Which F1 driver was the best performer during the British Grand Prix weekend?
Review how each driver got on below and vote for who impressed you the most during the last race weekend.
Driver performance summary
Driver | Started | Gap to team mate (Q) | Laps leading team mate | Pitted | Finished | Gap to team mate (R) | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Lewis Hamilton | 1st | -0.319s | 52/52 | 2 | 1st | -16.911s | |
Nico Rosberg | 2nd | +0.319s | 0/52 | 2 | 3rd | +16.911s | |
Sebastian Vettel | 11th | +0.609s | 0/52 | 2 | 9th | +21.911s | |
Kimi Raikkonen | 5th | -0.609s | 52/52 | 2 | 5th | -21.911s | |
Felipe Massa | 12th | +0.524s | 46/51 | 3 | 11th | -34.755s | |
Valtteri Bottas | 6th | -0.524s | 5/51 | 2 | 14th | +34.755s | |
Daniel Ricciardo | 4th | +0.305s | 1/52 | 2 | 4th | +17.961s | |
Daniil Kvyat | 15th | +0.598s | 1/52 | 2 | 10th | +6.742s | |
Nico Hulkenberg | 8th | -0.105s | 5/52 | 2 | 7th | +0.771s | |
Sergio Perez | 10th | +0.105s | 47/52 | 2 | 6th | -0.771s | |
Kevin Magnussen | 16th | -0.176s | 26/37 | 3 | 17th | ||
Jolyon Palmer | 18th | +0.176s | 11/37 | 3 | |||
Max Verstappen | 3rd | -0.305s | 51/52 | 2 | 2nd | -17.961s | |
Carlos Sainz Jnr | 7th | -0.598s | 51/52 | 2 | 8th | -6.742s | |
Marcus Ericsson | 22nd | 0/11 | 2 | ||||
Felipe Nasr | 21st | 11/11 | 2 | 15th | |||
Fernando Alonso | 9th | -0.507s | 22/51 | 3 | 13th | +13.897s | |
Jenson Button | 17th | +0.507s | 29/51 | 2 | 12th | -13.897s | |
Pascal Wehrlein | 20th | +0.053s | 1/6 | 1 | |||
Rio Haryanto | 19th | -0.053s | 5/6 | 2 | |||
Romain Grosjean | 13th | -0.191s | 16/17 | 2 | |||
Esteban Gutierrez | 14th | +0.191s | 1/17 | 2 | 16th |
Vote for your driver of the weekend
Which driver do you think did the best job throughout the race weekend?
Who got the most out of their car in qualifying and the race? Who put their team mate in the shade?
Cast your vote below and explain why you chose the driver you picked in the comments.
Vote for the best driver of the 2016 British Grand Prix weekend
- Esteban Gutierrez (0%)
- Romain Grosjean (0%)
- Rio Haryanto (0%)
- Pascal Wehrlein (0%)
- Jenson Button (1%)
- Fernando Alonso (2%)
- Felipe Nasr (0%)
- Marcus Ericsson (0%)
- Carlos Sainz Jnr (2%)
- Daniil Kvyat (0%)
- Jolyon Palmer (0%)
- Kevin Magnussen (0%)
- Sergio Perez (4%)
- Nico Hulkenberg (0%)
- Max Verstappen (55%)
- Daniel Ricciardo (0%)
- Valtteri Bottas (0%)
- Felipe Massa (0%)
- Kimi Raikkonen (2%)
- Sebastian Vettel (0%)
- Nico Rosberg (0%)
- Lewis Hamilton (33%)
Total Voters: 462
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When this poll is closed the result will be displayed instead of the voting form.
2016 British Grand Prix
- 2016 British Grand Prix team radio transcript
- Second Driver of the Weekend win for Verstappen
- Wet race at Silverstone leaves many cold
- 2016 British Grand Prix Predictions Championship results
- Top ten pictures from the 2016 British Grand Prix
Debates and polls
- Were stewards right to penalise Alonso over his driving before Russell’s crash?
- Are Williams right to bench Sargeant so Albon can race after crash?
- Is the FIA right to make ten seconds the new standard for penalties?
- Which F1 drivers will beat their team mates in 2024?
- Has anyone caught Red Bull? 20 questions for the 2024 Formula 1 season
Uzair Syed (@ultimateuzair)
10th July 2016, 18:11
Hamilton and Verstappen did a great job all weekend, but in the end I will give it to Verstappen for sticking with Rosberg for most of the race.
Uzair Syed (@ultimateuzair)
10th July 2016, 18:12
Raikkonen and Sainz also did a decent job.
