Strength Rankings: No perfect 10 points in Spain – but who tops the list after Barcelona?

The 2022 Spanish Grand Prix was a tough race for many, with Charles Leclerc retiring as Max Verstappen emerged on top. But how did the judges rate the drivers?

How it works

• A panel of five judges evaluates each driver after each Grand Prix and scores them out of 10 according to their performance over the weekend – taking machines out of the equation.

• Our experts’ scores are then averaged to produce the race score – with these scores then tallied over the course of the season in the overall strength rankings leaderboard (at the bottom of the page)

Russell pulled everything out of the updated Mercedes W13 this weekend. Starting in fourth, he ended up in the lead after Carlos Sainz and Max Verstappen left in Turn 4 but inevitably lost to Verstappen – after an amazing fight. Cooling issues forced Russell to drop out at the end of the race and yet he grabbed a great podium in Spain. As a result, our rulers gave him the highest score of anyone.

READ MORE: ‘This is the beginning of our season’ says podium player Russell after duel with Verstappen in Spain

Leclerc sprinted and recovered with a thrilling lap to take the starting point in Spain, and seemed to be in control of it all, taking on Verstappen’s challenge at the start for what seemed like countless progress. That was, until the Ferrari engine gave way and sent Leclerc back into the garage. The Monegasque driver had done just about everything up to that point.

TREMAYNE: Why Ferrari needs ship stability after its first major wobbles in 2022

Although vote for Hamilton Today’s driver, did not occupy the first place among the rulers. However, the seven-time champion earned a high after recovering from the back after a small collision with Magnussen. Hamilton was set for P4 but had to fall back at the end of the race, finishing fifth despite an early setback. A hero worthy of leadership…

READ MORE: Hamilton “would have raced to win” in Spain without Magnussen’s contact, says Wolff.

Another great performance from Verstappen, but one that was not considered by the stewards as the best of the season. The Dutchman’s DRS failed in both qualifying on Saturday and Sunday’s race, putting him back in charge, but was reclaimed carte blanche Russell was attacked by Red Bull and eventually won the race by a comfortable 13 seconds to lead the championship.

READ MORE: Verstappen says he enjoyed a ‘really great fight’ with Russell en route to Spain win, as he talks about the DRS case

Perez finished behind Verstappen but was convinced he had the speed to win on Sunday. Despite qualifying behind his teammate, Perez ended up up front as Verstappen made a mistake in the fourth round and the Mexican wanted to attack Russell for the win – but ended up switching spots with the defending champions. Team orders went into effect on Sunday but the Mexican kept his chin up to support Red Bull very helpful.

READ MORE: Horner warns against renewing Mercedes’ pace, as he reveals plan to “publicly” discuss team orders with Perez

Ricciardo outscored Norris, but the Briton’s pace was much better, seeing the McLaren driver start 11th but finish eighth while the Australian finished 12th – a bad bout of tonsillitis. Taking into account the machines, as usual, Norris received a positive score from the judges.

Podcast: James K McLaren in action with Ricciardo and Norris – and his plans to get the team back on top

Like Norris, Ocon edged out fellow veteran – Fernando Alonso in qualifying 17th but starting from behind – and the French Alpine player managed to finish seventh on the road from 12th on the grid. Another strong showing from Ocon and another strong result as well.

Bottas did a great job this weekend. The Alfa Romeo driver qualified seventh and ran into P3. He couldn’t hold fourth, that was the condition of his tyres, but the Finn driver managed the P6 to lead the midfield again.

READ MORE: Chu says back-to-back DNFs ‘hurt’ his rookie season, but Bottas buoyed by strong Spanish GP performance

Alonso put faces in a daze when he pulled out of Q1 in P17 but Alpine took the opportunity to fit in a new power unit. The Spaniard, master of weaving in the field on Sundays, once again put on a show as he moved from last to ninth. wonderful recovery and significant recovery; Alonso scored his first points since the season opener.

READ MORE: ‘It feels like a victory’ – Alonso happy to finish P9 in ‘magical’ Barcelona race after start

10th in the race, 10th in the standings: Tsunoda qualified for 13th but battled a difficult turn, passing some competitors on his way to the final point in Spain. Schumacher stopped the AlphaTauri driver for a moment late, preventing him from facing Alonso up front.

READ MORE: Gasly accepts full responsibility for Stroll accident in Spain as Tsunoda leaves happy with point after ‘extremely difficult’ race

Lost

Nobody really came close to taking Tsunoda out of the top 10, but Vettel was the second highest on the board, the Aston Martin driver who qualified 16th but finished 11th. Scroll down to see what the top 10 looks like on the leaderboard heading to Monaco.

leaderboard