Max Verstappen, Red Bull, Circuit Zandvoort, 2022

2022 Dutch Grand Prix driver ratings

2022 Dutch Grand Prix

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The Dutch Grand Prix was once again won by Max Verstappen but it was a far more competitive weekend than last year’s event at Zandvoort proved to be.

There were some impressive performances across the field, while other drivers will have left the Netherlands wishing that they would have fared better around the seaside circuit.

Here are the RaceFans driver ratings for the Dutch Grand Prix.

Lewis Hamilton – 7

Qualified: 4th (+2 places ahead of team mate)
-0.499s quicker than team mate in Q3
Finished: 4th (-2 places behind team mate)

  • Qualified fourth on the grid after final Q3 lap was compromised
  • Started on mediums and tried to sneak inside Sainz at first corner making slight contact, fortunately avoiding damage
  • Inherited the lead as rivals pitted ahead before switching to hard tyres on lap 29, emerging fourth
  • Quickly caught Perez but lost four seconds trying to pass him, then being held up by Sebastian Vettel
  • Caught Leclerc before the Ferrari pitted, then took advantage of Virtual Safety Car to switch to mediums
  • Gained the lead when Verstappen pitted under Safety Car but would lead the field on old mediums
  • Lost the lead at the restart to Verstappen after changing his engine mode slightly later than he needed
  • Lost second to team mate Russell, then could not prevent Leclerc from passing him, finishing in fourth
(L to R): George Russell, Mercedes, Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes, Circuit Zandvoort, 2022
Russell’s late call helped him by team mate Hamilton

George Russell – 7

Qualified: 6th (-2 places behind team mate)
+0.499s slower than team mate in Q3
Finished: 2nd (+2 places ahead of team mate)

  • Quickest in first practice session
  • Was sixth after first lap in Q3 but denied chance to improve due to Perez’s spin
  • Started on mediums and lost sixth to Norris at the second corner, before repassing him on lap four
  • Caught up to Perez before the Red Bull pitted and ran second behind team mate before being passed by Verstappen
  • Pitted for hard tyres and overtook Perez for fourth, then pitted from third under VSC to jump Leclerc
  • Gained second when Verstappen pitted under Safety Car but made call to switch to softs, dropping him to third
  • Overtook team mate for second but could not catch Verstappen out front, taking second at the finish
Max Verstappen, Red Bull, Circuit Zandvoort, 2022
Pole, fastest lap and a home win for Verstappen

Max Verstappen – 8

Qualified: Pole (+4 places ahead of team mate)
-0.735s quicker than team mate in Q3
Finished: Winner (+4 places ahead of team mate)

  • Completed only six laps in first practice before stopping with a gearbox problem
  • Finished Friday nearly a second off the pace
  • Pipped Leclerc to pole position by 0.021s on his final lap in Q3
  • Held the lead at the start of the race and the opening stint
  • Caught and overtook Russell after pitting for mediums, retaking the lead after Hamilton stopped
  • Took advantage of VSC to pit for hard tyres to hold 11 second advantage over Hamilton
  • Pitted for softs under Safety Car, surrendering lead to Mercedes but gained second when Russell chose to stop
  • Lined up in second for restart and immediately passed Hamilton to retake the lead
  • Pulled a healthy gap to Russell behind and took chequered flag to win by four seconds
  • Claimed the bonus point for fastest lap

Sergio Perez – 4

Qualified: 5th (-4 places behind team mate)
+0.735s slower than team mate in Q3
Finished: 5th (-4 places behind team mate)

  • Struggled for pace on Friday, ending the day outside the top ten
  • Sat fifth after first run in Q3 but spin at turn 13 during final lap prevent him and both Mercedes from improving
  • Held fifth position at the start and began to be caught be Russell before pitting for mediums
  • Ran fifth in second stint having moved ahead of Sainz during his botched pit stop but could not match team mate’s pace
  • Fought hard to frustrate Mercedes pair after pitting but was eventually passed by both before switching to hards
  • Continued to run in fifth before Safety Car, pitting for mediums and lining up fifth for restart
  • Immediately passed by Sainz at restart, later took to the grass on exit of Tarzan while trying to take back fifth
  • Had to hold off Alonso in final laps to take sixth, which became fifth with Sainz’s penalty
Sainz endured multiple setbacks which weren’t of his making

