48 replies to this topic

[Nahnever]

Yes it has only been 4 races, but nevertheless it's a long 3 weeks till the next race and news has been slow.

I'm not going to add a pole as it will just become a favourite drivers thread. So it is just personal opinions.

The aim of the game is simply to give a few short sentences for each driver describing their season so far. You should state some of their pro's but also how you believe they can improve.

Mine -

Vettel: Muddy start; clearly struggling with the new cars so far, but I don't believe he has lost his speed. I think there is a lot more to come.

Alonso: Alonso seems to be driving to the standard that we have come to know from him. He struggled in the earlier races but that is simply down to the car being poor. I will say however that he does seem slightly unmotivated and probably just fed up watching another driver just storm of into the lead. He looks like he is at breaking point and I don't believe he is happy at Ferrari.

Raikonnen: Has had an awful start so far partly due to the car and partly due to his driving style. As much as he has tried to maintain his cool demeanour I feel he is definitely hurting inside. His abilities have never been questioned like this and he seems to be getting it from all corners (even from some of his fans).

Rosberg: Had an amazing start and capitalised on his team mates misfortune to create a strong points lead. His driving has generally been good but his qualifying has been substandard considering the car. However ever since Hamilton took his first win in Malaysia he has been looking more and more rattled. He has yet to beat Lewis on merit in the race, and Lewis has made his qualifying performances look woeful.
He was hyped by the media to be F1's next genius over the break with claims his intelligence would bring him a clear advantage, and unfortunately he took the bait (i remember the BBC feature just a few races ago where they played up the professor Nico angle). Now he's put all this pressure on himself to maintain this standing as now the press are wasting no time to collect.

Hamilton: The first race DNF did rock his start a bit, but he has been outstanding ever since. He has given no quarter to Rosberg and he seems to be do everything he can do to not only lead the championship but also to give the team no excuses not to seem as their number one. So far the way he is driving I believe it will take him having an off day and Nico having a great day for him to be beaten.

[RubalSher]

HAM: Aggression, defense, raw pace and race-craft rolled into one. Needs good luck to make life easier for himself.

ALO: Error free, hungry for success, smartest driver on the grid. The Ferrari was actually on par with the next best car in Malaysia and China but Kimi underperforming magnifies his success.

VET & RAI: Underperforming big time. Knives are out but have the potential to bounce back.

RIC: Has done a wonderful job by making his races count. On track to have a superlative year. Is good in qualy too.

ROS: Can be a match for HAM on a given day but unlikely to match him over the season.

HUL: He again impresses and is getting the car to finish higher than it deserves.

GRO: Watch out for this guy. Think he is seriously improved from a couple of years ago and his drive in China is worth mentioning.

 

The rest are not doing anything of note and they could have finished higher in various races than they did. These include both the McLaren drivers, Williams drivers, Perez & TR drivers.

[noikeee]

Too early. But so far Alonso, Hamilton and Hulkenberg have been the 3 outstanding drivers with Vettel on an odd off form patch - can't tell yet whether this is momentary or permanent. Agreed on Grosjean flying under the radar with a pretty convincing outpacing of Maldonado in a terrible car; and have to add that Kvyat has had a sensational start to his F1 career for a 19 year old. Ricciardo is another positive, so far he's my biggest surprise of the season, but I just can't tell if it's due to Vettel underperforming or Ricciardo being even better than we thought (always thought he was good, just not this good), or whatever.

 

Oh and Kobayashi gets a positive note too, his gaps to Ericsson have been pretty damn big, which despite Ericsson's inexperience is impressive for Kobayashi having been away.

[Spillage]

I'll try to break it down team-by-team:

 

Mercedes - Very difficult to judge as the car is just unbelievable. Their only real reference point is each other, and so far it looks like a continuation of last year - Rosberg can win when the cards are stacked in his favour and can occasionally challenge Hamilton for pace, but overall he just isn't ballsy or talented enough to have a consistent edge over LH. LH has always struck me as a 'confidence driver' - he needs his head to be in the right place to deliver and unfortunately for Rosberg, this season he looks as relaxed and supremely confident as I've ever seen him. 

