P1 with Matt and Tommy - US GP Driver Ratings: F1-to-10

Episode Date: October 21, 2024

COTA served up another banger full of controversy, so let's rate some awesome (and some awful) performances. That's right, it's time for The Most Controversial Series in Motorsport™Join us for our End of Season tour across the UK this December! Get your tickets here! Sign up to our Patreon here! You'll get access to bonus episodes, our classic race podcast series, every P1 episode ad-free, early access to live tickets and merch, and access to our Discord server where you can chat with other F1 fans!Follow us on socials! You can find us on Twitter, Instagram, Twitch, YouTube and TikTok. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hello everybody and welcome back to the B1 podcast with Matt and Tommy. We are Austin done and dusted and we are ready to give you our numbers that definitely are not going to be controversial in the slightest depending on how you see particular incidents in this United States Grand Prix. Are you excited, Tommy? Of course I am. It was a controversial race which always means everyone is super friendly in the comments. Now before we dive into everything, I just want to say a massive thank you to each. and every one of you that came to our North American tour. We finished now and it was honestly

such an incredible couple of weeks to be going around doing our P1 live show. There are tickets for the UK one in the middle of December. If you want to go and get them, there'll be a link at the top of the description. We'd love to see you there. It's going to be a stone cold banger to review this unbelievable season, so unpredictable as well. Now, we're going to dive straight into our first driver. Kevin Magnerson, who started the sprint in eighth, finished the sprint in seventh, started the main race in eighth and finished 11th. I am going to go for an eight out of ten for Kevin Magnuson. He scored a couple of points in the Hass and I think he had a pretty decent drive. Not quite as good as Nico Holcomburg throughout the weekend, but I would still say a very

solid drive, considering this man is off the, you know, he's been banned this season. This is a much better performance from KMAG. He was there in the mix of things throughout the weekend, really. A shame, obviously, to finish 11th in the main race, but still bringing some points in Vahas. I have gone for a 7 out of 10 for KMAG. Yeah, he was brilliant in the sprint, bagged some points, of course, didn't quite go to plan in the main race, despite him, obviously being ahead of Nika Holkenberg in qualifying. But unfortunately, just to miss out on points, but Yeah, he is doing a much more solid job than what he was doing at the start of the season. He was unlucky that he had to pit though, Tommy.

I feel as though, and I haven't seen the reason as to why, it seemed as though it must have been a slow puncture that they pit him because he came and changed his tyres and went out. It was an unfortunate two-stop and you're still like, no. Well, he pitted very early and look, I still think a seven is a very respectable result. Yes, disagreeing. We love to see it. The fans gave Kevin Magnuson a seven. Nika Holkenberg started the sprint in sixth, finished eighth, started the main race in 11th and finished 8th.

I have gone for an 8 out of 10 for Nika Hulkenberg. Very good result in the sprint of course, qualified amazingly well in the sprint. But disappointing in the main race and yeah, it was a good performance. The Hafts is just a very good car now, I think, based on... based on where both drivers are putting it. So yes, a good drive from Nika Hulkenberg. All right, I've gone for a nine out of ten for Nika Holkenberg. Yeah, the only sort of minor glitch in this weekend for me

was the qualifying for the main race, but he finished best of the rest in eighth place in the main race and also scored a point in the sprint. So I'm not really sure what much more Nika Hulkenberg could have done? Finish ahead of Magnuson in the sprint. So that deserves two points dropped. for K-Megg. Well, yeah, it's not a perfect result, is it?

Nine's not perfect. Okay, I love it. We're combating all the way through here. But yeah, nine out of ten for me, and the fans gave him an eight. Here he is. Our favourite one, Joe Guan Yu, started the sprint in 19th, finished 19th, started the race in 18th, and finished 19th. Look, that's not the greatest reading, is it?

I've gone for a three out of ten for Joe. It wouldn't have been a three had he not just spun on his own at term one. That really did plummet him down the order because he was doing all right. He was up there in the mix. And then he wasn't. So for me, it's disappointing. He said himself afterwards that he carried too much speed into turn one, hit a bump, and then it's pretty much game over.

So sadly for him, it's a three. I have gone for a two out of ten for Joe Guan Yu. I'm going to be harsh because of just spinning out of nowhere on your own when he was doing a decent job. completely unforced, you know, shouldn't have happened and he was slow so the normal three out of ten for being slow is downgraded to a two because he spent. Wow, the fans gave him a three. Valtteri Bottas, started the sprint in 18th, finished 20th,

started the main race in 16th and finished 17th. It's going to be a six out of ten for Valtry Bottas. He's driving the absolute dustbin that is the stake. That car is so bad. Do that out qualify, Lewis Hamilton. Is that why you're giving you the face? So I can't go right down the middle because he has comprehensively beaten his teammate and, yeah, done something. But, God, they are just so bad.