Carlos Sainz Jnr – 5

Qualified: 3rd (-1 place behind team mate)
+0.071s slower than team mate in Q3
Finished: 8th (-5 places behind team mate)

  • Fastest in opening practice
  • Progress to Q3 fastest of all, but lined up third on the grid a tenth slower than team mate
  • Held onto third at the start despite minor contact with Hamilton at the first corner
  • Fell back from team mate ahead and came under pressure from Hamilton behind until pitting first of the front runners
  • Lost ten seconds waiting for team to fit fourth tyre, dropping him to sixth position
  • Pitted for hards on lap 43, falling behind Norris and the Alpines
  • Caught and passed Ocon despite fearing he had done so under yellow flags
  • Pitted under Safety Car for softs but was released in front of Alonso, resulting in a time penalty from the stewards
  • Restarted sixth behind Perez but passed him at the green flag to move into fifth before rebuffing the Red Bull later on
  • Finished fifth on the road but dropped to eighth with his five second penalty applied

Charles Leclerc – 6

Qualified: 2nd (+1 place ahead of team mate)
-0.071s quicker than team mate in Q3
Finished: 3rd (+5 places ahead of team mate)

  • Fastest of all on Friday and final practice
  • Took provisional pole early in Q3 but mistake in middle sector on final lap saw him lost pole by 0.021s
  • Started on softs and held second place off the start, staying within five seconds of Verstappen until pitting for mediums
  • Moved back up to second after Mercedes pitted but gradually fell back from Verstappen ahead
  • Pitted in anticipation of VSC but lost out to Mercedes when it came two laps later
  • Switched from hards to softs under Safety Car but remained fourth ahead of restart
  • Used softs to catch and pass Hamilton with seven laps remaining to take the final place on the podium

Lando Norris – 7

Qualified: 7th (+10 places ahead of team mate)
-0.525s quicker than team mate in Q1
Finished: 7th (+10 places ahead of team mate)

  • Ahead of team mate in every timed session
  • Easily reached Q3 to secure ‘best of the rest’ grid slot in seventh
  • Passed Russell around the outside of the second corner to take sixth position
  • Lost sixth when Russell overtook him at the start of lap four
  • Kept within a handful of seconds of Sainz in seventh in middle stint before pitting for softs just before VSC
  • Pitted under Safety Car for a second set of softs, dropping him behind Alonso in eighth
  • Sat in DRS range of Alonso after restart but could get passed the Alpine
  • Crossed the line in eighth but inherited seventh after Sainz’s time penalty
Daniel Ricciardo, McLaren, Circuit Zandvoort, 2022
Ricciardo was almost lapped by his team mate

Daniel Ricciardo – 3

Qualified: 17th (-10 places behind team mate)
+0.525s slower than team mate in Q1
Finished: 17th (-10 places behind team mate)

  • Behind team mate in every timed session
  • Lost running in second practice with radiator problem
  • Eliminated 17th in Q1 after being compromised by dirt on track at entry of turn 13 on his final lying lap
  • Moved ahead of Bottas on opening lap to gain 16th place
  • Stuck behind Vettel in 18th during second stint, unable to get passed
  • Switched to hard tyres and remained behind Vettel, losing a place to Magnussen
  • Was around six seconds away from being lapped by team mate before Safety Car
  • Put a second set of softs on under Safety Car but missed catching up to the train after unlapping himself
  • Finished second-last on the road in 17th place
Fernando Alonso, Alpine, Circuit Zandvoort, 2022
Alonso’s pace on hards helped him gain places

Fernando Alonso – 7

Qualified: 13th (-1 place behind team mate)
+0.008s slower than team mate in Q2
Finished: 6th (+3 places ahead of team mate)

  • Ahead of team mate in every practice session
  • Disappointed to be eliminated 13th in Q2, fractionally behind his team mate
  • Overtook Gasly into turn one but was repassed into turn three to sit 13th at end of opening lap
  • Eventually moved ahead of Gasly on lap ten before pitting for hard tyres
  • Ran “qualifying laps” in long middle stint, moving his way up the field to seventh before pitting for softs under Safety Car
  • Almost hit Sainz after Ferrari was released in front of him in the pit lane and lined up seventh for restart
  • Held off Norris in closing laps to finish “best of the rest” in seventh place