 

Red Bull - Biggest surprise on the grid. I expected Ricciardo to be closer to Vettel than Webber had been but did not expect him to be beating Vettel, so I've been extremely impressed with him so far. Vettel, meanwhile, is clearly experiencing problems. I think he's just too good not to ultimately bounce back but there's no doubt he's been disappointing in the past two races.

 

Force India - Hulkenberg has, as usual, looked supremely impressive and Perez, as usual, has looked inconsistently impressive. By that I mean he was brilliant in Bahrain but hasn't been on the pace of Hulkenberg anywhere else. Perhaps Hulk has the advantage as he already knows the team, but to be honest this is a pattern I expect to continue over the season - Perez to have the edge over the occasional weekend, Hulkenberg to come out on top overall. I think FI has one of the best driver lineups on the grid and I'm really rooting for them this year. I am not sure their car is any better than the Williams and yet they're third in the WCC.

 

Ferrari - Kind of difficult to read. Raikkonen has struggled in the past when he hasn't got the car to his liking and he's clearly struggling to settle in at Ferrari this year. Alonso seems to be more of a 'get-in-and-go' driver, and his typically gutsy, brilliant drive in China was a reminder of his indomitable talent. So I expect Alonso to continue to experience the advantage, but for the gap to close if the car is developed towards Raikkonen's liking. There's tremendous quality in the driver lineup though, so my only worry is the two famously independently-minded drivers not taking too kindly to the instability the team has already experienced this year.

 

Mclaren - Not bad. Mclaren's problems are not the driver line-up, put it that way. I thought Button might be in for a tough time after Melbourne, but Magnussen hasn't replicated that form. Not that he's sucked though - I'd still say he has made a strong start to his F1 career. Have been impressed with JB asserting something more of an advantage the past three races, but I do wonder how high his motivation will be if the team are unable to recapture the form they showed in Melbourne. China was a particularly surprisingly poor race for the team.

 

Williams - Not much impressed, to be honest. I don't think Massa's much cop anymore and Bottas should be exerting more of an advantage over him than he is. I still think Bottas is marginally the faster driver but I think that car is faster than either the drivers or the strategists are making it look.

 

Toro Rosso - Really impressed with Kvyat. Very strong start to the season for him with, I think, three points finishes out of four races. Certainly one for the future and he's already establishing the upper hand over Vergne, who's been a bit anonymous. That was the case last year as well, although I understand he's suffering disproportionately under the weight limit rues so perhaps its a bit harsh to be criticising him.

 

Lotus - Still too early to say here. I don't think there's yet been a weekend where they've got both cars to the finish without experiencing mechanical problems in either qualifying or the race. Grosjean did a good job in China but doesn't seem happy in the team and Maldonado's not helping by getting into his usual scrapes, but we really can't pass judgement until they can start getting two cars through the weekend without either experiencing some kind of calamitous breakdown. For all of Raikkonen's problems, no-one can say he'd have been better off staying put at Lotus and that basically sums up the start to the season that they've had.

 

Sauber - Similar to Lotus. Sutil hasn't finished any of the last three races and as the car appears to be miles off the pace anyway it is very difficult to judge its drivers. Sutil did have the upper hand in Australia but I can't help but feel this is the most overwhelmingly average driver line-up on the grid.

 

Marussia - Well, Chilton seems to have made a step forward but Bianchi is maintaining his pace advantage. I've not been paying much attention to be honest. Maybe the best-looking driver line-up in the field? That's about as much analysis as I can offer.

 

Caterham - Been paying a bit more attention than Marussia and am very disappointed. They have a funky-looking car and a good driver in Kobayashi so I really hoped/expected they'd do a Force-India-2009 and use the rule changes to propel themselves into the midfield, but no. Looks like they'll be leaving at the end of the year and presumably taking both drivers with them. Kobayashi has settled back in quickly, Ericsson less so but seems to be experiencing a disproportionate amount of mechanical issues, so I can't be too harsh on his debut season so far.