Indiana (@indiana)
10th July 2016, 18:28
Lewis and Max were in a class of their own..but I chose for Verstappen because of his great pass on Nico and some superb defending aswell
Jeanrien (@jeanrien)
11th July 2016, 18:52
@ultimateuzair Sainz has definitly earned the best saves awards, it was quite impressive to see how well he recovered his car most of the time he slipped…
Adam (@rocketpanda)
10th July 2016, 18:21
Voted for Perez. Thought he did a pretty decent job considering where he started and didn’t see the point in voting for anyone above him as they all finished in the same places without major incident. Perez though ran well for a Force India and beat Hulkenberg again even though starting behind him.
Good to see Verstappen overtaking Rosberg, though it was pretty expected he’d lose it eventually.
Uzair Syed (@ultimateuzair)
10th July 2016, 18:24
Perez benefited from the VSC when he pitted. It didn’t help Hulkenberg. A bit lucky for Perez.
drrapg (@drrapg)
10th July 2016, 19:01
It’s always always luck with Perez, isn’t it???
(yeah ok this time was) but he had a good race after all
A S (@aminsarur)
11th July 2016, 20:04
Luck is part of this, Checo did a better job than Hulk, once again!
John H (@john-h)
13th July 2016, 13:30
I would argue Hulk did a better job than Perez tbh.
petebaldwin (@)
11th July 2016, 10:11
Hamilton and Verstappen also benefitted from the VSC. Ricciardo didn’t which is why he was not in the picture.
Michal (@michal2009b)
10th July 2016, 18:39
Perez? He finished just in front of Hulkenberg despite a big luck for a VSC. Definitely not.
Gabriel Rocha (@gabrielrocha)
10th July 2016, 19:09
He did a good race, bit his result is most because of luck. He was behind Hulk every session of practice if i’m not mistaken, qualified behind and only finished 0.7 ahead despite that moment of luck in the VSC period. Since we vote for driver of the weekend, not driver of the race, i will have to disagree with your vote.
nickpkr251
11th July 2016, 0:44
Perez made a hell of a call with those tires, this guy is amzingly judging the tires since he start in F1, there was no luck there but driver increidibly ability. He did wreck his tires on that slide, however big points yet again.
FERNANDO123 (@fernando123)
11th July 2016, 1:55
+1
Matn
10th July 2016, 18:31
For real… the only man on the grid who can compete with both Mercedes drivers… Verstappen, no single doubt.
Verstappen didn’t win on positions, but he has beaten Rosberg mentally, Rosberg wasn’t anymore than a sitting duck in the wet and he was mighty lucky the track dried in his potential 1 second/lap faster Merc.
In perspective, even Lewis had reasons to keep on pushing, Verstappen was faster in 25 of the total of 52 laps.
pcxmac (@xsavior)
11th July 2016, 19:57
Considering RIC isn’t the #1 driver at RBR and RBR probably still have the best car, less the power, I wouldn’t put too much faith in Max. He hasn’t earned it yet, probably will never get the chance too, because like Vettel before him, his teammate will only be an after thought when it comes to setup and the direction of ‘development’.
Max got plenty of competition from Sainz when Sainz’s car wasn’t breaking down, and RBR are only on the podium because Ferrari have lost the plot mid season.
Fer no.65 (@fer-no65)
10th July 2016, 18:52
Max Verstappen, no doubt about it. First weekend where he was faster than Ricciardo everywhere and every time. He outqualified him yesterday and went on to produce a superb race.
He defended very well (it’s becoming a bit of a special skill from him, right?), he was very aggresive overtaking (that move at Becketts was a joy to watch… first time I see someone go on the outside there!), he had the pace in the wet and also in the dry. Outstanding.
Honorable mention to Lewis Hamilton, he’s always great in this conditions and at this track, he seems to enjoy himself a lot. And also to Perez, brilliant drive too even if he was uncomfortable with the car all weekend.
colin grayson (@lebesset)
14th July 2016, 13:18
that’s as one sided a view as I have read recently
max faster than ricci everywhere ? why not mention that ricci was brought in at what looked the right moment only for there promptly to be a safety car and his race was ruined from there on ?
and max made an excellent overtake when conditions favoured the red bull …..what about rosberg made an almost ideantical overtake when thinks were reversed ?
honourable mention to hamilton , yes, he shouldn’t have turned the engine down and won at a walk , should have made it look more difficult to give the haters room to criticise
Jorge Lardone (@jorge-lardone)
10th July 2016, 18:57
Lewis Hamilton, of course. Also good weekend by Sergio Perez and Max Verstappen.
