F1 Driver Ratings from the 2021 Italian Grand Prix

Each driver is scored out of ten with the rating being heavily weighted on their race day performance. Qualifying performance holds less weight when deciding the ratings

Daniel Ricciardo (Qualified 3rd, started 2nd, finished 1st) - 10

Welcome back, Daniel Ricciardo! The Australian was back to his very best at Monza as he got past Lewis Hamilton and Lando Norris off the line in the sprint race. With Valtteri Bottas’ grid penalties, Ricciardo started from the front row of the grid for the first time since Mexico in 2018. He made a great start from second and jumped into the lead of the race. Ricciardo then kept Verstappen at bay until the round of pit stops. Slow stops for Verstappen and Hamilton made life easier for Ricciardo, although, he’d likely have maintained the lead anyways. Ricciardo would go on to take McLaren’s first win since 2012 and even with the title contenders out of the race, it’s a win that’s entirely on merit. 

Lando Norris (Qualified 4th, started 3rd, finished 2nd) - 9

If anyone deserves a victory this year then it’s Norris. Monza wasn’t meant to be but it was still another outstanding weekend from the 21-year-old. Across the sprint race and the main grand prix, Norris kept Hamilton behind for the best of 40 laps. The McLaren driver was running ahead of Hamilton and Verstappen before the pair’s clash on Lap 26 and given his straight-line speed advantage, there’s a good chance he would have been able to hold them off. After the Safety Car, Norris was aggressive in his overtake on Charles Leclerc, taking to the grass at one point at Curva Grande.

Valtteri Bottas (Qualified 1st, started 19th, finished 3rd) - 10

Monza was one of Bottas’ finest weekends as a Mercedes driver on the weekend after it was finally announced that he’s leaving the team for Alfa Romeo, with George Russell replacing him. Bottas was fastest in qualifying, he won the sprint race and he cut his way through the field on race day with ease. Bottas was unable to make a move stick on Perez as his medium tyres degraded, but given the advantage McLaren had on the straights, it’s unlikely the win was ever on for him.

Charles Leclerc (Qualified 6th, started 5th, finished 4th) - 9

After feeling unwell on Saturday, Leclerc should be proud of his efforts across the weekend. Given Ferrari’s deficit in a straight line, fourth at the Italian Grand Prix is a good result. Leclerc was running second in the Safety Car, but Ferrari simply didn’t have the pace to resist Norris, Perez and Bottas.

Sergio Perez (Qualified 9th, started 8th, finished 5th) - 7

It was another poor qualifying display by Perez at Monza. While he had no slipstream on his final run, he did so on his first and could only manage ninth on the grid. Perez didn’t make much ground in the sprint, finishing behind Alfa’s Antonio Giovinazzi. With Bottas recovering from the back and Hamilton/Verstappen out of the race, it was the perfect opportunity for Perez to finish on the podium for just the third time this season. He finished third on track, defending well from Bottas, but was handed an avoidable five-second penalty for overtaking Leclerc off the track at Turn 4.

Carlos Sainz (Qualified 7th, started 6th, finished 6th) - 7

A third crash in four races for Sainz meant he was ‘lacking confidence’ going into the sprint. Sainz never recovered from his setback in FP2, losing out to Leclerc on Saturday before never featuring prominently in the grand prix. Good points for Ferrari but he’d have been disappointed not to have stayed within five seconds of Perez.

Lance Stroll (Qualified 10th, started 9th, finished 7th) - 8

An underrated weekend from Stroll at Monza - a circuit he has impressed at in the past for Williams and Racing Point. Stroll was aggressive on the opening lap, forcing teammate Sebastian Vettel off the track at Lesmo 1 to gain track position. From then on, Stroll had a lonely race, resisting any threat from behind from the Alpine of Fernando Alonso. The Canadian escaped a penalty for speeding under yellow flags to secure his best result of the year.

Fernando Alonso (Qualified 11th, started 10th, finished 8th) - 8

More of the same from Alonso at Monza as he finished inside the top 10 for the 10th time in 14 races. Alonso maintained eighth behind the Safety Car having pitted just a lap before it was deployed. A lonely race to eighth but more crucial points for Alpine.