[Thomas99]

ALO: Superb so far this season. Has reached 2012 levels of performance. I would rate highest of any driver on the grid.

 

Hamilton: Extreme pace, reliable, consistent, mistake free. Its hard to say a single thing wrong with his 2014 performance.

 

Vettel: Has shown marks of quality at Malaysia but seems to be performing sub par overall. Being beaten by his team mate for 3 out of 4 races was hidden only by Vettel's failure at Australia.

 

Ricciardo: Has been as flawless as Hamilton. Fast over one lap and in races, mistake free and has excellent race craft. He is taking it to and beating a driver many felt was among the sports best.

 

Raikkonen: Terrible. Hasn't had the pace at all. Some of the problems aren't his fault such as being taken out by mag.

 

Rosberg: Better than the numbers demonstrate. Ran Lewis hard at Bahrain. probably the most credible team mate so far at the top teams.

Edited by Thomas99, 23 April 2014 - 02:04.

[MP422]

ALO: Superb so far this season. Has reached 2012 levels of performance. I would rate highest of any driver on the grid.

 

Hamilton: Extreme pace, reliable, consistent, mistake free. Its hard to say a single thing wrong with his 2014 performance.

 

Vettel: Has shown marks of quality at Malaysia but seems to be performing sub par overall. Being beaten by his team mate for 3 out of 4 races was hidden only by Vettel's failure at Australia.

 

Ricciardo: Has been as flawless as Hamilton. Fast over one lap and in races, mistake free and has excellent race craft. He is taking it to and beating a driver many felt was among the sports best.

 

Raikkonen: Terrible. Hasn't had the pace at all. Some of the problems aren't his fault such as being taken out by mag.

 

Rosberg: Better than the numbers demonstrate. Ran Lewis hard at Bahrain. probably the most credible team mate so far at the top teams.

 

Hard to argue with that, I don't know if i would rate Alonso that high yet for 2014, although he is definitely making a difference at the scuderia right now.

[George Costanza]

Fred is not doing his 2012 just yet, IMO. He has a long way to go before he can match. In other words, he would have win some races and this season looks very hard for Ferrari to do that.

[Thomas99]

Fred is not doing his 2012 just yet, IMO. He has a long way to go before he can match. In other words, he would have win some races and this season looks very hard for Ferrari to do that.

 

He'd need a double Merc failure for that to happen.

[hollowstar]

ALO: Superb so far this season. Has reached 2012 levels of performance. I would rate highest of any driver on the grid.

 

Hamilton: Extreme pace, reliable, consistent, mistake free. Its hard to say a single thing wrong with his 2014 performance.

 

Vettel: Has shown marks of quality at Malaysia but seems to be performing sub par overall. Being beaten by his team mate for 3 out of 4 races was hidden only by Vettel's failure at Australia.

 

Ricciardo: Has been as flawless as Hamilton. Fast over one lap and in races, mistake free and has excellent race craft. He is taking it to and beating a driver many felt was among the sports best.

 

Raikkonen: Terrible. Hasn't had the pace at all. Some of the problems aren't his fault such as being taken out by mag.

 

Rosberg: Better than the numbers demonstrate. Ran Lewis hard at Bahrain. probably the most credible team mate so far at the top teams.

 

That's a pretty good summary! I agree with almost everything here. 

 

Except, as some have said, I'm not yet sure Alonso is on 2012 level. What was most impressive in 2012 was his consistency at a very high level, so I think it's still too early to tell. But if he keeps performing like in China, then yes, we'll be able to say that. 

 

About Rosberg, I'm not convinced yet. It took him half the race (or maybe even more?) in China to get back to 2nd place.  Maybe that will change soon, but apart from the 1st stint in Bahrein which was ok, he hasn't impressed me this year. 

