, however, disappointing. A fourth place qualifying performance at the Sakhir Grand Prix was an outstanding result given the Ferrari’s performance level, but a first lap incident with Sergio Perez ended his race.
This incident was his fault, it was yet another first lap incident that he could’ve avoided. The final race in Abu Dhabi was also quite underwhelming, as he finished in 13th.
Ferrari have backed themselves to be quicker in 2021 and more competitive in the midfield. Leclerc’s overall performance in 2020 means he could be well placed to be a big winner for 2021, if Ferrari has improved as much as they have suggested.
7. George Russell
The Sakhir Grand Prix didn’t quite deliver the result that Russell looked certain to achieve at the halfway mark of the race, but his performance was more important than any potential victory that was taken from him.
There was nothing he could do given the mistakes from the Mercedes strategy and pit teams. He also suffered a puncture that set him back after he had cleared the pack that separated him from race leader Perez.
Russell will likely spend the 2021 season at the back of the grid, but this performance showed that he is ready to step up at a moment’s notice and if he can continue to shine in the Williams then Valtteri Bottas will be under more pressure than ever to compete with Lewis Hamilton if he wants to stay at Mercedes for 2022.
6. Carlos Sainz
Sainz ended the season with McLaren finishing third in the Constructors Championship. The Spaniard also finished sixth in the Drivers Standings and performed impressively throughout the season.
He finished the season in strong form and his consistency shined. The Sakhir Grand Prix was a disappointing fourth place, which says everything about how high a standard Sainz was setting for himself in 2020.
His move to Ferrari will be interesting. Sainz won the teammate battle with Lando Norris in 2020, but it was by far the closest driver pairing of the season. Leclerc will be a sterner test.
Joining a new team will require an adjustment period and Leclerc has now had two years with Ferrari and has established himself as the team leader. Sainz will have a difficult job trying to keep up with Leclerc from the get go but his 2020 performances suggest that he will back himself to do just that.
5. Daniel Ricciardo
Ricciardo delivered two podiums for Renault in the second half of the 2020 season and competed with the quicker McLaren and Racing Point cars consistently.
The Australian is a proven race winner and his move to McLaren now looks a shrewd move that could potentially deliver yet more podiums and maybe even race victories in 2021.
Their showing in testing was the best of any Mercedes powered team, including the works Mercedes team themselves, and their results for the end of 2020 secured an impressive third place in the Constructors Championship.
4. Lando Norris
The Briton ended the season very well and he played a big role in securing third for McLaren. With Sainz now out of the team, he is also now the established driver within the team.
This gives Norris even more responsibility to perform while Ricciardo gets up to speed. The Australian is perhaps the more talented driver, and the expectation will be that he finishes the season ahead of Norris, but the opening few races will be a good chance for Norris to assert himself as the top dog within McLaren.
Norris improved massively from his rookie season and, if he can continue to get better, then there will be no reason for him to not compete on a level pegging with Ricciardo.
McLaren looked good in testing and with this driver pairing they now look well suited to compete as the definitive ‘best of the rest.’ Aston Martin and Alpine don’t look to have quite the same pace and Ferrari are still an unknown quantity given their updates to their Power Unit.
McLaren have a chance to secure another top three Constructors Standings finish and Norris can play a huge role in that once again if he performs as he did at the end of the 2020 season.
3. Lewis Hamilton
The seven time world champion didn’t actually have the best of times to finish the 2020 season. Hamilton did win in Bahrain but missed out on Sakhir due to contracting the coronavirus.
He was back in time for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix but he only finished in third behind both his teammate and Max Verstappen in the Red Bull.
Pre-season Testing also showed a much more vulnerable Mercedes than we’re used to seeing. Hamilton complained of instability at the rear end of the car and he spun off into the gravel on Day Two. He also spun getting ready for a hot lap later in the weekend.
No one really expects Mercedes to be anywhere but the front of the grid, but given the extent of their dominance on the rest of the pack at the start of 2020, it’s quite jarring to see them struggle at all in 2021. The change in regulations are very minor, but they do appear to have had an effect on the seven time Constructors Champions.
Hamilton is also looking for a record eighth Drivers Championship in 2021 and he should still be well placed to, at the very least, compete for that crown. But the end of his 2020 season, plus pre-season for 2021, hasn’t been as smooth as we’ve come to expect and maybe there might be a real challenge to the Briton’s dominance this season.
2. Sergio Perez
A first ever F1 race win for Perez at the end of the 2020 season, combined with a personal best fourth place finish in the Drivers Standings and a move to Red Bull mean that Perez is in the best place of his F1 career.
The Mexican was superb throughout 2020 and out-performed Stroll in the Racing Point for the majority of the season. Despite being dumped by the team for Vettel, he deservedly earned a move up the pecking order into the Red Bull, which ended the season on the top step of the podium in Abu Dhabi.
The upgraded Honda engine for 2021, plus the new regulations potentially suiting their high rake design philosophy means Red Bull now finally look well placed to compete for both championships for the first time in the Hybrid era.
How Perez stacks up against Verstappen will be a fascinating story for 2021 and will be a great test for both drivers. If ever Perez was to compete for a championship victory then now is that time. He is in the form of his life and Red Bull looks ready to fight.
It’s possible that there may only be one man standing in his way come the end of the season…
1. Max Verstappen
The Dutchman ended the 2020 season by claiming a second victory of that year and, crucially, he did it with a level of comfort he has never had over the Mercedes drivers.
Verstappen took pole, led every lap and was only denied the fastest lap by a last lap charge from Ricciardo. His overall performance in 2020 was also exceptional.
The Turkish Grand Prix was his only non-podium race finish. Five DNFs cost him a chance at beating Bottas to second in the Drivers Standings.
Despite the Finn being in one of the most dominant cars in F1 history, Verstappen was far closer in the difficult Red Bull than he had any right to be. Alexander Albon was totally outclassed and the lack of a proper teammate potentially cost him even better results.
With Perez now in the team, that dynamic will now shift and the Mexican looks good enough to push him even further.
If Red Bull are to take it to Mercedes, then Verstappen is most definitely ready to take it to Hamilton in the Drivers Championship.
The 2021 season has a lot going for it, but it won’t be until the chequered flag is raised at the opening race that we will truly be able to draw strong conclusions on anyone’s pace or performance. Until then, this is where everyone stands as we look ahead to Bahrain this Sunday.
Driver Images courtesy of Formula1.com
Don’t forget to check out my YouTube channel for the start of my new show The F1 Chicane in which the first episode expands on the five major storylines that I wrote about in last Friday’s newsletter.