Yes (@come-on-kubica)
10th July 2016, 19:10
Really find it hard to give anyone. Everyone was pretty disappointing. A lot of luck for the leaders with the VSC, means they rule each other out. Especially as Lewis and Max made mistakes. Nico was poor in the wet but looked like a man possessed when he finally got passed Max.
Gave it Nico Hulkenburg as he closed that massive gap to Perez up as Perez got a lot of luck with VSC.
A S (@aminsarur)
11th July 2016, 20:05
And finished behind for the Nth time
Jim Manna
10th July 2016, 19:17
Verstappen again. His racingskills are incredible. That move on Rosberg… The whole dicht… Brilliant.
We all know now that Red Bull made a harsh, but right decision with the driver swab. We used to think Ricciardo took the maximum out of the Red Bull. We know now that he did not. Soon Max will be Bull nr 1.
George (@george)
10th July 2016, 19:40
Verstappen? Verstappen.
BasCB (@bascb)
11th July 2016, 10:28
exactly
Sonics (@sonicslv)
10th July 2016, 19:41
Going to give the weekend for Hamilton. He look undefeatable despite threat from Rosberg in Friday and Saturday, and strong performance from Verstappen. I believe he still have lot of performance in that Mercedes and Verstappen is never going to be a threat.
The closest contender is only Verstappen who extract the maximum of the Red Bull and can bring the fight to Rosberg.
petebaldwin (@)
11th July 2016, 10:15
I agree with you but came to the opposite conclusion!
If he had more in the car, he can’t be driver of the weekend. There were some who got 100% out of their packages and IMO, they deserve it ahead of someone who admitted they turned their engine down for most of the race and cruised.
RP (@slotopen)
11th July 2016, 11:42
Nah man, he turned his engine down while his teamate was getting hounded by a Red Bull. What did you want him to do, open up a giant gap? Then Y’all be calling him arrogant.
x303 (@x303)
12th July 2016, 19:36
Considering he has to save engines in the light of the upcoming penalties, Hamilton had no other choice than saving the car. I understand that you like the drivers to push to the maximum but when there is nothing to gain and all to lose, that would be an utterly stupid thing to do @petebaldwin.
Jeroen Bons
10th July 2016, 19:56
Well, considering the drying out conditions which benefitted the more powerful Mercedes cars…
and watching the outstanding driving skills by Max Verstappen on the intermediate tires, the overtake on Rosberg, the
fastest lap after lap after lap, the admirable car control on this slippery track.. We knew he could overtake, we learned that nobody looks after his rubber wheels like he does, we witnessed his formidable position-defending against very mature and experienced drivers in faster cars… only backing off when his car starts to give signs of giving up on him….
I’m just lost for words. Who else could be called ‘Driver of the Day’ than Mr. Verstappen?
x303 (@x303)
12th July 2016, 19:40
Ok, but what about driver of the week-end? :)
Craig Woollard (@craig-o)
10th July 2016, 19:57
I’m going with Verstappen this weekend.
Beat his team mate in qualifying. Check.
Beat his team mate in the race. Check.
Pulled an incredible move around the outside of Becketts. Check.
NewVerstappenFan (@jureo)
10th July 2016, 20:22
Essentially this.
MacLeod (@macleod)
10th July 2016, 20:54
+1 all the reason we needed but also he was faster in the wet part then both mercedesses :)
NewVerstappenFan (@jureo)
10th July 2016, 20:28
Well, after the overtake on the outside of Becketts.. It has got to be Max.
Lewis was nearly perfect, but his win was more about pace and teammate underperforming.
Max had an excellent dice with one Mercedes and raced to a p2 result in the end.
Not bad for a teenager. He was looking especially racy.
But still who knows how much pace Lewiz wizard of speed had in hand.
ColdFly F1 (@)
10th July 2016, 20:33
There were a few laps when Alonso came close to at least a mention, but in the end there is only 1 real candidate Verstappen.
That overtake was sublime, his race was well managed.
But I’m most impressed how he has grown over the past weeks. First we all said that the team was helping him, then in Austria he showed he could stay ahead of Ricciardo in a race and we were critical of his qualifying.
PS – why isn’t Rosberg’s engineer on this list.
If the stewards ruled that Rosberg was helped by him; then he deserves to be on this list as well.
Uborg
10th July 2016, 21:17
Hamilton. Topped practice, topped qualy, destroyed the field during race both dry and wet with a grand slam.
Literally easiest DOTW pick ever.