[George Costanza]

People need to put Fred's 2012 in perspective.... That Ferrari was a "slow" car compared to RBR, McLaren, and even Lotus was quicker from the onset of 2012 season. There are only two seasons that can compare it too: Ayrton in 1993 and Michael in 1997, which in both seasons, the cars were simply no match for the front runners....1993: Benetton, Williams. 1997: McLaren, Williams and for a short time, Benetton.

 

Now 2014: Ferrari is by far well behind Mercedes; and maybe on par with RBR, perhaps.

Edited by George Costanza, 23 April 2014 - 03:31.

[Thomas99]

That's a pretty good summary! I agree with almost everything here. 

 

Except, as some have said, I'm not yet sure Alonso is on 2012 level. What was most impressive in 2012 was his consistency at a very high level, so I think it's still too early to tell. But if he keeps performing like in China, then yes, we'll be able to say that. 

 

About Rosberg, I'm not convinced yet. It took him half the race (or maybe even more?) in China to get back to 2nd place.  Maybe that will change soon, but apart from the 1st stint in Bahrein which was ok, he hasn't impressed me this year. 

Lewis was always going to be better in low downforce cars with a predominant forward downforce balance. There were a few things last year he didn't like in the car and he says he's fixed those problems.

 

Rosberg is a very high quality driver and lets be fair had very good race pace in Bahrain. But I think Lewis will have the measure of him.

 

The most interesting battle is the one at Red Bull so far for me.

[metz]

Looking at the numbers and the consistency with a slower car, we must give Hulkenberg more credit.

[HammyHamiltonFan]

Hamilton - 9.5/10 he has been amazing, only red mark against him is being beaten to pole in Bahrain by Nico, other than that he has been unstoppable and I won't count the DNF against him as that was the car not Lewis.

 

Rosberg - 8/10 Nico was superb in Aus, Mal and Bahrain but in the latter races couldn't quite keep up with Lewis, the 8 is because of his poor showing in qualifying and at the start in China.

 

Alonso - 9/10 Fernando is always able to get more form his car, he has done that again so far this year and I anticipate he will keep doing so, though whether Ferrari can give him a race winning car this season remains to be seen.

 

Raikkonen - 6/10 Kimi has struggled to adapt to the new Ferrari, he needs to find his comfort zone in the car or it will be a long season for him.

 

Vettel - 7/10 a strong performance in Malaysia but otherwise the world champion has underwhelmed in 2014 thus far, being outperformed in Aus and the last two races by his young team-mate.

 

Ricciardo - 9/10 can't fault him outside of Malaysia, he has been great, outperformed Vettel in Aus and if his team had stuck to the rules he would be ahead of Vettel in the WDC as well as having beaten him in the last 2 races

 

Hulk - 9.5/10 hard to fault him, he has again shown himself to be able to get more from the car and would have had a fully deserved podium if not for car problems

 

Perez - 8/10 impressive in Bahrain but otherwise hasn't quite had the genius of Hulk

 

Button - 8/10 outperformed his team-mate which is all you can really ask given the awful car they have had other than in Australia

 

K Mag - 8/10 great in Australia but generally failed to outperform Jenson since

 

Massa - 7.5/10 at times he has shown the great potential that got him the Ferrari drive but he has also made some clumsy driving at times

 

Bottas - 8/10 similar to Fellipe but has managed more points thus far

[Ksharp]

Thumbs up for Hamilton, Alonso, Hulk, Ricciardo, Rosberg and Kvyat. 
More improvement is needed from RAI, VET, MAS, BUT & PER.

[Seanspeed]

Too early. But so far Alonso, Hamilton and Hulkenberg have been the 3 outstanding drivers with Vettel on an odd off form patch - can't tell yet whether this is momentary or permanent. Agreed on Grosjean flying under the radar with a pretty convincing outpacing of Maldonado in a terrible car; and have to add that Kvyat has had a sensational start to his F1 career for a 19 year old. Ricciardo is another positive, so far he's my biggest surprise of the season, but I just can't tell if it's due to Vettel underperforming or Ricciardo being even better than we thought (always thought he was good, just not this good), or whatever.
 