Esteban Ocon – 6

Qualified: 12th (+1 place ahead of team mate)
-0.008s quicker than team mate in Q2
Finished: 9th (-3 places behind team mate)

  • Behind team mate in every practice session
  • Beat team mate by tiny margin to line up 12th on the grid after Q2 elimination
  • Almost spun under braking for turn one but passed Gasly, Tsunoda and Schumacher on opening lap to run ninth
  • Dropped to tenth behind team mate after switching to hard tyres for second stint
  • Gained track position staying out under VSC to run as high as sixth before pitting for softs under Safety Car
  • Restarted behind team mate and Norris in ninth and held off pressure from Stroll to finish there

Pierre Gasly – 5

Qualified: 11th (-2 places behind team mate)
+0.084s slower than team mate in Q2
Finished: 11th

  • Struggled with balance and lost time at start of second practice due to work on his car
  • Qualified 11th on the grid after being pipped by team mate at the end of Q2
  • Lost two places to both Alpines into first corner, then regained one place over Alonso at turn three
  • Ran 12th behind team mate in opening stint until being passed by Alonso on lap ten
  • Remained behind Tsunoda after pitting for mediums and resisted pressure from Zhou until switching to hards
  • Gained one place when team mate retired and pitted under Safety Car for softs, retaining 11th place for restart
  • Tried to attack Stroll for final point but could not overtake, finishing out of the points
Yuki Tsunoda, AlphaTauri, Circuit Zandvoort, 2022
Tsunoda had the measure of his team mate before retiring

Yuki Tsunoda – 6

Qualified: 9th (+2 places ahead of team mate)
-0.084s quicker than team mate in Q2
Finished: Retired (Differential – L44)

  • Squeezed through to Q3 at the expense of his team mate to take ninth on the grid
  • Lost places to Stroll, Ocon and Schumacher on the opening lap to run in 11th place ahead of team mate
  • Retained 11th during second stint on mediums ahead of team mate until pitting for hards on lap 42
  • Suffered differential problem that led to bizarre sequence that ultimately resulted in his retirement
  • Earned a fifth reprimand and a grip drop for Monza for driving back to pits with loosened seatbelts

Sebastian Vettel – 4

Qualified: 19th (-9 places behind team mate)
+0.823s slower than team mate in Q1
Finished: 14th (-4 places behind team mate)

  • Eliminated in 19th from Q1 after going off at T13 on final flying lap due to dirt on corner entry
  • Passed Bottas around the outside of turn seven on opening lap, then gained 17th with Magnussen’s mistake
  • First car to pit on lap nine, switching from softs to mediums and falling to the back
  • Gained places as rivals ahead pitted but was passed by Schumacher and Bottas on track to sit 17th
  • Pitted for hard tyres and rejoined directly in front of Hamilton-Perez battle
  • Failed to yield for leaders until turn seven, earning him a five second time penalty from the stewards
  • Switched to softs under VSC, rejoining behind Schumacher
  • Stayed out under late Safety Car and restarted behind Schumacher in 14th
  • Battled hard against Schumacher, eventually passing him in final laps but dropping behind after penalty
Lance Stroll, Aston Martin, Circuit Zandvoort, 2022
Stroll showed good pace all weekend

Lance Stroll – 7

Qualified: 10th (+9 places ahead of team mate)
-0.823s quicker than team mate in Q1
Finished: 10th (+4 places ahead of team mate)

  • Cruised through into Q3 but was denied chance to contest final phase due to hydraulics problem
  • Started on softs and passed Tsunoda off the line, then Schumacher to take eighth place
  • Maintained decent pace in eighth, keeping out of range of Alonso during second stint on mediums
  • Dropped to tenth after pitting for hards with Alonso stopping just before VSC
  • Switched to used softs under Safety Car and restarted still in tenth after rivals ahead pitted
  • Tried to challenge Ocon in closing laps but had to settle for final point in tenth
Nicholas Latifi, Williams, Circuit Zandvoort, 2022
The slowest driver throughout the weekend was Latifi

