2024 F1 Las Vegas Grand Prix driver ratings

The Mercedes pair of George Russell and Lewis Hamilton get another one-two finish in the RacingNew365 driver ratings for the 2024 Las Vegas Grand Prix.

Newly-crowned F1 drivers' champion Max Verstappen unsurprisingly fares well, but those closest to him do not.

Red Bull driver line-up implications are all the rage, as is the race for sixth place in the constructors' standings.

Check out the full RacingNews365 driver ratings from the weekend in Sin City below.

The top five

George Russell - 9.5

Russell barely put a foot wrong all weekend in Sin City. The British driver was in the top three in each practice session and clinically delivered pole position whilst his team-mate faltered.

He managed the grand prix itself with poise and nous, developing a race-winning lead during the first two stints, something that allowed him to ease home to the chequered flag as Hamilton closed in.

With Russell assuming the mantle of Mercedes team leader next season, performances like this will hold him in good stead.

Lewis Hamilton - 8.5

The win was there for the taking in Nevada. However, a clumsy Q3 consigned Hamilton to the fifth-row of the grid, having found imperious form up to that point.

Fluffing qualifying did afford the 39-year-old the opportunity to work through the field during the race. It was a satisfying drive to watch, let alone conduct from the cockpit itself.

And his reeling in Russell over the final stint, despite being on older tyres, underlined his dominance over the weekend. A late mistake ultimately put pay to his chase, but he closed out a brilliant result for Mercedes.

Max Verstappen - 8

A champion's weekend from the Dutchman, underscoring his progression as a driver and the growing maturity that allowed him to manage a difficult title campaign to success.

He drew something from an RB20 that was nowhere at the start of the round in Las Vegas to out-qualify championship rival Lando Norris and line up fifth, before approaching the race with aplomb and composure.

He only did what he had to do and nothing more, a concept that would have been alien to a younger and less-seasoned Verstappen. Performances like this were the lynchpin of his fourth F1 drivers' championship.

Pierre Gasly - 7.5

You have to feel for Gasly. Whilst he was falling short of replicating his stunning qualifying exploits in the race, the Frenchman was cruelly robbed of what likely would have been a result that kept Alpine in control of the fight for sixth in the constructors' championship.

His power unit failure on lap 16 ended his night early, so we are left with a case of what might have been.

Nevertheless, Gasly proved over the weekend that if Alpine is to persevere and ultimately fend off Haas and RB, it will be on his coattails. 

Yuki Tsunoda - 7.5

This spot easily could have gone to Nico Hulkenberg, who achieved the same score as Tsunoda and Gasly above for lifting his team back into control of the aforementioned fight for sixth in the constructors' championship.

The German had a stronger race than Tsunoda, but the latter's performance within the context of the ensuing fight for the second Red Bull seat is pertinent.

The Japanese driver impressively put his RB between the McLarens in qualifying and by delivering two points, not only kept his team from falling off the back of its fight with Alpine and Haas, but showcased why it should perhaps be him alongside Verstappen next year.

Not only has he scored double the points Liam Lawson has since the New Zealander assumed Daniel Ricciardo's seat, he has also equalled the output of Sergio Perez in a Red Bull over that period.

He beat both in Las Vegas to thoroughly reinsert himself into the conversation if the Milton Keynes team does opt to make a change over the winter.

The bottom five

Lando Norris 4.5

It might be harsh to rank Norris lower than Oscar Piastri, given he had a better weekend than the Australian, who picked up a penalty at the start of the race and qualified a row behind.

However, there was very little to choose between the McLaren team-mates and within the context of Norris' fading drivers' championship fight, he needed to do much more than he delivered in Las Vegas.

The MCL38 was a pale imitation of itself over the Sin City weekend, but the British driver did nevertheless get out-qualified by Verstappen and then fail to offer any kind of challenge during the race. His title battle ends not with a bang, but with a whimper.

Esteban Ocon - 4.5

Finishing P17 looks worse than it was for the Frenchman. Alpine's calamitous pit stop error cost the Frenchman dear, having lined up P11 at the start.

That said, he fell short of his team-mate and yet again was adrift from where he needs to be if he is to help Alpine secure sixth in the constructors' championship.

It was not a complete disaster, but it was a less-than-average weekend for the 28-year-old - and his score reflects that. 

Franco Colapinto - 4

The Argentine's qualifying crash was the definition of 'rookie error'. It was unnecessary and a mistake that no F1 driver should be making regardless of experience, and it proved costly.

Not only did his FW46 need a near-complete rebuild - something Williams can seldom afford right now after a spate of similar incidents, from Alexander Albon as well - but having to start from the pit lane ended any chance Colapinto had of scoring points.

He finished P14, but had he started there, as he would have done at the least, he surely would have been in the hunt.

Valtteri Bottas - 3.5

The Finnish driver has rarely been out-performed by his team-mate this season, but in Las Vegas Zhou Guanyu comprehensively beat him.

Bottas was knocked out in Q1 and ended the race last on the road, whereas Zhou reached Q2 and held steady from P13 on the grid to finish there.

His time in F1 is drawing to a close, and the highlight of his weekend in Nevada was announcing a clothing activation that will donate some of the proceeds to charities for families who unexpectedly experience job loss. Funny, but also a damning indictment.

Sergio Perez - 3

Another Q1 elimination for Sergio Perez. Recovering to P10 is besides the point. He is not delivering, and has not since being granted a stay of Red Bull execution over the summer.

He has fallen at the first qualifying hurdle sixth times in 2024, equal to the number team-mate Verstappen has experienced since entering F1, in 2015.

In the past six rounds, he has scored nine points whilst the Dutchman has taken 100. The Las Vegas Grand Prix was a microcosm of why Red Bull needs to move off him, but Helmut Marko has confirmed the shareholders will decide and well, cash is king.