Oh and Kobayashi gets a positive note too, his gaps to Ericsson have been pretty damn big, which despite Ericsson's inexperience is impressive for Kobayashi having been away.

Well this saves me some time.

[Exb]

HammyHamiltonFan - I agree with a lot of that.

 

A* to Hamilton, Alonso, Ricciardo, Hulkenberg and Kvyat. All have been very impressive and maximised what they could get with their cars (small allowance for Kvyat being a rookie)

 

A for Kobayashi, Rosberg, Button, Grosjean and Magnussen (again an allowance for being a rookie) - have generally done pretty well and any occasional errors/drop in performance have usually been put behind them with a good performance to maximise their finishing position (not quite as impressive as the top tier).

 

B for Bottas, Massa, Vettel, Perez, Vergne and Chilton,Some good performances but definately could have done better on occasion. I think this is the mose controversial catagory for me but feel all these should have had races they finished higher than they did or haven't got the most out of the car. Through the first few races the Williams looked the car to have after the Merc yet through one reason or another the results are just not there, can't help thinking they wasted their best chance for a podium now Red Bull and Ferrari look to have improved. 

 

C for Raikkonen, Sutil, Gutierrez, Bianchi and Ericsson - room for improvement and not really impressed (or so I can remember) at any point, or made a few errors which have stopped them being 1 grade higher (Bianchi, he has looked quicker than Chilton yet has finished behind him more often than not) Its difficult to judge the drivers at the back as we see little of them so maybe could be moved up if I had paid more attention.

 

F for Maldonado - difficult start to the season and did get himself near to the points before a collision last race but with that accident and the one at the start with Vergne as well as some bizzare errors last weekend I can't really rate him higher yet.

[Kingshark]

I'm still undecided on 1 and 2, and you might see me switching them around quite often. Nonetheless;

 

1. Hamilton

2. Alonso

....

3. Hulkenberg

....

4. Ricciardo

5. Rosberg

6. Vettel

7. Perez

8. Kvyatt

[sheepgobba]

I am really impressed with Kvyat. He seems really under the radar atm, not much comments on him. 

[RubalSher]

I am really impressed with Kvyat. He seems really under the radar atm, not much comments on him. 

 

I am not so sure on Kvyat just yet. The car is capable of where he is putting it based on what I see in practice sessions and qualy. Maybe we need to cut him some slack for his age, but someone like Hulk could easily have done more with the car he is in.

[Jimisgod]

Hamilton: 10/10
Alonso: 10/10
Hulkenberg: 9.5/10
Ricciardo: 9.5/10
Kvyat: 9/10

Then a gap.

Kobayashi: 8.5/10
Grosjean: 8.5/10
Rosberg: 8/10
Magnussen: 8/10
Button: 7.5/10
Chilton: 7.5/10
Vettel: 7/10
Perez: 7/10
Massa: 6.5/10
Vergne: 6.5/10
Bottas: 6/10

Raikkonen: 5/10
Ericsson: 5/10
Bianchi: 5/10
Sutil: 4/10
Guiterrez: 4/10
Maldonado: 3/10

Edited by Jimisgod, 24 April 2014 - 15:43.

[HeadFirst]

Hamilton 9

Rosberg 8

 

Vettel 7

Ricciardo 8

 

Alonso 9.5

Raikkonen 6

 

Button 7

Magnusson 6

 

Grosjean 7

Maldanado -17

 

Hulkenberg 8

Perez 7

 

Massa 5

Bottas 6

 

Sutil 4

Gutierez 4

 

Kvyat 8

Vergne 6

 

Chilton 6

Bianchi 4

 

Erikson 4

Kobayashi 6

[Ferrari2183]

Fred is not doing his 2012 just yet, IMO. He has a long way to go before he can match. In other words, he would have win some races and this season looks very hard for Ferrari to do that.

I would say that Alonso is driving as well as he did in 2012 at the moment and is doing to Kimi what he did to Massa... At this rate, should the Ferrari become competitive, the team will have back him.