Aapje (@aapje)
10th July 2016, 23:19
Verstappen was faster in the wet, so that last one is not true.
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
15th July 2016, 10:00
Hamilton didn’t have a ‘grand slam’ here – he didn’t lead every lap and Rosberg set the fastest lap.
Ju88sy (@)
10th July 2016, 21:21
Max, the duel with Rosberg was great fun. Lewis was masterful, especially pulling the initial gap once the safety car finally came in, however able to measure his pace for a lot of the race to preserve his engine.
Max and Rosberg were both charging as much as tyres and car would allow.
Jerejj
10th July 2016, 21:27
Verstappen.
Nick Wyatt (@nickwyatt)
10th July 2016, 21:42
Tricky one, this.
I thought Ham’s practice pace was pretty exemplary and his qualifying was utterly sublime. I agree that there was only one person that he was really competing again here, but he duffed Rosberg up pretty well.
In the race, it’s difficult to see beyond Verstappen for sheer determination and large, spherical objects. But this is DOTW and so I think it has to go to Hamilton.
Kimiwillbeback
10th July 2016, 22:15
Verstappen, no doubt. He kept up with the Mercedes cars even in the dry, and they have an advantage of 1 second a lap!
I’ve said it before and I will repeat it. Verstappen is allready the best driver in F1. Now that he’s getting a grip on qualifying he really doesn’t have any weaknesses. He’s incredibly fast, he’s a great wet-weather driver, he’s great at tyre management. He’s a great overtaker and great at defending.
There have been other drivers with similar skill sets in the past. But not from the start of their career, they got there with experience. This kid is a born racer and the best I’ve seen coming through the ranks ever. And I have followed F1 since the seventies.
ErwinUDB (@euitdebos)
10th July 2016, 22:19
Since we can only vote for one driver here and only for one driver at F1.com, I’m splitting my votes. Verstappen DOTD and Hamilton DOTW.
Philip (@philipgb)
10th July 2016, 22:50
Hamilton was great, Verstappen was greaterer. His pace in the wet was incredible, if Ricciardo had been keeping him honest I wouldn’t have made such an easy decision but I’d honestly love to hear what people who insist Verstappen is a product of his own hype have to say about this.
Baron
11th July 2016, 11:21
They’re crying their eyes out in a corner.
Or thinking of what excuses to use.
‘Verstappen is Marko’s favorite’, ‘Horner/Marko/Mateschitz doesn’t like Ricciardo’. That sort of thing.
Just wait until Ricciardo finishes ahead of Verstappen. They’ll come crawling out of the woodworks faster than Bernie fills his pockets shouting “Verstappen is nothing special!”
Markp
10th July 2016, 23:33
Hamilton. Fastest every session and fastest lap? He could do no more. Yes had fastest car but could do no better. Verstappen was very good as well but how could Hamilton have done any more?
Same as I said with Rosberg in Baku.
nickpkr251
11th July 2016, 0:40
fastest lap was Rosberg
Markp
11th July 2016, 12:44
Aah. I was not sure hence the question mark. Still Hamilton for me.
Philip (@philipgb)
12th July 2016, 14:20
You can only vote for 1 though I’d happily vote for both if I could. Verstappen get’s my nod not because Hamilton could possibly have had a better weekend, you’re absolutely right he couldn’t. But Verstappen didn’t just get a result that leaves us saying how could he have done any more, he gave more than was expected. Getting the pass done on Rosberg, holding him behind as long as he did and ultimately being close enough to capitalise on the bad luck of Rosberg is more than is fair to ask.
nickpkr251
11th July 2016, 0:39
Has to be Verstappen, he may not need the fatest car in the grid to take this guys down, also nice rosberg and hamilton didn’t crash the fastest car in the grid and bring it 1-2 finally, actually shame on their drivers not allowing mercedes blow down a bunch of records with this master piece of car.
rantingmrp (@rantingmrp)
11th July 2016, 4:16
Someone voted Jenson as the driver of the day.
Wow.
Christos (@christosts)
11th July 2016, 13:29
And even more people voted Alonso.
Anil Sanagavarapu (@anilsk2013)
11th July 2016, 6:54
I voted for Kimi. This weekend marks a couple of important events – VET is now 8 points behind RAI.
It is a very important event in terms for VET’s standing and gap to team-mate. @KeithCollantine, can you check when was the last time VET was outside of the top 4 in standings and also behind his team-mate at the same time?
ColdFly F1 (@)
11th July 2016, 9:25
@anilsk2013, seriously?
Besides reading all these stories, and maybe not even supporting it financially (go add-free), you want @keithcollantine to do that check for you?