Nicholas Latifi – 3

Qualified: 20th (-5 places behind team mate)
+1.658s slower than team mate in Q1
Finished: 18th (-6 places behind team mate)

  • Behind team mate in every timed session
  • Slowest in all three practice sessions and eliminated slowest in Q1 after suffering overheating engine problems
  • Did not gain a position on the opening lap, but moved ahead of Magnussen after his lap two mistake
  • Fell to the back of the field after being overtaken by Magnussen
  • Struggled with tyre degradation on hards and pitted for softs just before Safety Car was deployed
  • Restarted at the rear of the field and could not gain a position, finishing as the last driver running

Alexander Albon – 7

Qualified: 15th (+5 places ahead of team mate)
-1.658s quicker than team mate in Q1
Finished: 12th (+6 places ahead of team mate)

  • Ahead of team mate in every timed session
  • Comfortable progressed into Q2 but eliminated in 15th after being unable to match his best Q1 time
  • Started on mediums, holding position at the start but was passed by Magnussen through turn seven
  • Gained back 15th when Magnussen ran off on lap two, then spent first stint under pressure from Ricciardo
  • Pitted late for second set of mediums, falling to 16th and able to pull out of DRS range of Vettel behind
  • Moved up to 12th and pitted for hard tyres without losing position.
  • Pitted before Safety Car for softs but retained 12th after the restart to miss out on the points

Valtteri Bottas – 5

Qualified: 16th (-2 places behind team mate)
+0.135s slower than team mate in Q1
Finished: Retired (Mechanical – L54)

  • Failed to follow team mate through to Q2, lining up 16th on the grid
  • Held position off the line but lost two places exiting turn three, then passed by Vettel to fall to 19th
  • Gained 18th when Magnussen ran off track on second lap
  • Rejoined 17th after first pit stop for softs, passed Vettel for 16th at Tarzan despite minor contact
  • Moved ahead of team mate after his time penalty to sit in 13th place after his second stop
  • Suddenly lost engine starting his 54th lap, pulling off into retirement
Zhou Guanyu, Alfa Romeo, Spa-Francorchamps, 2022
Zhou beat his team mate in qualifying again

Zhou Guanyu – 5

Qualified: 14th (+2 places ahead of team mate)
-0.135s quicker than team mate in Q1
Finished: 16th

  • Beat team mate into Q2 by a tenth of a second to qualify 14th on the grid
  • Held onto 14th at the start and through early laps before pitting on lap 12 for second set of softs
  • Broke the pit lane speed limit by 1kph, earning a five second time penalty
  • Ran in 13th, putting sustained pressure on Gasly, but unable to find a way passed
  • Fell behind his team mate after serving penalty during second stop but gained 13th when Bottas retired
  • Pitted for used softs under Safety Car, dropping to 16th in the train
  • Tried to pressure Magnussen over final ten laps but unable to pass, eventually finishing in 16th
Mick Schumacher, Haas, Circuit Zandvoort, 2022
A slow stop compromised a strong race for Schumacher

Mick Schumacher – 7

Qualified: 8th (+10 places ahead of team mate)
-0.578s quicker than team mate in Q1
Finished: 13th (+2 places ahead of team mate)

  • Ahead of team mate in every timed session
  • Progressed into Q3 to line up eighth on grid
  • Started on medium tyres and dropped two places to Stroll and Ocon on opening lap to run tenth
  • Committed to two-stop but lost around eight seconds with front jack problem, dropping him behind Vettel in 17th
  • Passed Vettel at turn 12 to move into 16th, but came under pressure from Bottas behind before second stop
  • Overtook Ricciardo and moved up to 16th, pitting under VSC without losing position
  • Stayed out under Safety Car and moved up to 13th, but lost the place in closing laps after being overtaken by Vettel
  • Moved back to 15th in classification after Vettel’s time penalty applied

Kevin Magnussen – 4

Qualified: 18th (-10 places behind team mate)
+0.578s slower than team mate in Q1
Finished: 15th (-2 places behind team mate)