As for Kimi, he's having a tough time. Not only does he have to contend with Alonso's constant knockout punches. He has to watch his back inside Ferrari now that Domenicali is gone, as well as find more performance from the car.

That being said, Alonso, Hamilton, Hulk and Ricciardo have been the standout drivers thus far. In that order.

[aray]

Maldo 0........

[TomNokoe]

ALONSO WHAT A CHAMPION DRIVING THAT DOG OF A FERRARI 5TH PLACE MAESTRO blah blah blah why is this thread even alive

[1Devil1]

ALONSO WHAT A CHAMPION DRIVING THAT DOG OF A FERRARI 5TH PLACE MAESTRO blah blah blah why is this thread even alive

? What's up with you?

[1Devil1]

Hamilton 9

Alonso 9

Hulkenberg 8.5

Ricciardo 8

Rosberg 8

Vettel 7.5

Kyvat 7

Vergne 6.5

Grosjean 7

Massa 6

Button 6

Magnussen 6

Raikkonen 5

Maldonado 4

....

[TomNokoe]

These threads are silly. We are only 4 races in. Wait until mid season at least.

[1Devil1]

These threads are silly. We are only 4 races in. Wait until mid season at least.

 

so far into the season...

[discover23]

A+ : Alonso, Lewis

 

A : Riccardo, Rosberg

 

B: Hulk

 

B-: Perez, Kyvat, Massa, Vettel

 

C+: Bottas, Grosjean

 

C: Everyone else. 

[HeadFirst]

It will be interesting to see how/if the ratings change over the course of the season.

[JeordieX]

Top 3

Hamilton

Hulkenberg

Ricciardo

[Nahnever]

ALONSO WHAT A CHAMPION DRIVING THAT DOG OF A FERRARI 5TH PLACE MAESTRO blah blah blah why is this thread even alive

huh?

[HoldenRT]

More or less agree with what everyone has said.  Rosberg's been a touch disappointing of late.  Perez had car problems in the first two races (the serious kind), Bahrain was super, last race was good but a bad wet quali.  Williams drivers have been average IMO, wasting the car a bit.  But the car hasn't been as good as expected in the first place, but then the drivers not maximizing it either.  But still an improvement over last few seasons for Williams.  It'd be interesting to see Alonso in that car, but one of those things that's impossible to know.  Alonso solid as always and some other drivers struggling.  Ricciardo a big surprise and Hamilton very impressive.  Kvyat worth a mention as well, quite impressive.  McLaren drivers sort of anonymous.

 

Hard to see anything stopping Hamilton, Rosberg can beat him but you wonder if he could do it consistently.  Hulk and Perez are an interesting pair to watch, as well as the Redbull battles.  The Merc battle has under delivered so far but Bahrain was good.

[bub]

Something along the lines of:

 

Alonso  9.5

Hamilton  9.5

Ricciardo  9

Hulkenberg  8.5

Button  8

Kobayashi  8

Kvyat  8

Bottas  7.5

Grosjean  7.5

Massa  7.5

Rosberg  7.5

Vettel  7.5

Bianchi  7

Gutierrez  7

Perez  7

Magnussen  7

Sutil  7

Vergne  7

Chilton  6

Ericsson  6

Raikkonen  6

Maldonado  4

Edited by bub, 25 April 2014 - 12:53.

[Jimisgod]

ALONSO WHAT A CHAMPION DRIVING THAT DOG OF A FERRARI 5TH PLACE MAESTRO blah blah blah why is this thread even alive

The bitterness. Alonso has the undisputed best teammate and is making Kimi look amateur, of course everyone rates him high.

[Markn93]

The bitterness. Alonso has the undisputed best teammate and is making Kimi look amateur, of course everyone rates him high.

I bet Nico and Kimi would dispute that. 

[Lights]

Wait what, how would Kimi dispute that?

[Markn93]

Wait what, how would Kimi dispute that?

Good point, should've said, 'an objective Kimi' would dispute that.

