Dutch GP driver ratings: One stand-out driver outscores Norris, Verstappen and Leclerc

Coming off the summer break, Formula 1 eased back into the swing of the season with a straightforward Dutch Grand Prix won by McLaren’s Lando Norris.

These are our driver ratings for the full F1 field in Zandvoort.

Driver ratings from the 2024 Dutch Grand Prix

Lando Norris – 9/10

Lando Norris took his second win of 2024 at the Dutch Grand Prix — and he didn’t face a yellow flag, a safety car, or a mess-up from the competition leaving an asterisk next to that victory. It was a frankly impressive showing from the Briton; once he took the lead on Lap 18, no one else ever had another chance.

But there’s one big issue still bogging down Norris: His starts.

Both McLarens struggled with wheel spin when the lights went out in Zandvoort, giving Verstappen’s Red Bull a confident launch into the lead of the race. Thankfully for Norris, his car was so impressive that he could overcome the launch deficit.

Once Norris smooths out those problematic starts, he may very well usurp Verstappen as the most dominant driver in Formula 1.

Max Verstappen – 9/10

Has Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen lost his edge? Or has the RB20 fallen even further from grace? With an impressive start launch from Verstappen, it certainly seems as if it’s the latter.

Verstappen ran a near-perfect race, but there just wasn’t anything he could do with an unresponsive car struggling with tyre grip — other than finish 20 seconds in arrears of Norris.

He’s still leading the championship, but the possibility of being pipped in the final races of the season lingers strong.

Charles Leclerc – 9/10

A full podium of nines?

Charles Leclerc was finally able to put together a solid race weekend. The Ferrari driver has struggled heartily since he took victory at his home race in Monaco, but at Zandvoort, everything came together nicely: The car, the strategy, and the driver all meshed with ease.

Oscar Piastri – 7/10

Just like his teammate Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri suffered from some gnarly wheel spin at the start of the Dutch Grand Prix. Unlike his teammate, Piastri couldn’t recover from the tough start to make it to the podium. He looked set to mount a charge against Leclerc for a while, but it wasn’t to be.

Still, a fourth place is a solid finish for McLaren, and it adds critical points to the team’s Constructors’ Standing total.

Carlos Sainz – 7/10

Carlos Sainz felt he has more reasons to be optimistic about his Ferrari heading into the latter stages of the 2024 season now that Ferrari has sorted out a bit of its bouncing issues.

He had a shot at fighting for the podium before it all fell apart, but there’s still plenty to build on heading into Ferrari’s home race — especially since Sainz had some compelling wheel-to-wheel battles with the likes of Pierre Gasly.

Sergio Perez – 6/10

After the way this season has gone, Sergio Perez just needed a comfortable race that would see him settle into the middle of the top 10 in quiet, unspectacular fashion — and that’s just what Perez did. It wasn’t a great drive, but it was the kind of reliable pace that could keep the Mexican racer well within his contractual obligations.

George Russell – 7.5/10

George Russell was able to move up a position at the start of the race, but Mercedes just didn’t have the pace to allow him to sustain that momentum throughout the rest of the Dutch Grand Prix. He noted that the Mercedes was slow on every tyre compound, meaning the team will have an uphill battle to fight during the rest of 2024.

Lewis Hamilton – 8/10

A poor qualifying session and a penalty meant Lewis Hamilton had to fight hard to make it back into the top 10 — especially since he reported his car being too slow on the straights throughout the race – and fight hard is exactly what he did.

Pierre Gasly – 9.5/10

Well done, Pierre Gasly! At the start of the race, the Frenchman jumped two positions, and he held that overtaking momentum throughout the rest of the race, making impressive moves on Carlos Sainz and Lewis Hamilton.

Even a slow pit stop with a mechanic still in the way couldn’t keep Gasly out of the top 10. It was an impressive day for the Alpine driver.

Fernando Alonso – 7/10

Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso snuck in for the final point on offer at the Dutch Grand Prix, but the Spaniard nevertheless considered it a disappointing result, considering the team had hoped it had found a solution to its mediocre race pace.

More takeaways from the Dutch Grand Prix weekend:

? Lawrence Stroll gives Adrian Newey update after ‘cheeky’ Martin Brundle question

? Lando Norris aims cheeky radio message at Max Verstappen after crushing Dutch GP win

Nico Hulkenberg – 7.5/10

Had Nico Hulkenberg been able to crack the points in his Haas F1 machine, we might have a much different rating for the German driver. Still, we have to give him kudos for once again resoundingly demolishing his teammate, and for being just a hair’s breadth away from scoring a point.

Daniel Ricciardo – 6/10

VCARB just didn’t have the pace at the Dutch Grand Prix to give its drivers a shot at points. Daniel Ricciardo had some compelling battles throughout the race — and even though he pipped Lance Stroll for 12th just before the checkered flag flew, it wasn’t enough to help his team build its status in the championship.

Lance Stroll – 6/10

Like his Aston Martin teammate, Lance Stroll would have done well to score points in the Dutch Grand Prix. Unlike his Aston Martin teammate, Stroll couldn’t quite pull it off thanks to a speeding penalty in pit lane.

Alex Albon – 7.5/10

From a disqualification to a 14th place finish, Alex Albon gave the Dutch Grand Prix his all. Had he been able to maintain his eighth-place starting position, we might have seen a brilliant race from Albon; instead, the Dutch Grand Prix was an exercise in damage control.

Esteban Ocon – 5/10

In a race where his teammate was so impressive, Esteban Ocon’s difficult race looks particularly poor. The team didn’t give him much to work with strategy wise, and Ocon couldn’t do much with what they gave him.

Logan Sargeant – 7/10

It may not have been a stunning race for Logan Sargeant, but a 16th place finish after crashing his car, literally bursting into flames, missing qualifying, and starting from the rear of the field can be considered a fairly decent finish.

Yuki Tsunoda – 6.5/10

VCARB didn’t give much to Yuki Tsunoda strategy-wise during the Dutch Grand Prix. The Japanese driver had an uphill battle to climb, and his car just didn’t have the pace to make much happen. He gave it his all, but it wasn’t anywhere near enough.

Kevin Magnussen – 4/10

Kevin Magnussen’s race was already going to kick off on the back foot thanks to his pit lane start, but things only got worse when he locked up and ran directly into the gravel trap just as he hit the race track.

There was no recovering after that. Magnussen finished third from the bottom of the grid.

Valtteri Bottas – 5/10

With Magnussen starting from the pit lane and both Williams lining up at the back of the grid, Zandvoort promised a decent race for Sauber… but the cars just aren’t exactly quick enough to make that magic happen.

Valtteri Bottas was certainly there at the Dutch Grand Prix, though he didn’t do all that much other than turn clean laps.

Zhou Guanyu – 3/10

Like Bottas, Zhou Guanyu couldn’t make much happen behind the wheel of his Sauber. The Chinese racer’s inability to even keep the pace with this teammate on soft tyre earns him a firmly mediocre score.

Read next: Dutch GP: Lando Norris crushes Max Verstappen to inflict first defeat at Zandvoort