  • Behind team mate in every timed session
  • Eliminated 18th in Q1, ten places behind team mate
  • Overtook Bottas, then Ricciardo and Albon at turn seven on opening lap to move into 15th
  • Dropped to back of the field with mistake at turn two, brushing the barrier but able to continue
  • Caught Latifi and passed him for 18th before pitting
  • Ran behind team mate after second stop before overtaking Ricciardo for 18th
  • Stayed out under Safety Car and moved ahead of Zhou, keeping ahead of him in the final laps to finish 15th

Over to you

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2022 Dutch Grand Prix

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Author information

Will Wood
Will has been a RaceFans contributor since 2012 during which time he has covered F1 test sessions, launch events and interviewed drivers. He mainly...

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31 comments on “2022 Dutch Grand Prix driver ratings”

  1. The most impressive: VER, RUS, & ALO
    The most disappointing: PER, SAI, MAG, RIC, & LAT

  2. After reading your points on Perez I’m sure awarding a 5 would be in order

  3. Alonso’s “best of the rest plus one Ferrari” rating is 6 in the last race and 7 in this one. I think he deserved a better rating after such a nice race.

    1. Yes, probably, if you compare it to norris’ 8 some recent races.

  4. YTD average based on @WillWood‘s ratings:
    Max Verstappen: 7.4 ↑
    Charles Leclerc: 6.7 ↓
    Lando Norris: 6.6
    Fernando Alonso: 6.5
    George Russell: 6.4
    Lewis Hamilton: 6.1
    Valtteri Bottas: 5.7
    Alexander Albon: 5.7 ↑
    Esteban Ocon: 5.7 ↑
    Carlos Sainz Jnr: 5.7
    Sergio Perez: 5.6 ↓
    Kevin Magnussen: 5.5 ↓
    Pierre Gasly: 5.5
    Sebastian Vettel: 5.4
    Nico Hulkenberg: 5.0
    Lance Stroll: 4.9 ↑
    Zhou Guanyu: 4.9
    Yuki Tsunoda: 4.9
    Mick Schumacher: 4.7 ↑
    Daniel Ricciardo: 4.3 ↓
    Nicholas Latifi: 3.9 ↓
    (arrow denotes trend of three most recent races compared to season)

    1. @jff – thanks for compiling this, when you see the overall results I have to l agree (mainly) and this gives a really good high-level view of performance.

      1. Yes it is good this analysis. It really provides a good overall summary and in this format it’s quite difficult to disagree with the current order. One or two look a little high or low e.g. Norris (high) and Russell (low). But that’s just my opinion.

      2. Not too bad but al in almost all ratings there is a machinery effect. It is too difficult to score good points with a subpar car, no matter how well you race. In particular, I would have rated ALO higher, and Ocon too (impressed by his Spa performance even better IMHO that Max’s)

  5. Let’s for once focus on the bottom end: I’m not sure that Ricciardo performed worse than Vettel this weekend!

    1. He started second to last, finished second to last. His teammate made Q3 and finished P7 and Ricky “was around six seconds away from being lapped by team mate before Safety Car.”

      I’d say a 3 is generous at best.

      1. Maybe Vettel should join him there; I was especially disappointed about his lack of awareness when holding up Hamilton (and Perez).

      2. I know it’s like beating a dead horse by this point, but even by Ricciardo’s low standard this year, this weekend was abnormally bad…

        No mechanical or pit stop issues and almost lapped? Danny is literally just turning up to keep his end of the contract at this point.

        1. Yes, and I’m surprised the commentators even bothered to say “a disappointment for daniel ricciardo” when he went out of quali soon in spa, because the race after was another disappointment, I mean, it’s predictable. Though I’m curious if he’ll do better at monza, last year he drove really well.

  6. Jozef Behr (@)
    6th September 2022, 8:15

    Really Interesting…

  7. Somehow I think that VER drove equally good than last race. For me, the only difference was the car performance.

  8. I’ll have a sack of whatever he was smoking before arriving at this rating caper!

  9. Max was a solid 9 this race with much less running than others and did absolutely nothing wrong whole weekend. Judged the SC restart absolutely pin perfect.