Being at the track and being able to, at the track you really get that kind of perception of the pecking order because you see the gaps, don't you like physically as a car comes around. And it was just shocking how long you had to wait before the stakes came around. They are so, so bad. I've gone for a five out of ten for Valtry Bottas. I think it's straight down the middle, really. I don't think he did anything particularly special. Jo's spin helped that, because I think they were very close on track until then.

So for me, it's a five out of ten, because what more is there really to say about the stakes? And I do wonder if Bottas is getting slightly bored, just driving around at the back, and whether he'll continue in Formula One at all is something that has yet to be decided. The fans also gave him a five. Yuki Sanoda started the sprint in 9th, finished in 11th, and started the main race in 10th and finished 14th.

I have gone for a 6 out of 10 for Yuki Sonoda. It, well, he got a penalty, didn't he for forcing another drive off the track, which was Alex Albon. Then he was absolutely fuming that Lawson was somehow ahead of him on a different strategy, fair to say. It was an okay weekend. I think that he will be kicking himself a little bit, that he scored no point. and Lawson, who's not been driving the car for a while, comes in from the back and manages to score a couple. So, yeah, the performance in the car was there, but it didn't work out for Yuki.

So I've given him a six. I've also gone for a six out of ten for Yuki Sonoda. Andy Spun? Andy Spun, yeah, that's the biggest shame, really. He qualified superbly well in both the sprint and the main race who did a good job in qualifying. The sprint, he was very good as well. He was battling Perez, having a good,

result, but we know how hard it is to score in the sprint because there are any points available up to eighth. But yeah, it kind of went wrong in the main race for him quite badly with a five second penalty spinning off as well. And I think the whole thing about Lawson as well, coming from the back and doing a great job, which we'll get into next, it's basically going to pile the pressure on him as well. So not the race that he would have wanted to have. Not the race you would have wanted him to have either. Absolutely not. Because you back him a lot and then Lawson's coming and chef him. So, okay, let's go to Liam Lawson next.

Started the sprint in 15th, finished 16th, started the race in 19th after a 60 place of quid penalty, and finished ninth. I've gone for a 10 out of 10 for Liam Lawson. It was an unbelievable drive in the main race. You know, the sprint wasn't anything special, but his main race was so good that it warrants a 10 overall because that is the place where you can score points. So for him to do it as well from the back of the grid, as soon as that penalty came in,

it must have been like, well, he's never going to score a point. Like no chance. So the fact that he's done it, his battling with Alonzo was maybe a little over the line in the sprint, but some of his moves I think were really, really good, actually. And I like the fact that he's willing to get his elbows out, even though he's a new driver. And it couldn't really have really gone any better for him in the main race

to basically the pressure of going into this car after Daniel Ricardo got ousted and people, you know, his fans aren't very happy about it and wondering if it was the right decision, what more could you want? I genuinely think it would have beaten Perres if it had a proper qualifying. So if he comes through the field and score points, he keeps doing that, he could be in the Red Bull next year. Oh, spicy. I've also gone for a 10 out of 10 for Liam Lawson.

The sprint was nothing, but just purely from the fact that the race was so incredibly good, it still weighs as a 10 for me. The fact that he drove through the field with such command, this is a really important time, I think, for a driver when they enter Formula One, is to set the kind of standard and the personality as a driver as soon as you can, right?

Because if you're seen as a bit of a pushover, that's how you'll be treated on the track. I think Lawson not afraid to make enemies with Fernando Alonzo, for example, and he's willing to do what he needs to do to score points and to make positions up in the race. So for me, it was a stunning performance, and he silenced all the Daniel Ricardo haters, I think, just from this one performance, scoring points. Would Daniel Ricardo score points? We don't think so, just purely based on what we'd seen previously.

So the fact Lawson's come in, done this, wow, he has to keep this up, for sure, if he wants that red bull seat, but what a way to start. And the fans also gave Lawson a 10. Franco Colapinto started the sprint in 10th, finished 12th, and started the main race in 15th and finished 10th. For Franco, I have gone for a 9 out of 10. It was still a very solid weekend from Franco, more than solid. It was an excellent weekend from Franco,

especially when you look at where his teammate is and he's pushing the car a little bit too much and making mistakes. Franco has just kept it cool he's sort of using his situation to his advantage I think trying not to feel too much pressure because he doesn't really have a seat for next year it's not like he could lose his William's seat right now

and he's driving brilliantly well to score a point in the main race it's really it's gutting of course that Colopinto doesn't look like he'll have a seat for next year but I think 2026 he will definitely be in the market

