Wheel2Wheel End of Season Grades! – Part 1 – By Joe Murphy
Is it a perfect score, or do some of these drivers need to resit their tests. It was a mixed year for drivers up and down the grid, so let’s evaluate and see who needs to celebrate and who needs to stay afterwards for detention.
Verstappen – A
Max Verstappen was flawless for much of the campaign. He made sure his second championship win was rather more uneventful than his first, breaking records in the process.
Perez – B
It was a solid season for the other Red Bull driver. The Mexican played his part in Red Bull’s Constructor’s Championship win, although he will be slightly disappointed to finish third in the Driver’s standings.
Leclerc – B
Charles Leclerc achieved a lot in his Ferrari, particularly on Saturday’s. A credible title challenge ended after the summer break and the man from Monaco made one too many mistakes to mount a credible threat. Still, second place is progress.
Sainz – B-
He finally ended his winning drought but was considerably off his teammate in terms of scoring. To finish below George Russell in a much stronger car is of supreme disappointment, even if the Spaniard was also let down by his team on multiple occasions.
Hamilton – C+
He showed glimpses of what he has done in the past, but 0 Pole Positions and 0 race wins achieved has to be considered a failure for the seven time champion, even if Mercedes took a backwards step. He also finished below his teammate for the first time since 2016.
Russell – B+
First win, first pole and outscored Lewis Hamilton over his first season in the new Mercedes car. Pressure, what pressure? The young Brit battled faster cars and showed an incredible level of consistency. His first year couldn’t have gone much better all things considered.
Ocon – B
He beat his teammate but no repeat heroics of his win the year prior. A solid performance and enough to be Alpine’s first choice driver heading into 2023.
Alonso – C+
Beaten by his teammate, but there is so much more to Fernando’s season. The veteran had some excellent results and performed with consistency, apart from when his car or engine wouldn’t play ball. He will be glad of a fresh start and is exactly what Aston Martin need to replace a certain German driver.
Norris – B+
An excellent year for Lando Norris where he perfected his craft, even scoring a podium in the process. McLaren were underwhelming to say the least but Lando shone bright in an otherwise dark season. The so-called ‘Best of the Rest’ from this incredibly talented driver. Here’s hoping he is soon paired with a machine that can match his talents.
Ricciardo – E
Surely, it couldn’t have gone much worse for the Australian. If you’d have said to any Formula 1 fan that Danny would be out of a seat 10 months ago, they’d have thought you were mad. A season with a couple of ups but multiple and catastrophic downs, at least the season is over. He can bounce back, and hopefully does so. I think all parties are happy to part company after such a torrid campaign.
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