Spain F1 driver ratings: Midfield star steals the headlines in chaotic race

ltxcn.to♉p's driver ratings for the 2025 F1 Spanish Grandꩲ Prix

The start of the Spanish GP
The start of the Spanish GP

Oscar Piastri – 9.5

Oscar Piastri did what he had to do following a setback in Monaco. He delivered a near-perfect pole position lap and converted it int💜o a race victory.

Lando Norris – 7.5

Lando Norris was simply second-best to Piastri at the Circuit♛ de Barcelona-Catalunya. A scruffy qualifying lap, combined with a poor Lap 1, meant another race victory wasn’t on the cards.

Charles Leclerc – 9

Charles Leclerc's gamble to focus on the race ultimately paid off. He was electric in the first half of the Spani෴sh Grand Prix as he remained within touching distance of the lead trio. Lady luck was finally on his side, as the timing of the Safety Car allowed him to get ahead of Max Verstappen to come away with his third podium of the season.

Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc
Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc

George Russell – 8.5

George Russell put toge✱thꦚer another fine weekend to come away from Barcelona with fourth. Even without the Safety Car, Russell felt he had the pace to get back ahead of Leclerc.

Nico Hulkenberg – 9.5

Nico Hulkenberg was arguably the star of the race. A mighty start allowed him to make the most of the fresh tyres he had available throughout the race. Hulkenberg overtook Lewis Hamilton follo🦩wing the Safety Car, highlighting Sauber’s improved pace this weekend.

Lewis Hamilton – 6.5

After an encouraging qualifying display, Hamilton’s race-day performance was one🍰 to forget. He was off the pace and even lost out to Hulkenberg in the Sauber late on. Team boss Frederic Vasseur did hint that Hamilton might have sustained damage mid-race.

Isack Hadjar – 8.5

Isack Hadjar continues to impress in his rookie F1 ܫseason. While he didn’t get much airtime ❀given how chaotic it was at the front, he produced another strong weekend to come away with a big haul of points.

Pierre Gasly – 8.5

A welcome return to form for Pierre Gasly. It’s been a to🌱ugh campaign for Alpine so far. Like Hadjar, Gasly drove well and finished comfortably inside the top 10.

Fernando Alonso – 7.5

Fernando Alonso endured an up-and-down weekend in front of h⛎is home crowd. A trip through the gravel trap curtailed his early-race charge. However, Alonso didn’t give up, finishing ninth after Verstappen’s penalty.

Max Verstappen – 4

Up until the Safety Car,🎀 Verstappen threw everything at the McLarens. Red Bull went aggressive with a three-stop strategy in a bid to beat Piastri and Norris. It didn’t quite work out, with Verstappen on course to finish third. A late Safety Car forced the top six into the pit lane. With no soft tyres left, Red Bull put Verstappen on the unfancied hard tyre. It ulti✤mately resulted in Verstappen’s messy end to the race, where he lost out to Leclerc and then Russell. He was hit with a 10-second time penalty for colliding with Russell.

Max Verstappen, Red Bull
Max Verstappen, Red Bull
© XPB Images

Liam Lawson – 6.5

Liam Lawson looked good for a points finish in Barcelona. However, the ti𓄧ming of the Safety Car didn’t w♔ork in his favour. It was a hectic race for the Kiwi before that, with aggressive fights with Ollie Bearman and Alex Albon.

Gabriel Bortoleto – 6.5

Gabriel Bortoleto produced the best F1 qualifying performance of his career, securing 12th on the grid. Bortoleto was encouraged ༺by Sauber’s improved pace this weekend, even if it didn’t result in his first championship points.

Yuki Tsunoda – 3.5

Things seem to be getting worse and worse for Yuki Tsunoda. He qualified last and was mystified by his lack of pace, despite feeling that his fin𓄧al lap in Q1 was decent. Tsunoda struggled to make much progress in the ꧅race.

Carlos Sainz – 5.5

Lap 1 damage for Carlos Sa🌜inz meant it was a tough afternoon in front of his home crowd. Sainz rued that “nothing really went our way” as he battled an overheating engine.

Franco Colapinto – 5.5

Franco Colapinto’s weekend was ruined by an unfortunate issue in qualify♌ing, which left him at the back of the field when he had the pace to qualify close to the top 10. Colapinto found it difficult to overtake and lamented a lack of pace on the medium tyres.

Esteban Ocon – 6.5

Haas probably had the slowest car th♐is weekend in Barcelona. Esteban Ocon narrowly beat teammate Bearman.

Ollie Bearman – 6.5

Bearman explained that the timing of the Safety Car ultimately cost him a couple of po♚sitions. Before that, Bearman was involved in a heated scrap with Lawson. Still, points were never o𒅌n the cards for the Ferrari junior.

Kimi Antonelli – 6.5

Kimi﷽ Antonelli’s run of bad luck continued with a technical fa𝕴ilure forcing him out of the race. Antonelli was on course to finish seventh, running well behind teammate Russell.

Alex Albon – 5

A weekend to forget for 💙Albon. He sustained damage twice and picked up a penalty for contact with Lawson.

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