for a seat and what a way to continue making the name for yourself. Yep, I've gone for a nine out of ten for Franco Colapinto as well. Of course, the sprint race and the sprint qualifying actually made it into Q3. And I think the only reason it's not a 10 from me is because the potential that you showed in sprint qualifying, maybe he could have got a better result in the main qualifying, and then it would have put him in a better position and maybe he could have even finished ahead of Lawson. but it was still an absolutely unbelievable race from him

he's kind of showing that he's got a bit of everything as well to go long on the hard tires and do the kind of alternate strategy make that work you know he's got he's got the speed he's got the overtakes he's now kind of got this to his game as well he's doing every everything right and again you know carry on into another race going wow, he's beaten Albon comprehensively again. And yes, without a drive next season, which is a big shame. But at least he has five races still to go to, well, put himself on the map even more.

And I think if he keeps doing this, teams will not be able to ignore him. The fans gave Franco Colopinto a nine. Alex Albon started the sprint from the pit lane, finished 17th, started the main race in 14th, finished 16th. I have gone for a two. out of 10 for Alex Alburn. I don't really know how it could have got much worse for him in the race weekend. You know, having your teammate get through to Q3 when you've not even made Q1 in sprint qualifying was bad.

But then to get into the main race, have a first lap collision. It's just kind of all went wrong for him this weekend. And it, again, piles on the pressure because of what Colapinto is doing. and when Colapinto's in the points and you're finishing down in 16th and then you're having a terrible sprint as well it was a really, really poor weekend for Alex Alvin. I'm not going to be as harsh as a two.

I'm going to give him a three out of ten. It was still a poor weekend from Alex. Of course, the sprint is no chance because he started from the pit lane. But in the main race, of course, he picked up damage at term one, which is the nature of the corner, but also he has a role to play knowing that there are going to be cars that cut back in as well

through term one and obviously punt sock on for there and after that his race is is pretty much done and dusted it is concerning though for sure and i feel as though we're getting a bit of a feel of maybe just how good that williams car has been we've not had a comparison available to us because latifian sergeant sadly just weren't good enough and it was very clear to see almost the entirety of when they were teammates colopinto coming in i think is one showing that that Williams is pretty decent. And two, you can see that Albon is feeling the pressure here. And even with that punt with Ocon, maybe there's a slight urgency thinking, I need to make up some positions here and do a good job to get the headlines back towards me. So yeah, it's a three

out of ten for me for Albon and the fans gave him a fall. Estabana Ocon started the sprint in 17th, finished 15th, started the main race in 12th and finished 18th. I've gone for a five out of 10 for Esteban Okon. He did not have the upgrades that Gazley did. So that's something to sort of take into account with the fact that he just wasn't as quick. Gassley was absolutely shuffing, but sadly didn't get any points either. And then got punted by Albon.

He managed to recover a few positions he said after the race. But look, if you're in an Alpine and you're getting punted at the first corner, it's pretty much done, isn't it? So five out of ten from me. Yep, I've also gone for a five out of ten for Ocon, a very, kind of middle of the road back to normal for Alpine race but I guess the positive for him is that Gassley looked great with the upgrades and we know how similar those two are as teammates so he'll be wanting to get them in ASAP. The fans gave Ocon a five as well. Pierre

Gassley started the sprint in 12th finished 14th started the main race in sixth finished 12th. I've gone for a seven out of ten for Pierre Gassley. The sprint yeah it's not not the greatest result and he obviously hasn't scored points but his qualifying and where he put that car was pretty sensational and he was unlucky not to score points basically with the strategy in the pit stop that he had so I think the fact that yeah it's not really his fault as much that he should have had a really good result in that car and it's a proper what might have been so I can't downgrade him too much for that. I've also gone for a seven out of ten for Pierre Gazley. It's such a shame. I feel like a seven. You go, oh, it's quite a good performance, but it could have easily been a nine or a ten

had things just gone a little bit better for him. Because as soon as he had that six point nine second pit stop, he was then just sort of thrust back into the pack and it felt like he was just getting involved in in battles that he wouldn't have necessarily been involved in had it gone a lot cleaner. And his pace was sensational, but to come away with no points, it looks, it looks, on that he was going to score two, maybe four points. We weren't really sure, but to finish 12th is gutting and I'm sure that he's also feeling quite bad about that. So yeah, it's still a seven though to sort of mark that he was driving pretty well and had great pace. The fans also gave Pierre a seven. Lance Stroll started the sprint in 13th, finished 13th, started the main

race in 13th and finished 15th. I have gone for a five out of 10 for Lance Stroll. I think it's straight down the middle kind of performance from Lance. He drove better in the sprint than his teammate Alonzo. And then in the main race, just lacked pace. And I feel like Lance always says that after the race, they lacked pace compared to the other cars. But yeah, it's what they're kind of becoming very anonymous. Oh, they're well in form of being. Yeah, it's such a shame for more the Fernando Alonzo side for me personally. I want to see Alonzo right at the front fighting Hamilton and all that kind of jazz that we saw previously last year in Bahrain, but it's just straight down the middle five for me.