[MP422]

I'm still undecided on 1 and 2, and you might see me switching them around quite often. Nonetheless;

 

1. Hamilton

2. Alonso

....

3. Hulkenberg

....

4. Ricciardo

5. Rosberg

6. Vettel

7. Perez

8. Kvyatt

 

I think you pretty much nailed it but i'd have put NH down to 4th/5th and moved DR up one. 

[HeadFirst]

Good point, should've said, 'an objective Kimi' would dispute that.

Wrong. Objective Kimi would say ....."idonnowewillsee." 

[Atreiu]

Marquez 10/10.

 

[Hanzo]

This thread won't be enough to keep us entertained until next race... we all pretty much agree in the ratings! 

[HeadFirst]

This thread won't be enough to keep us entertained until next race... we all pretty much agree in the ratings! 

Kudos to us then.

[Laster]

Hamilton 9 There isn't much he could have done better, he's won every race he's finished. But it's hard to judge with the car advantage he has over the rest of the field.

Rosberg 8 He leads the championship, and he pushed Hamilton to the edge in Bahrain. He'll top Hamilton occasionally throughout the season but not enough to take the drivers championship.

Alonso 8 I don't believe he's at his 2012 standard (which was a perfect season) The first two races he was battling with Hulkenberg, and only just managed to beat him in Malaysia. The Ferrari isn't brilliant but it is around the third best car on the grid after Mercedes and Red Bull.

Raikkonen 4 From what I understand, he's struggled because his driving style isn't getting the tires to work. Thing is adapting is part of F1. He'll get there eventually, but for now the second Ferrari is under performing.

Vettel 5 Similar problems as Raikkonen. He gets the extra point for collecting a podium.

Ricciardo 9 Even if you were to play off him beating Vettel 3-1 as Vettel not being on form, his results with the Red Bull have still been extremely impressive. I really thought he would struggle. I'm glad to see he isn't.

Button 6 He's doing what he can with what he's got. But for a world champion there has been nothing exceptional.

Magnussen 7 Stunning debut, but since then Button has kept Magnussen behind him. He's a rookie, peaks and troughs in form are to be expected.

Hulkenberg 9 Massively consistent, at every race he's challenging a driver and team that should not be feeling threatened by a Force India. His one mark against him is for not taking the opportunity to score a podium when it presented itself. I know he had an ERS problem or something, but he still let Perez sneak passed him before that problem occured.

Perez 7 An extra mark for the podium and Bahrain in general, but otherwise he has not been a match for Hulk, like Magnussen I expect peaks and troughs in form. Only Perez isn't a rookie.

Massa 7 bad luck keeps hampering Massa, and it seems Williams are trying their hardest to throw away their chances of decent points hauls. He's been a match for Bottas which I did not expect, but it's been hard to judge him due to the problems.

Bottas 7 He's been collecting points, but threw away his podium chance in Australia. Still a close match for Massa though, they seem to be the closest pacewise out of all the teammates.

Kyvat 9 I'm very impressed by Kyvat. 3 points finishes in his first 4 grand prixs. He's been thrown into the deep end and already knows how to swim.

Vergne 5 He should be beating Kyvat easily, and while he seems just about ahead of him on pace, he isn't the one regularly racking up the points.

Grosjean 7 There hasn't been much he could do with the car Lotus gave him, and yet in china he nearly dragged a points finish out of it.

Maldonado 2 It's not a 1 because he has managed to get around Australia and Malaysia without doing anything stupid.

Sutil 5 Struggling with weight issues, the Sauber is not a good car at the moment. There isn't much to compare him with.

Gutierrez 4 He should be beating Sutil with his weight advantage.

Kobayashi 7 Hard to judge, he racks up the finishes I expect.

Ericsson 5 He's a rookie, with a much more experienced teammate and a crap car. He just needs to rack up the miles, experience and keep his nose clean for now.

Bianchi 5 He has not been as impressive as his start last year, and a few too many mistakes. He still shows a great turn of pace, enough to challenge Kobayashi, but the fact that it's Chilton's two 13th place finishes which have Marussia ahead of Caterham in the championship shows Bianchi's mistakes have been costly.

