Worst to Best Drivers of 2024 F1 Season – Sport Grill

As 2024 draws to a close, it is time to reflect on a thrilling F1 season in terms of worst and best driver performances.

With 1,567 laps completed across 30 races in 24 rounds; consisting of six sprints and 24 Grands Prix, 2024 proved to be a busy year with two driver changes mid-season plus a rookie making three substitute appearances.

Throw in a title fight despite the winner looking pretty forgone by mid-season plus seven drivers taking multiple GP wins, then this season has been undoubtedly competitive with plenty of highs and lows.

It therefore feels right to reflect on the season with a look at each driver’s performance on a ranking scale, such has been the mixture of performances on display.

 

24 – Jack Doohan (Alpine)

With just one race under his belt ahead of his first full season in 2025, Doohan did a solid job in Abu Dhabi to finish 15th but we need to see how he gets on across next season to properly assess his potential.

 

23 – Valtteri Bottas (Sauber)

Bottas has been the biggest disappointment out of those who completed the whole season with zero points, although he was slightly unlucky that Sauber unlocked their car’s potential too late for him to showcase his quality.

He however did comfortably outqualify Zhou which showed that he still had the speed but let down by the car’s performance, as he prepares to re-join Mercedes for 2025 as reserve driver.

 

22 – Logan Sargeant (Williams) 

Although his mid-season sacking wasn’t surprising following too many crashes and failure to match Alex Albon, Sargeant simply lacked the speed in F1 even in his second season.

I am however slightly sympathetic to the fact that he wasn’t given a chance to run as Williams’ sole driver in Australia after Albon’s FP2 crash, as it would of been interesting to see how he fared if hadn’t had to give his car to Albon.

 

21 – Liam Lawson (RB)

Parachuted into Daniel Ricciardo’s seat for the last six races, Lawson did a solid job of matching Yuki Tsunoda for pace – despite only beating the Japanese driver in two Sprint Qualifying and race sessions.

Tsunoda however edged Lawson out 4-2 in the GP head-to-head stats but Lawson did have a power unit failure at the end of the Abu Dhabi GP, despite having driven a solid race up to that point.

If there is a highlight of Lawson’s campaign then it has to be his fierce battle against Sergio Perez in Mexico, in which he showed guts and resilience against the Mexican to his credit under pressure.

2025 however is an acid test for Lawson as he leaps into the poisoned chalice inferno that is the second Red Bull seat, but if he can adapt quickly like he has at RB then he might provide the competition to push Verstappen that Red Bull need.

 

20 – Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)

Comfortably outclassed in both Qualifying (8-22) and race (10-20) trim, Lance Stroll certainly endured a difficult season which made 13th in the standings a solid achievement in itself.

2025 though has to be a year of massive improvement for Stroll with Adrian Newey on board and Honda joining the next season, as Tsunoda surely has to be a contender for his seat if Stroll underperforms again.

 

19 – Guanyu Zhou (Sauber) 

Zhou might of been comfortably outclassed on one-lap pace by Bottas but his race pace looked much better, which paid off with a well-executed drive to eighth in Qatar and Sauber’s sole top-ten finish of the season.

It is unknown what Zhou’s plans are at present following his Sauber exit but he would be a solid reserve driver if he stays in F1.

 

18 – Daniel Ricciardo (RB)

In his final season in F1, Ricciardo did a decent job with a lower-midfield car especially in terms of matching Tsunoda on race pace, but he was pretty much outclassed in Qualifying trim despite winning the Sprint Qualifying head-to-head.

There is no doubt though that Ricciardo was done dirty by Red Bull denying him a proper farewell to the sport, with his departure not announced until after his last race in Singapore.

 

17 – Alex Albon (Williams)

With a largely uncompetitive Williams car this season, Albon certainly showed his class against Sargeant and Franco Colapinto in Qualifying but he too did have a tendency to crash – particularly in Q3 in Sao Paulo which could of led to points in the race.

It was also nice to see Albon challenged in race trim by Colapinto who was a solid match for the British-Thai driver, but crucially ideal preparation as he will have a tougher teammate in Carlos Sainz next season.

 

16 – Sergio Perez (Red Bull)

After claiming 107 points in the opening seven rounds, Perez just seemed to slump off a cliff performance wise with just 45 points earned across the last 17 rounds and absolutely outclassed by Verstappen on all levels.

It is therefore no surprise to see Perez leave F1 because his performance loss cost Red Bull the constructors’ title, whilst he became the first driver this century to produce the lowest points percentage between teammate and champion with 34.8%.