    1. In that case it’s 8 by this type of ranking, 9 must be something special, like spa.

  10. Free practise sessions suddenly started to matter in F1? I thought only qualis and races are relevant, lol.

    1. Quite. They are totally irrelevant. Qualifying is barely relevant when you consider what the points are awarded for. I realise it’s a handy metric for comparing the ultimate pace of team mates but even then it won’t help you win a championship if you can’t race.

      1. Absolutely.

  11. Does intelligence/awareness (however we call it) not count, only pace and overtaking/defending capabilities? I think that, if a driver outsmarts another driver and ends up in front of him, that driver deserves a higher rating. Good effort is nice and all that, but it doesn’t count for much if it is an empty effort in the end. For example, Russel thought for himself and it worked this time, no question about it. Hamilton chose a passive approach, did what he was told, it didn’t work this time. I think Russel did better this weekend, and it wasn’t down to luck, and that deserves to be acknowledged (like it was for Sainz in Monaco, in comparison to Leclerc). Speaking of Leclerc, I think he also can’t be ranked lower than Hamilton, all things considered. Perhaps if Ferrari was a better racing car, but it’s not anymore.

    1. Then car development efforts should also be considered, where HAM did the main part of the Merc drivers and deserves a higher ranking thoughout all the year, as we see this efforts pay off. Also Russell disturbed the general Merc strat to take a risk for a chance of winning, and thereby potentially decreased the team result.
      Max also just used his cars superior performance and therefore should have a lower rating.

      1. Perhaps in a post-season ranking? Why not, although we don’t really know how any car is being developed and who’s responsible for what. But granted, any given rating is relatively subjective anyway. I also spoke of consistency, because Sainz was praised for a similar thing in Monaco, which was reflected in his higher rating given by the same author. Perhaps there are different arguments, we’re just conversing here of course.

        When it comes to team effort, I guess that would count for more if these were team ratings (these would actually be fun to see, with plenty to say about Ferrari for example). As for Max, he’s also superior against his team mate, so it’s not only the car for sure (after all, he performed very well even when his car wasn’t the best one on the grid, which was almost always the case until recently). But I leave that to over-passionate fans of him and Hamilton, I’m one of those neutral fans of the sport. I think there’s consistent criteria when it comes to Max’ 8, no matter if we agree with the whole rating system or not. I didn’t see a single important mistake from him, he did have some luck on his side too, also no chance for attractive overtakes etc. In a way, he didn’t even get a chance to earn 9 or 10. To rate him lower than 8 would be weird…

      2. petebaldwin (@)
        6th September 2022, 20:32

        Are you suggesting that winning by using your car’s superior performance makes a victory less impressive? Perhaps if you have such a dominant car, a win only means your better than your team mate and not, let’s say, the greatest of all time?

        1. goat in all kind of sports is usually derived from being most successful in the sports, dominating longer than any other before, having most wins/titles.

      3. Also Russell disturbed the general Merc strat to take a risk for a chance of winning, and thereby potentially decreased the team result.

        Come on then. This tendency to paint Russell the bad guy of last weekend’s race by some Hamilton fans is curious at best.
        If it really didn’t suit Mercedes’ plans, they could/would/should have said so and told him he would not get his requested tyre stop. But they didn’t, which basically means they didn’t think badly of it.

        The reality of course is that George’s presence of mind made ensured they wouldn’t finish P3-P4 and instead upgraded that result to P2-P4. There was no way that with both on older tyres, they would have held on to P2-P3. Max didn’t even need DRS to get Lewis.

    2. Hamilton outperformed russell all weekend, I think giving both 7 already rewards russel’s decision enough.

  12. Roth Man (@rdotquestionmark)
    6th September 2022, 22:16

    Strong weekend but was Lance Stroll really as strong as both Merc’s and Alonso?

    1. Really the only way to judge a driver’s performance is against their teammate and, well, Stroll was a lot better than Vettel last weekend. Certainly a bigger gap than Hamilton had over Russell (and there was a gap, even though it is not reflected in the ratings above) and also Alonso’s over Ocon.
      Stroll done good :)

  13. I don’t see how Seb deserves anything better than a 1.

Comments are closed.