George Russell (Qualified 15th, started 14th, finished 9th) - 8

Russell was out-qualified by a Williams teammate for the first time as Nicholas Latifi beat him in the sprint race. Running behind his teammate in the first stint, Russell got lucky with the timing of the Safety Car, allowing him to jump Esteban Ocon and Nicholas Latifi. Russell maintained track position after the Safety Car to score points again for Williams. 

Esteban Ocon (Qualified 13th, started 12th, finished 10th) - 6

Ocon’s first stint was compromised after he was forced to give back the position to Latifi having overtaken him off track. The Frenchman was then handed a five-second time penalty for moving under braking on Vettel into Turn 4. His penalty would prove to be very costly as he was forced to serve it in the pits when he stopped under the Safety Car, meaning he couldn’t make the most of it like Russell. Ocon overtook Latifi for tenth on Lap 32 to make it a double-points score for Alpine at Monza.

Nicholas Latifi (Qualified 14th, started 13th, finished 11th) - 8

A great weekend for Latifi which should have earned him points. Latifi out-qualified Russell and was running comfortably clear of his teammate, resisting pressure from Ocon. Latifi stopped three laps before the Safety Car so he lost out to Russell. Unfortunate as he had the upper hand over his teammate. 

Sebastian Vettel (Qualified 12th, started 11th, finished 12th) - 6

Vettel’s race was undone on the opening lap after he sustained damage on the opening lap. By who? It was unclear to see but he was pushed wide by his teammate Stroll. Another underwhelming weekend for the four-time world champion.

Antonio Giovinazzi (Qualified 8th, started 7th, finished 13th) - 6

Giovinazzi once again starred in qualifying and the sprint, progressing to Q3 and managing to beat Perez. Ultimately, it was another missed opportunity as a mistake into Turn 4 saw him cut the corner, rejoin the track in an unsafe manner where Sainz hit the back of him, damaging his car considerably. Giovinazzi recovered to 13th but seeing how Williams scored points again, Alfa Romeo will be kicking itself. 

Robert Kubica (Qualified 18th, started 17th, finished 14th) - 6

Another solid weekend from Kubica as Monza as he deputised for the recovering Kimi Raikkonen. Kubica gained three positions at the start, running ahead of Russell in an impressive first stint. The Pole managed to pressure Vettel towards the end who was nursing damage, before surrendering the place to Giovinazzi on track.

Mick Schumacher (Qualified 19th, started 18th, finished 15th) - 6

Schumacher had the advantage over Mazepin in qualifying once again but lost out in the sprint. The pair came to blows again, with Schumacher picking up front wing damage. The German finished 15th as he continued his streak of making the chequered flag.

Nikita Mazepin (Qualified 17th, started 16th, DNF) - 5

It was a positive sprint race from Mazepin as he beat both Kubica and Schumacher. Mazepin picked up a five-second time penalty from the stewards after he collided with teammate Schumacher. 

Lewis Hamilton (Qualified 5th, started 4th, DNF) - 6

On a weekend where Mercedes had the fastest car by a considerable margin, Hamilton simply didn’t maximise it. He was beaten in qualifying by Bottas and a sluggish start in the sprint dropped him behind Verstappen and the two McLarens. Without his clash with Verstappen, a podium finish was likely but given Mercedes had the fastest car this weekend, more was expected from the seven-time world champion.

Max Verstappen (Qualified 2nd, started 1st, DNF) - 7

Verstappen extracted the maximum from the Red Bull RB16B to qualify second behind Bottas, inheriting yet another pole position after the Finn’s engine penalties. He lost out at the start to Ricciardo but an 11-second pit stop completely ruined his chances. The stewards deemed the incident with Hamilton to be his fault, although both drivers could have done more to avoid it.

Pierre Gasly (Qualified 20th, pit lane start, DNF) - 6

Gasly’s weekend was ruined after he hit the back of Ricciardo in the sprint race, damaging his front wing. The front wing detached itself, got trapped under his car meaning he couldn’t turn, sending him into the gravel trap at Curva Grande. AlphaTauri repaired his car for the race but Gasly was forced to retire after just three laps, reporting that something didn’t feel right.

Yuki Tsunoda (Qualified 16th, DNS) - 4

Tsunoda failed to make it out of Q1 yet again as he ran wide at the final corner. An uneventful sprint left him 16th on the grid, while he couldn’t start the race after a mechanical issue.