I've gone for a four out of ten for Lance Stroll. Again, yeah, he's not had a terrible weekend, but qualifying again, I think, has let him down in the main race when you see where his teammate was. But, yeah, there's just, Aston just seem absolutely woeful now. It feels like a lifetime ago to think that they were in Formula A. I know Lance really wasn't when the car was good, but he still had some good performances. You go right back to the start of last year with Bahrain and how well he did there.

But they are very much in that mid-pack now and dropping back, which is not what we expect from Aston, despite, you know, all the upgrades and money that's being pumped into the team. Indeed, the fans gave Lance Stroll a four. Fernando Alonzo started the sprint in 14th, finished 18th, started the main race in 7th and finished 13th. I've gone for a 5 out of 10 for Fernando Alonzo straight down the middle. I think the only great performance from him was essentially his qualifying position where he put that car where he shouldn't have been. I think it was a really good qualifying.

But in the race, yeah, he's kind of dropped back. I think the stuff with Lawson from his side was maybe a bit silly because the reason I love Fernando Alonzo is he drives like that with other people he's not afraid to get his elbows out so when someone does it to him but at the end of the day F1 drivers are all hypocrites they just want to get the maximum from their performance so yeah unfortunately for Alonzo just no pace in that Aston Martin anymore which is a real shame and it's always a psychological battle as well right like Fernando's seeing Lawson do all this stuff which is affecting his race

and then after he's going to chat to him be a bit heat at the moment stuff but also he wants next time when they fight for Lawson to maybe just give him an extra inch and that's where you gain that advantage don't you because then Alonzo goes well that's not going to happen to me again I really hope the drive to survive cameras

were rolling or with the big microphones to catch everything because there's some pictures of them together in Park Fermin and it looks quite heated so I wonder if Alonzo went to Lawson and kind of expected him to be like oh sorry or whatever and Lawson just kind of bit back and was like, well, I'm racing, screw you.

I've gone for a six out of ten for Alonzo. I was deliberating whether to give a five, but it's going to have to be slightly higher than Lance, just purely from the fact that he qualified so brilliantly up in seventh. Of course, fell away because that Aston Martin race pace is absolutely atrocious by the looks of things. But yeah, I just want to commend that because I think it was a great qualifying from Alonzo. So yeah, it's a six out of ten for me, and the fans gave him a five. Oscar Piastri started the sprint in 16th, finished the sprint in 10th, started the main race in 5th, finished 5th.

I've gone for a 6 out of 10 for Oscar Piastri, slightly off colour, I would say, this weekend, especially obviously the sprint, getting knocked out in Q1, which was quite the surprise, considering he's in the McLaren. And then also in the main race was definitely lacking pace compared to his teammate. It was quite a lonely race, I would say. He was just driving around, sort of catching Max and Lando at the end but that's because max and lando were battling like no tomorrow so yeah i hope for oscar's sake he bounces back and gets back to that scintillating speed that he had previously but definitely slightly off colour this weekend yeah i've gone for a six out of ten for oscar piastri as well didn't seem to have the pace of his teammate this weekend although it's strange how close he finished behind lando after being so anonymous during the race but the reason it's a six is mainly for for the disaster of the

sprint, you know, if you have a track limits warning and you're out, so hard to make up those positions in such a short race. And that's exactly what happened. He couldn't, despite, you know, a great car advantage, he was never going to get up into eighth place. So, uh, no points in the sprint, but a decent finish in the main race. The fans gave Oscar a six as well. Lando Norris, started the sprint in fourth, finished third, started the main race in first, finished fourth. Landon Norris, I have gone for a seven out of ten. Oh my god. It was, again, Lando is so, it's basically how you weigh up his race and result.