 

15 – Kevin Magnussen (Haas)

Whilst it is easy to state that Magnussen had a lacklustre middling season if looked at the standings, he actually was more impressive in how he selflessly played the teammate role regularly to allow Nico Hulkenberg fight for points-paying positions.

Magnussen though did have some decent races on his own merit with Mexico being a highlight, in which he qualified and finished seventh on a solid weekend for himself and the team.

Although he is off to BMW and sportscar racing in 2025, Magnussen hopefully will stick around in F1 as I can see him being a solid driver mentor for younger drivers.

 

14 – Esteban Ocon (Alpine)

2024 felt like a flat season overall for Ocon aside from his well-executed second-placed finish in Sao Paulo, but he did beat Pierre Gasly in the race head-to-head amidst Alpine’s struggles until Gasly found a late-season flourish.

His move to Haas next season might be just what Ocon needs to re-energise himself but he will have youthful competition to deal with.

 

13 – Yuki Tsunoda (RB)

Despite RB’s slump in the second half of the season, Tsunoda deserves credit for how well he drove in the first 14 rounds because he had the edge in GP trim more than in the sprints against both Ricciardo then Lawson and likewise in Qualifying.

His wet Qualifying performance in Sao Paulo also deserves a mention because it showed just how quick Tsunoda can be, but he needs to bring that more consistently if want to push for the top ten more and a potential future top drive.

 

12 – Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)

Despite lacking performance in the AMR24, Alonso did a solid job of delivering top-ten results with 14 finishes and absolutely outclassed Stroll once more despite sprint weekends being a tricky issue for the team.

2025 though is likely to be one of transition for Alonso and Aston Martin as Adrian Newey arrives, with eyes firmly on 2026 which sees new regulations kick into effect.

 

11 – Nico Hulkenberg (Haas)

At 37 years-old, Hulkenberg should be in the twilight years of his career but the German has been pretty solid for Haas, particularly despite periods of inconsistency at times but his race craft is still pretty strong as saw in his late season flourish.

He now needs to take that experience and form to Sauber where all eyes will be on him to deliver results for the Swiss team, whilst guiding rookie – Gabriel Bortoleto who needs time to adapt to F1.

 

10 – Franco Colapinto (William)

Although he endured a difficult final four rounds of the season, Colapinto certainly made an impact in his first five rounds with his fearless approach and could of done without Red Bull and Alpine piling on the pressure over a 2025 deal.

In fact if there hadn’t been mutterings of a move to Red Bull or Alpine, I think that Colapinto would of performed better because his approach was refreshing for a rookie but he certainly gave Albon a much-needed fight especially in Baku.

 

9 – Pierre Gasly (Alpine)

Much of 2024 was a slog for Alpine but Gasly did well to salvage ninth considering that he had scored just nine points in the first 20 rounds, yet 33 points in the last four rounds showed what Gasly could of done with a stronger car.

I however will admit that he got lucky in Sao Paulo with the red flag but Gasly showed his mettle with a strong opening defensive stint in Abu Dhabi against Mercedes’ George Russell until the superior car shone through in the pit window.

Gasly now needs to take that late momentum into 2025 especially now that he will have Doohan as his teammate.

 

8 – Oliver Bearman (Ferrari/Haas)

At just 18 years-old when he got thrown into his F1 debut for Ferrari at Saudi Arabia after taking pole in the F2 event, Bearman certainly stood out in guiding his car to 11th in Qualifying then seventh in the race after just a hour of practice.

Two substitute whole-weekend appearances at Haas followed in Baku and Sao Paulo across both weekend formats, in which Bearman showed that he is ready to step up next season and mix it with the top guys next season.

Bearman consequently deserves his top-ten spot purely on performance in terms of context of his three F1 outings, but he needs to work more on his wet-weather performance after his difficulties in Sao Paulo.

 

7 – Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)

2024 marked Hamilton’s final season at Mercedes and although the car proved difficult at times, the seven-time champion showed that he still has the race trim with some strong drives especially in China and Abu Dhabi after Q1 exits.

Hamilton also took a well-executed win in tricky conditions at Silverstone then lucky win via George Russell’s disqualification at Spa Francorchamps, which further underlined his still-strong race pace.

Age however is catching up with Hamilton in terms of one-lap pace after he was outclassed all season by Russell, but his move to Ferrari in 2025 could be the reboot that Hamilton needs with one eye primarily on 2026.

