Max Verstappen pushed himself to brand new limits in 2021 and delivered a season-long performance deserving of a world championship crown.
Driver rankings articles archive
Who were the best and worst F1 drivers each year? F1 Fanatic’s Driver Rankings consider the data and offer an opinion.
2021 F1 driver rankings #2: Lewis Hamilton
2021 F1 driver rankings
Posted onA controversial end denied Lewis Hamilton an eighth world championship in cruel circumstances, but a few too many errors earlier in the season also cost him.
2021 F1 driver rankings #3: Lando Norris
2021 F1 driver rankings
Posted onLando Norris asserted himself as McLaren’s top points-scorer alongside a new, highly-rated, race-winning team mate in 2021 despite a tough end to the year.
2021 F1 driver rankings #4: Charles Leclerc
2021 F1 driver rankings
Posted onCharles Leclerc regularly demonstrated the best Ferrari’s SF21 was capable of, but didn’t always get the results he deserved.
2021 F1 driver rankings #5: Carlos Sainz Jnr
2021 F1 driver rankings
Posted onCarlos Sainz Jnr wasn’t quite on the pace of team mate Charles Leclerc but took four podium finishes to his team mate’s one.
2021 F1 driver rankings #6: Fernando Alonso
2021 F1 driver rankings
Posted onOn his return to F1, Fernando Alonso left little room for doubt that he is every bit as quick and tenacious as he was when he won his last world championship 15 years ago.
2021 F1 driver rankings #7: Pierre Gasly
2021 F1 driver rankings
Posted onPierre Gasly’s performances during 2021 gave many reasons why the AlphaTauri driver deserves another chance to join a front-running team.
2021 F1 driver rankings #8: George Russell
2021 F1 driver rankings
Posted onGeorge Russell won a promotion to Mercedes thanks in part to some astonishing performances for Williams during 2021.
2021 F1 driver rankings #9: Esteban Ocon
2021 F1 driver rankings
Posted onEsteban Ocon built his strong end to 2020 and took a shock win in Hungary, but his team mate narrowly beat him in the points.
2021 F1 driver rankings #10: Valtteri Bottas
2021 F1 driver rankings
Posted onValtteri Bottas raised his game in the second half of 2021, despite a string of engine penalties, and after Mercedes decided to replace him.
2021 F1 driver rankings #11: Sergio Perez
2021 F1 driver rankings
Posted onSergio Perez played a valuable role in helping Max Verstappen win the world championship on occasions, but other times he lagged well behind his team mate.
2021 F1 driver rankings #12: Sebastian Vettel
2021 F1 driver rankings
Posted onAfter a tough final season at Ferrari, Sebastian Vettel put in a much more impressive campaign at Aston Martin in 2021.
2021 F1 driver rankings #13: Daniel Ricciardo
2021 F1 driver rankings
Posted onThe most difficult driver to position in this year’s rankings has to be the one who won the Italian Grand Prix less than four months after being lapped by his team mate in Monaco.
2021 F1 driver rankings #14: Kimi Raikkonen
2021 F1 driver rankings
Posted onAlthough Kimi Raikkonen’s qualifying performances were a weakness, he tended to make up for it on race day.
2021 F1 driver rankings #15: Antonio Giovinazzi
2021 F1 driver rankings
Posted onAntonio Giovinazzi usually started ahead of his team mate but scored fewer points than him, and not only because of the times luck wasn’t on his side.
2021 F1 driver rankings #16: Lance Stroll
2021 F1 driver rankings
Posted onLance Stroll was a fairly regularly points finisher in 2021 but there were no notable highs of the kind he has become known for.
2021 F1 driver rankings #17: Mick Schumacher
2021 F1 driver rankings
Posted onMick Schumacher easily had the beating of Haas team mate Nikita Mazepin, but seldom had the opportunity to race against drivers in quicker cars.
2021 F1 driver rankings #18: Nicholas Latifi
2021 F1 driver rankings
Posted onNicholas Latifi managed two points finishes for Williams but remained some way off the pace of team mate George Russell.
2021 F1 driver rankings #19: Yuki Tsunoda
2021 F1 driver rankings
Posted onYuki Tsunoda was well off the pace of his team mate, but showed flashes of promise which justified AlphaTauri’s decision to keep him on.
2021 mid-season F1 driver rankings part 5: 4-1
2021 F1 season
Posted onWhich of the four remaining drivers has taken the top spot in RaceFans’ mid-season F1 rankings? Read on to find out.