Because it's another result, and this is what I don't like about people slandering Lando Norris, is that he's such a quick driver. You know, he's been much faster his teammate all weekend. He's beating his teammate. So some people want to just give him a really, you know, good grade. And then just because he's kind of got some other sides to his game, people want to give him a really bad grade and it really divides opinion. But the reason it's a seven is because he was still very quick, but I think this weekend in particular has been a really bad sort of,

moment for him in the championship to basically, you know, put one over on Max or like the momentum that he had of taking points out of Max every single race. And he should have done it again. It wasn't a case of Red Bull having the quickest car and he just couldn't take points off him. He had 10 laps with much fresher tires to pass him. You know, we've said about turn one. I actually, since the, we recorded the podcast, I've changed my... my opinion of where I was kind of more lenient towards term one. I think it was actually really quite poor from him. I was watching the highlights on Sky and even Martin Brando was like

Lando needs to get right to the end to the side of the track straight away. And of course he didn't and that's why Max went through. So if Lando had kept that position at the start, it could have been a completely different race from him. Of course he dropped down to fourth but then he gets another chance to do it put on fresh tires and go for it again. And it was just a very weird situation where even at the end he was going, oh, should have just let him back through, shouldn't I? And he, I think if Landon Norris's pace, which is his best asset, if he just had more kind of better wheel-to-wheel racing and a bit more ruthless and just like confidence in that side, he's like top top tier driver but unfortunately we've kind of shown again that that's part of his game

that hasn't delivered in but I can't I can't give him any lower because you know he's he's beaten piastri on pace all weekend and it's been a still a good drive for saying exactly this is where obviously the ratings they get Lando and Max gets such more of a spotlight in terms of how their race unfolds and this is where especially with the fact we had a controversial moment at turn 12. Some people might give Landau a 10. Some people might give Landau a 2, but that's the beauty of driver ratings. I have gone for a 7 out of 10 as well. I think it reflects perfectly the Lando race that unfolded for him. It's just, it's not good enough from a racecraft perspective from Lando. You look at the sprints and how Max dealt with defending term 1 from Pohl, and then

you look at what Lando did, and I just find it mystifying that Lando just doesn't do the carbon copy of what Max does in the sprints. He had the blue sprint, didn't it? You just have to research that. You just look at that and go, well, that worked very well, that worked very well. You psychologically move really aggressively to the inside, and then you slowly veer back as much as you can to the racing line to make sure you get a good exit. Instead, he gets the launch.

He's ahead of Max. He can easily move over, but he doesn't. And I think for me, of all the drivers, you don't show Max the inside, even one car width. You don't allow him to think he can go up the inside, but he does. And not only does he lose a position to Max, but he drops down to fourth. And that's his race scuppered once again, because I feel as though if Lando does keep the lead there, he's got a great chance of winning, because when you're in the front, you can dictate the pace, you can affect the cars behind with a bit more dirty air.

You don't know how the Ferraris are going to deal with that. when you look back to the sprint Lando was able to keep Shal behind until the end of it. So it's just such a shame from that perspective and then of course the turn 12 thing I do feel for Lando

because look it's a moment where like Max just Max just chefed him okay it's as simple as that Max knows the rules like no tomorrow Lando felt like he was ahead going into turn 12

which in the breaking zone he was but that's not the rules It's at the apex. And Max is the king of dive bombing into an apex to make sure he's half a car length ahead, which is exactly what he did. And so then Lando forced into thinking, oh, I was ahead, then just decides to commit. And, yeah, it's, Max had his number. And I'm not trying to slander Lando in the sense of he can't race wheel to will.

But Max is one of the best at knowing just how far to push everything. He is one of the hardest, if not the hardest driver to overtake. So I feel Phil Fulando in that side of things because I think maybe three quarters of the field he's able to pass in the way he was being very measured, very calculated. It's similar, I guess, to Hamilton,

how Hamilton usually passes people where he just waits for that great moment and goes through. But he needed a dive bomb. He needed a Daniel Ricardo last of the late breakers when he was at Red Bull just send it. But he never did that.

He did the same thing every single time. Yeah, and he had to do it for the mental game on Max and he just needs to go into the next, he basically needs to have this scenario again and beat Max. Like that will do wonders for his career and the mentality because unfortunately for him he's kind of come out again on the losing side of the battle with Max. He did. So yes, that's why it's a seven out of ten. I still think it was a decent weekend, but it's a what could have been. I think that's another weekend where we go, ah, well he started on pole and he's finished on

whole and not even got on the podium. Yeah, it's gutting. So yeah, let's see if he can do better in Mexico this weekend. The fans also gave Lando a seven. Carlos Sines started to sprint in fifth, finished second, starting the main race in third, finished second. I've gone for a nine out of 10 for Carlos Sines. I think it was a brilliant weekend from him to get two second places in a weekend that nobody really put Ferrari in the mix of doing particularly well. And Carlos was absolutely fantastic in the sprint. He was the best driver of that race, hands down. He was tenacious, he was aggressive and he was decisive with his moves,

which is kind of what we wish Lando had done in the main race. Like Carlos just sent it. He just sent it on Max, and that's what you need to do, to really sort of get Max out of his robotic. defenses that he's able to do. So yeah, Carlos was brilliant. In the main race as well, had things gone slightly better for him in terms of

term one, he could have been the one to win that race. So yeah, it's a nine out of ten, just missing out on a ten for me. Yep, I've gone for a nine out of ten for Carlos as well. It's almost for me, it would have been a ten if his teammate hadn't won the race. So I can't give him a ten because his teammate

did win the race. But it's still an absolutely brilliant weekend. Like you say, he was so, so good in the sprint. His moves were amazing. I think, you know, after all the talk of wheel to wheel racing, I think you have to applaud Carlos and Charles the way they race each other.