Chilton 6 In F1 you can't afford to be the tortoise, unless you're in the slowest car in the field. He keeps on finishing and that's bagged Marussia the early advantage over Caterham. Keep on trucking Chilton.

[lbennie]

I bet Nico and Kimi would dispute that. 

 

The same Nico that was thrashed by webber? 

[HeadFirst]

The same Nico that was thrashed by webber? 

The experienced Webber outpointed the rookie Nico 7-4. That's thrashing???? 

Edited by HeadFirst, 26 April 2014 - 01:35.

[lbennie]

The experienced Webber outpointed the rookie Nico 7-4. That's thrashing???? 

 

Indeed it was. I don't know what the points have to do with it though 

[Kingshark]

Rosberg surpassed Webber as a driver in 2010. In 2009 they were close and it's debatable, but when Nico joined Mercedes his performances surpassed Webber, clearly. In 2013 Webber couldn't win a single race in an RB9, while Nico won two in a WO4.

[DutchQuicksilver]

Vettel: 6,5 - Not on form, needs time to adapt to the new regs, though two out of four races he's had mechanical issues as well.

Ricciardo: 8,0 - Best of the rest behind the Mercedes guys in my opinion. But like Vettel, has had his share of bad luck already.

Hamilton: 9,5 - Faultless, bar his start in Australia where Rosberg managed to pass him on the first lap.

Rosberg: 8,5 - Very solid, but lacks that bit of extra which his teammate has. This will cost him the championship as well.

Alonso: 7,5 - Doing what he can in that Ferrari with a deserved podium in China as a highlight.

Raikkonen: 5,0 - Disappointing season so far. Can't seem to get to grips with the new regs. He still seems cool about it, but surely he can't be happy with the gap to Alonso.

Grosjean: 7,0 - Started with a dog of a car, but reacted very mature about it. Good races in Bahrain and China, those first points are coming closer.

Maldonado: 4,0 - Very poor, nowhere near Grosjean which I didn't expect, though has had a bit more bad luck. This is the type of driver who needs a good car to excel, he falls away in a bad one.

Button: 7,0 - Good start of the season in Australia and Malaysia. Lack of development at McLaren is costing him, but seems to keep Magnussen at bay right now.

Magnussen: 6,5 - Impressive debut in Melbourne, but falling away in races after. A bit what you can expect from a rookie, but the car isn't helping either.

Hulkenberg: 8,0 - Most consistent one so far with top six finishes in every race and fighting with cars who are supposed to be quicker. Deserves a spot in a top team.

Perez: 6,5 - Hurt by his lack of pace in wet quali's. One dry quali in Bahrain and he excelled there. We'll see more from him if the quali's are dry too.

Sutil: 6,0 - Nothing spectacular, Car is very slow and heavy, nothing to be won with it.

Gutierrez: 6,0 - Same as Sutil.

Vergne: 6,5 - His qualifying form has improved, his bad luck hasn't. Melbourne was good, was hampered with bad luck in the races after. Still seems better than Kvyat though.

Kvyat: 7,5 - Hasn't had any bad luck so far and finished every race in or around the top ten. Impressive debut season so far.

Bottas: 7,5 - Under the impression he could have had more points. Silly mistake in Melbourne cost him a podium, other issues hampered him in the races after.

Massa: 7,0 - Solid, but a little more bad luck than Bottas. Best looking teammate battle so far though, I still expect Massa to edge Bottas as the season progresses.

Bianchi: 6,0 - Not as impressive as last season, haven't seen much of him and Chilton is closer than expected.

Chilton: 6,5 - Continuing where he left off last season: Finishing races and doing nothign out of the ordinary.

Kobayashi: 6,5 - Okay drives so far, except for his silly mistake in Melbourne. Looking forward to a season long battle with Bianchi.

Ericsson: 5,5 - Nothing special really, just another pay driver who's doing his best.