 

6 – George Russell (Mercedes)

With Hamilton off to Ferrari next season, Russell has shown that he is ready to lead Mercedes after he dominated his compatriot in the head-to-head stats, even if he lucked into his Austrian win.

Las Vegas however showed that Russell is capable of delivering a dominant performance with the right setup, as he comfortably controlled the race from lights to flag amidst early pressure.

Now firmly established as Mercedes’ lead, Russell needs to raise his game if want to fight for more wins but he must not underestimate, rookie – Andrea Kimi Antonelli as his teammate.

 

5 – Oscar Piastri (McLaren)

Given McLaren’s breakthrough season, it isn’t surprising that Piastri raised his game with two well-earned maiden Grands Prix win in Hungary and Baku plus another sprint win in Qatar to finish fourth in the drivers’ standings.

The latter GP victory in particular showed just how mature Piastri’s race craft is in how he hunted down the lead with composure, then held off Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc with a passionate defensive drive.

I however would now like to see Piastri raise his game further next season to support Lando Norris more, because there were races where the Aussie didn’t really match Norris’ pace and performance but a strong season nevertheless for him.

 

4 – Carlos Sainz (Ferrari)

In the unique position of knowing that he would leave Ferrari even before pre-season testing, Sainz could of easily given up a bit but he showed grit and quality as he left the Prancing Horse on a positive note.

Even though the head-to-head stats favoured Charles Leclerc, Sainz can be proud of his final season in red with consistent top-seven finishes across every race that he reached the checkered flag with wins in Australia and Mexico.

Australia though highlighted his resilience in fitness with a superb weekend as he qualified second then won the race, despite the fact that he needed appendix surgery two weeks earlier.

2025 though will be one of transition for Sainz but if he can bring his knowledge and experience to Williams alongside Albon, there is no doubt why he can’t fight for points regularly come mid-season.

 

3 – Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)

Consistency has largely made up much of Leclerc’s season aside from a mid-season dip, as the Monegasque finished in the top five in 26 of the 30 overall races – more than any other driver this season.

Although he slightly lucked into the Austin win, Leclerc drove three sensation races as his strategic gamble paid off in Monza in front of Ferrari fans, whilst his home win in Monaco was just purely deserved on merit given his luck in the Principality.

I now will like to see Leclerc just try and continue his momentum in 2025 and with Hamilton as his teammate, this Monegasque can only get better if he keeps up his performance.

 

2 – Max Verstappen (Red Bull)

After two seasons where he largely coasted to the title, Verstappen absolutely earned his fourth title on merit with some gritty drives when his car wasn’t quick, although he was aided by nine wins (seven GP & two sprints) in the opening 10 rounds.

Sao Paulo though was one of if not his greatest drives yet as he drove a well-executed main race from 17th to victory, albeit aided by a nicely-timed red flag but he drove with maturity and composure in tough wet conditions.

Maturity however wasn’t always Verstappen’s finest aspect this season as saw by forcing a collision with Norris in Austria, followed by dirty moves in Austin and Mexico rather than take the points on those occasions.

His reckless lunge on Hamilton at turn one in the Hungarian GP further showed that there is still room for improvement in Verstappen’s maturity, especially when racing under pressure against fierce rivals.

I however do agree to an extent with him on the topic of swearing because everyone needs to vent at times, but a press conference isn’t the ideal time for that sort of behaviour unless in an acceptable context.

Nevertheless 2024 was another strong year for Verstappen but crucially a season where he had to graft, which stands him well if 2025 is even more competitive.

 

1 – Lando Norris (McLaren)

Having steadily progressed up the driver standings whilst committed to McLaren in the face of interest from elsewhere, Norris certainly enjoyed a breakthrough 2024 packed with valuable lessons.

Although he lucked into his maiden win in Miami, Norris found that next level of confidence to fight for wins but was let down by some poor strategic calls, yet those experiences will help him become more ruthless in future title fights.

Four wins and nine podiums nevertheless is strong validation of Norris’s development in his best season in F1 yet, but his starts however was an Achilles heel which saw him fail to convert five of his eight poles into victories.

Another likeable aspect of Norris has been his ability to wear his heart on his sleeve and admit to mistakes on part of himself or team, but psychologically he needs to show more mental toughness if he wants to beat Verstappen.

On a whole, this season has seen Norris enjoy huge developmental progress but highlighted areas for improvement, so I am excited to see what he can do next season if he can iron out his weaknesses.

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