It's absolutely superb to watch. It's on the limit. And they are super aggressive, but it's still fair, and that's what I love about it. They were racing incredibly well. And, yeah, Carlos was amazing in that. And then unlucky that it was. It was Shal that was the one that basically got that dream run while Max pushed Lando wide

and Carlos had to kind of slot in behind Max. But then he had the pace to be able to beat Max, you know, in the pit stops and just deliver another fantastic and strong results. So really good weekend from Carlos. The fans gave Carlos a nine as well. Charlotte Clare started the sprint in third, finished fourth, started the main race in fourth, finished first. It is a 10 out of 10 for Charlerclair.

Good. I'll slap you within. I know you would have. It would have been a 9, but I'm sat right next to me. Yeah, it is a 10. Despite finishing behind Carlos in the sprint, it's obviously a much shorter race. He still was there or thereabouts with his teammate. But in the race, just superb to go from 4th to win. and as soon as soon as he was in the lead it literally was never in doubt just drove the perfect race didn't put a foot wrong

it's just a brilliant drive you know he he got into the lead and it was just plain sailing there but that's to his credit you know he made it look easy but it was a great drive keep going no I'm kidding I have also gone for a 10 out of 10 no surprise the sprint let he finished fourth he was very much in the mix with Carlos and Lando there. But the main race was so perfect from his side. As soon as he took the lead, there was not one hint of a fault

in the way he drove all the way to the last lap. So yeah, it was a perfect drive. There's not really much more to say. He dominated from the front and very happy to see him win. Such a shame that he's so far behind Max and Lando. Otherwise, it would be very tasty. But Ferrari, with that points hall,

could well win the Constructors' Championship. And that is a battle that is going to be tasty all the way down to the wire with them only, I think, eight points behind Red Bull now. We didn't talk about that in the main pod, really, but yeah, it is almost game on championship with the way that Ferrari are doing. They've got a great opportunity. You know, if McLaren aren't as good in these races as they have been, and we know what Ferrari can do with maximising, yeah, it's a crazy thing to think about, but Ferrari could end up winning the constructors after all, which is madness.

the drivers, but if constructors the only thing that's up, we'll take it. The fans gave Charlotte 10 as well. George Russell started the sprint in second, finished fifth, started the race from the pit lane and finished sixth. I've gone for an eight out of ten for George Russell. I think it was a really good drive from him. The sprint, he was in the mix and fell away quite rapidly, I think where he blew up his tyres, but still P5 was not too bad. And then to come from the pit lane to beating Perez, I think that says more about Perez's drive, but still to finish sixth, I think, was a really good drive. Considering the Mercedes is so, just so difficult to drive, his teammates, binning it in the gravel. Like that, and it's, when have you ever seen Hamilton just lose it and get beached in the gravel?

You hardly ever see that. So George, I think, did a great, a great drive, a recovery drive to finish sixth, and, yeah, that's why I've given him an eight out of ten. I've gone for a seven out of ten for George Russell. I'm going to downgrade him slightly for the fact that, yeah, he's spun in qualifying, which is a big shame for him because he damaged the car. What might have been if he'd have started at the front? Because his drive was really, really good and kind of came back. In the main race, yeah, the Mercedes clearly wasn't great this weekend.

We saw the classic Mercedes thing of, you know, it seems like the temperature could drop by one degree. and all of a sudden they're from challenging for pole position to being the fourth best car, no other car seems so kind of sporadic in pace. So yeah, I think it's the fact that George spun off and damaged his car, which would be unfortunate for him because it's again something kind of in his career that he needs to kind of stamp out of. But yeah, a great recovery drive in the main race as well. George Russell got an eight from the fans.

Lewis Hamilton started the sprint in seventh, finished sixth, started the main race in 17th and did not finish. I have gone for a two out of ten for Lewis Hamilton. It's not a few people voted him a zero, but we have to take it into account the sprint, of course, which again let down in qualifying compared to his teammate. But in the sprint he did manage to get some. points there. But then if you thought his qualifying was bad in the sprint, it got even worse in the

main race. And then for him to spin off, I think Hamilton is one of those drivers where for him being in the sport for so long, he's got a very short compilation of big errors. He doesn't have many of them. It's very rare to happen to him. So yeah, just a disaster of a weekend has to be said to spin off so early in the race as well. Yeah.

