The Formula 1 calendar reached it’s climax last weekend as the Abu Dhabi grand prix rounded off the shortened 17 race season.
Although the calendar was shortened, the drama certainly wasn’t as Mercedes clinched their seventh consecutive Constructors Championship.
Formula 1 fans were put through all sorts of emotions this season from a surprise poll from Lance Stroll to the return of Nico Hulkenburg and to Romain Grosjean’s miracle escape from flames.
Lewis Hamilton smashed the record for the amount of race wins as he beat Michael Schumacher’s previous record of 91 wins.
Hamilton also equaled Schumacher’s number of World Championships as they both have seven.
23 drivers participated in at least one Grand Prix this season and here’s I ranked their performances;
23: Pietro Fittipaldi
Fittipaldi replaced Romain Grosjean after he suffered a major crash at the Bahrain Grand Prix. Pietro finished at the back of the grid for both races he was involved in. He finished two laps behind the leader.
22: Jack Aitken
Aitken only featured in one race as he replaced George Russell in the Williams for the Sakhir Grand Prix. He qualified 18th and finished the race in 16th after a crash which resulted in a new front wing being needed.
21: Nicholas Latifi
Nicholas Latifi was outclassed in his rookie season by his younger but more experienced teammate as he was outqualified in every race him and George Russell. Latifi’s best finish was an 11th place finish in Monza.
20: Kevin Magnussen
In his final season in Formula 1, Kevin Magnussen only managed 1 point this season however narrowly edged out Romain Grosjean in qualifying as he outqualified him 7-6.
19: Romain Grosjean
Romain Grosjean’s final season in Formula 1 will be remembered by his miraculous escape from his burning car at the Bahrain Grand Prix. The Frenchman managed to score 2 points this season.
18: Kimi Räikkönen
A quiet season for the Finnish veteran as he scored 4 points and was outqualified by his teammate 9-8 over the season.
17: Antonio Giovinazzi
Similar to his Alfa Romeo teammate, Antonio had a relatively uneventful season also scoring 4 points. He outqualified his veteran teammate Kimi Räikkönen 9-8 and also showed some great first lap speed recording a high number of lap 1 overtakes.
16: Nico Hulkenburg
Nico only raced at 2 events but showed some quality as he managed to finish p7 and p8 despite a lack of sharpness.
15: Danil Kyvat
Danil Kyvat’s season was rather unspectacular as he only managed 32 points and finished 14th in the Driver’s Championship. His season was overshadowed by his teammate Pierre Gasly who outperformed massively. The Russian’s seat is in doubt at Alpha Tauri for next season.
14: Sebastian Vettel
The former World Champion will be very disappointed with how his season has gone as he only scored 33 points. He showed his experience and class in the wet conditions of Turkey to claim his only podium of the season. Sebastian’s last season in Ferrari wasn’t his best it’s safe to say.
13: Alex Albon
Alex Albon suffered more lows than highs this season as his seat is now under threat following a disappointing season which saw him finish 7th in the standings. He did manage to score his first podium when he finished 3rd at the Tuscany Grand Prix but time will tell if he has done enough to save his seat.
12: Esteban Ocon
Esteban Ocon had an average season for Renault scoring 62 points. He managed a career best finish with a second place finish at the Sakhir Grand Prix. His teammate Daniel Ricciardo outqualified him 15 times over the season.
11: Valtteri Bottas
A rather unspectacular season for the Mercedes man as he only managed two wins this season. Bottas didn’t have a fantastic season which was highlighted in the wet conditions of Turkey as he spun six times before being lapped by his teammate Lewis Hamilton. He still managed to secure second in the World Championship as he finished nine points ahead of Max Verstappen.
10: Lance Stroll
Lance Stroll endured a season of highs and lows as he finished 11th in the standings with 75 points. The young Canadian started on pole position for the Turkish Grand Prix with an impressive lap in wet conditions. Lance managed to score two podiums during the season as he finished 3rd at both the Monza and Sakhir Grand Prix’s. However, multiple DNF’s haltered his season as well as him testing positive for Covid-19 resulted in Lance’s final position in the Championship being lower than it should be.
9: George Russell
George Russell showed his pace throughout the season as he outqualified his teammate Nicholas Latifi in every race and even making Q2 on a few occasions. Russell managed to score his first points in Formula 1 at the Sakhir Grand Prix when he replaced Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes. After qualifying second, Russell took the lead on the first lap and looked certain to secure the win until a calamity pit stop from the Mercedes crew and a puncture meant the young Brit had to settle for 8th.
8: Lando Norris
Lando started the season brilliantly as he got his first Formula 1 podium at the season opener in Austria. Norris outqualified his teammate Carlos Sainz 9-8, however finished below him in the standings.
7: Pierre Gasly
Pierre Gasly’s redemption went from strength to strength this season as he scored consistent points and outperforming his team mate in qualifying,12-4. To top it off Pierre took the top step of the podium for the first time in his career as he secured a shock win at Monza narrowly holding off Carlos Sainz.
6: Carlos Sainz
A superb season for Carlos Sainz in his final season for McLaren as he helped guide the team to 3rd in the Constructors Championship. He also recorded a career best finish as he claimed 2nd at the Monza Grand Prix, only missing out P1 by 0.415 seconds. Sainz was able to beat his future teammate Charles Leclerc in the World Championship as he finished 6th.
5: Max Verstappen
A very good season for Max as he pressured Mercedes and pushed them all season long, he managed to win the 70th anniversary Grand Prix early on in the season before he took pole position and dominated the final race at Abu Dhabi. Verstappen very nearly pipped Valtteri Bottas to second in the World Championship only missing out by nine points. The Dutchman didn’t have a flawless season as he was still too rash and impatient at times. The Turkish Grand Prix was a prime example of this as he spun when an attempting an overtake which he could’ve waited to get it done easier.
4: Sergio Perez
The experienced Mexican showed his quality for Racing Point this season consistently scoring points and finishing 4th in the World Championship. He managed to secure his first win in Formula 1 at the Sakhir Grand Prix. His season is made more impressive by the fact he missed both races in Britain due to testing positive with Covid-19 but still finishing 4th. Sergio is currently without a seat for next season but however is linked with replacing Alex Albon at Red Bull.
3: Daniel Ricciardo
Ricciardo’s final season with Renault will go down as a success as he managed to finish 5th in the Drivers Championship. The ‘Honey Badger’ scored his podium for Renault at the Eifel Grand Prix. Daniel Ricciardo showcased his pace and racecraft throughout the season as he almost doubled his teammate Ocon’s points.
2: Lewis Hamilton
A dominating season from the World Champion who won 11 out of the 16 races he raced in. The record breaking season saw the Brit claim his seventh title (joint with Michael Schumacher) and his 95th race win beating Schumacher’s previous record of 91.
1: Charles Leclerc
Charles Leclerc claims top stop in the list as he managed to massively over perform in the Ferrari which was so far behind other teams. Leclerc was able to score 2 podiums throughout the season. He was able to score 98 points over the season seeing him finish 8th in the Championship only 27 points off Sergio Perez in 4th.
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