PS – have a look at 2014!
Anil Sanagavarapu (@anilsk2013)
11th July 2016, 14:42
Thank you Coldfly. Apologies Keith.
petebaldwin (@)
11th July 2016, 9:32
Bernd Mayländer – for leading a tenth of a race despite having a car massively off the pace.
Tango (@tango)
11th July 2016, 10:34
@petebaldwin, I’m not so sure, leading the pack is expected when you drive a Mercedes :D
Bullfrog (@bullfrog)
11th July 2016, 11:50
He did well squeezing Hamilton out when Lewis tried to go up the inside of him. Much cleaner than Rosberg!
Understeer (@abdelilah)
11th July 2016, 12:01
Lewis Hamilton, mighty drive all the week end, no weak spots at all this time, smart enough to save his engine all the way through the GP and a proper way to thank his fans.
Dennis S
11th July 2016, 12:01
I give it to Rosberg, for making the race interresting being overtaken by Max, struggeling to keep up just barely got in second but then had to give it back because his gearbox failed. If Rosberg kept the same pace as Hamilton to race would be as boring as Ricciardo suggested. Rosberg being a poor driver in the wet made everything a lot more exciting. Thanks Rosberg you got my vote!
Philip (@philipgb)
11th July 2016, 12:20
It’s going to be funny when Hamilton takes 2nd with a higher percentage than his DOTW win.
John H (@john-h)
13th July 2016, 13:36
It’s a relative vote.
just.daz (@nemo87)
11th July 2016, 13:03
Driver of the day.. I would’ve gone with Max
But driver of the weekend for me has to be Lewis. Flawless.
Sakis (@)
12th July 2016, 8:53
FLAWLESS
When you have got to do with blind fanatics, even the words lose their meanings.
As long as you do not consider a FLAW that driver mistake on turn 1 which almost cost the lead.
Philip (@philipgb)
12th July 2016, 14:13
@sakis
I think there was only Ricciardo and possibly Rosberg who didn’t have moments, and they were slower than their team mates so that’s a small mercy all things considered.
Hamilton and Verstappen pushed for the pace to have the best result possible, which means dancing on the limit at times. Importantly they kept the cars facing the right way and didn’t lose positions in doing so, and arguably had better races for finding that limit.
So you can interpret it how you like that they both had a moment that in your mind detracts from it being a flawless performance, or like @nemo87 you can interpret it as part of the genius of their driving that the played with the limits without serious consequence to extract the best result. There’s no call for slamming it as blind fanaticism because it’s a differing interpretation of the performance than your own.
Sakis (@)
12th July 2016, 14:55
@philipgb
You are kidding me, right? Am I supposed to “interprete” what he meant?
When you are using a word, in written language, the reader takes it as it is.
With its original meaning.
So, according to it, it’s a FALSE statement for Hamilton’s driving.
Therefore on my comment I wrote “even the words lose their meanings”.
It was not a flawless performance.
If he had written what you wrote on your first 2 paragraphs, then it would be absolutely fine.
The way he posted it, no. It’s blind fanaticism.
Philip (@philipgb)
12th July 2016, 15:40
@sakis
Fine let’s be picky. He didn’t say flawless performance. He just said flawless. So pole and win, flawless results.
ILuvSoundtracks (@)
13th July 2016, 0:42
My vote goes to Verstappen. He’s done something we have never seen before (defended a Ferrari before and now defended a Mercedes).
HS (@hsvdt15)
13th July 2016, 14:12
Voted for Hamilton. Left nothing on the table almost all weekend apart from one slip up which majority of the grid made also.
Do not understand the hype for Verstappen. Yes, he drove admirably defending against and passing Rosberg, but for everyone to say he destroyed Ricciardo on Sunday is wide of the mark. Verstappen gained, what, around 20 seconds, give or take, on Ricciardo thanks to the VSC (as did HAM/ROS and reason why Perez got past too). Without that, it would have likely been a close battle between the pair, unlike the Mercedes duo where one was completely outclassed by the other.
PJA (@pja)
13th July 2016, 18:57
My driver of the weekend is Verstappen.
His first time out qualifying Ricciardo since his switch to Red Bull was followed up by a great performance in the race to get another podium. An impressive move to get past Rosberg in the wet but he just didn’t have the pace in the dry to stay ahead until the end, but he managed to stay close enough to benefit from Rosberg’s post race penalty.
My second choice would be Hamilton, he was quickest throughout practice and took a commanding pole, in the race he pulled a gap once the safety car came in and was then never troubled, managing his pace to look after his car.