His only saving grace is the sprint result. It certainly is. I've also gone for a two out of ten for Hamilton. That is the main reason. He scored a few points in the sprint. So that's why it's not a one or a zero because yeah, the race was the whole main race weekend part of it, qualifying

was a disaster getting knocked out in Q1. and then not finishing in the main race. You can't really save his blushes any more than finishing sixth in the sprint. So it's interesting that he said that he wasn't pushing too hard in the car, bounced a little, and the bit that I've got and locked into

is we measured a large gust of wind. That's very Nico Rosberg-esque, isn't it, from Austin as well? So up to 40 kilometres an hour as I turned in, which likely didn't help. But sadly, that won't help Hamilton's grades with us. So two out of 10 from us, The fans also gave him a two.

Sergio Perez started the sprint in 11th, finished ninth, started the main race in ninth, finished seventh. I've gone for a four out of ten for Sergio Perez. It's just another poor weekend in comparison to his teammates. I know it's the norm, but I can't give him any higher than that because it's the norm that he's this far behind Vestappen. I think it was 35 odd seconds that he finished behind Maxis. in the end, and that's considering as well the battling that Lando and Max were doing towards

the end. So that Red Bull, as much as it was quick in qualifying, and Max showed that with pole position in the sprint, the race pace isn't really there, and Perez is what just accentuated that. So yeah, it's a four from me. I have gone for a four out of ten as well for Sergio Perez. Like you say, it is kind of the norm now, but it shouldn't be the norm. And when Max has now, kind of got the red ball not quite to where it was but back at that front of the pack and you know he's still down i mean 11th when when he's in the sprint qualifying when his when his teammate puts it on pole position and should have should have been scoring a uh a point in the sprint uh when two you know finishing behind two hasses um and then in the

main race, he's bagged some points, but again, you know, he was racing the RBs for his racing Sonoda and got to think if Lawson, like I said, with Lawson's grade, I think that would have really stung if Lawson had had been able to actually qualify and not had his grid penalty, probably would have beaten Paris in the race and what an, you know, what an image that would have been having Lawson passing Perez because he was close and he was coming for. them at the end. So, yeah, another disaster for Perez, really. The Vans gave Perez a four as well. Max Verstappen started the sprinting first, finished the sprint in first, started the main race in second and finished third.

I've gone for a nine out of ten for Max Verstappen. Oh my God, Tommy, but he pushed him wide. I know. Sorry, I just like that. It was a max kind of delivering everything he needed to do to win to win this championship and that is why he's going to be so difficult to beat. The sprint, I don't think the Red Bull is anywhere near, far and away the best car and he's put it on pole and won the sprint fairly easily. And I think you've got to give, he almost makes certain things look so easy. You know, the sprint, you look at it and go, oh, oh, he just won from lights to flat.

but then you get to the race the next day and you saw what Lando did at the start and I think they mentioned on commentary that I think five of the last six people on pole position hadn't led into the first corner but Max just kind of made that look so simple that you don't even think about it that he managed to stay ahead and then in the main race of course it's controversial the way he drives, but he's always going to be an unlikable character because he pushes the rules to the limit. But he pushes those, the reason he's won so many races and going to win so many championships is because he looks at the rule book and goes, I will do everything to basically, it's almost like in the same way that Formula One, they talk about, you know, pushing the rules

of technology and basically until something gets banned, you're going to use it. And then if it gets band, you stop using it. And that's what Max does with his racecraft and his driving, that until they change the rules, we've seen it before, like late defensive moves, they changed it, or you can't go side by side under the safety car, they changed it. He'll keep doing, he'll keep doing this until they say, no, you can't do that anymore. And then he'll change the rules, and he'll find some other way to sort of do it. And it's not a popular thing with fans because, you know, he's controversial. Maybe people don't think it's very sporting, but he's there to win, not make friends. And that's why he's such a good driver.

It's a classic case of don't hate the player, hate the game, because this is what this is, right? I've also gone for a nine out of ten for Max Verstappen because, look, he did everything in his power to keep Lando Norris behind. Of course, turn 12 is something we're focusing on and a lot of discussion about whether it was fair, whether it was not. But you look at just the entire defence that he put on was just brilliant. Every single, it was metronomic, the way he positioned the car. It was always the same place like, okay, Lando, try around the outside. Don't worry, I will cover that, I will do that, I'll get a good exit here. It was, it was brilliant defending. Of course, the sprint was amazing as well. The fact that he won that when we looked to the race, that Red Bull was

definitely not the fastest car. So he did a brilliant job there. And I know that, Fans Phil Agreed, especially McLaren fans, Lando fans, about how Max drove. But look, he knows that you have to be half a car length ahead at the apex. And that's exactly what he did to a T. That is one discussion of, okay, who was ahead. Max was ahead at the apex, therefore it's technically his corner. And then pushing him wide and going off the track with Lando, as Anthony Davidson so brilliantly described in the sort of Sky post-race show,

was how that that is a separate thing. Them going off the track is, okay, Max gets a warning for track limits for going off, and then Lando gets a penalty for literally driving round Max off the track as well. It's two separate things that are being measured there. And whether you think it's right or not, I don't think that should affect Max's grade here.

That's from like a, oh, I don't think that's fair sort of grade, whereas we're sort of grading him on what's allowed, what he's done, and how he's stayed ahead of, Lando. Do I think that it should be tweaked the rules? I think so. From a Max Verstapp and dive bombing into the apex and the driver not having any rights to any space, I don't think is right, because it doesn't promote the best racing, in my opinion. Max uses it to his advantage brilliantly, but I want to see more side-by-side action. I feel like Lando did deserve space

in an ideal world where I make my own Formula One rules. But sadly, that's not the case. Lando's push wide, then he goes past, gets a penalty, but that is what is written, sadly. Yeah, yeah, I agree to that sense. I mean, if they just put a gravel trap there, they would have no issues because Lando wouldn't have been able to drive straight around the outside of him on the runoff area. But, yeah, Max is always going to push those rules to the limit. He did it, you know, against Hamilton. He's going to do it to every single driver he races against.

But yeah, yeah, of course, we want to say. see better wheel to wheel racing. But the best drivers, like saying Michael Schumacher, did this. I said this to you before we started recording. It is literally like watching Michael Schumacher. You know, I watched Michael Schumacher growing up, you did as well. But we didn't have social media back then or, you know, this kind of like media and social media landscape.

But I feel like if you watched Formula One then and we had Twitter. Oh, Instagram. Yeah. Exactly the same. Like, why is Michael Schumacher doing this? Oh, he's cheating, he's doing this. Just pushes the rules to the limit. And that's why he won seven-time.

Yeah, that's where he won seven-seven championships. So, and Max is exactly the same. I mean, he literally, you know, I think he called Michael Schumacher his uncle. And, you know, he met him as a kid and stuff. And he has based his whole career on exactly what Schumacher has done. And he doesn't care who he annoys in the process. And that's why he's going to be so successful.

So yes, a nine from both of us and the fan, gave him a nine as well. So finally, who is our P1? Oh, well, we've got a few tens, haven't we? We've got Lecler and Lawson. Oh, that is it. Okay, so my P1 is going to be Charlecler,

because I think it was a brilliant race. And look, I think in any other realm where Charlotte Clare doesn't get a tail, I'm giving Lawson the 10, but I need to enjoy the fact I'll deliver the 10. So there we go. Yeah, and I'm going to go for Lawson because I think it is a massive statement. You know, Daniel Ricardo, the controversy of him leaving. He had a great opportunity, didn't he, to go into the Red Bull, Christian Honolpment, said it himself,

it's like, if you deliver, you get the Red Bull seat. And unfortunately, for him, he didn't. And I know it's only one race for Lawson, but you could not have picked a better start for him. You know, the huge amount of pressure of a driver to essentially, hear that, it's like, right, you're going in this seat, mid-season, and you might even be in the red ball next year alongside Max if you deliver. And then just to deliver straight away with such a stunning drive. Yeah, wow, what a performance. Absolutely ridiculous. Fair pay to Lawson, definitely. And that is it. We're done. Please leave a like. If you've enjoyed this driver rating, please leave a like. Video. Tommy's begging now. That's crazy. But thank you so much to everybody

that I said came to the US tour. It was really awesome. Tickets will be available for the UK one in the middle of December. And yeah, we're back into race week, Mexico. That's going to be fun, isn't it, Tommy? The pecking order will probably change again, Mercedes fastest. And I look forward to another different varied winner. Yes, I've not been too kind to the Mexican Grand Prix circuit in terms of the racing it delivers. So if it can deliver a banger, this is the greater season ever.

Absolutely. Yeah, it keeps delivering. So I'm excited for another race. Hell yeah. We'll see you very soon. Lots of love. Final thoughts to me? Final thoughts? I forgot.

I'm sure you're going to drop a like on this video because you enjoy drive ratings and we can all just agree to disagree. Perfect. Take care. Lots of love. Bye. P1 is a Stack production and part of the ACAST's Created Network.