Max Verstappen wins F1 rivals accolade as Lewis Hamilton suffers seismic fall

Max Verstappen has secured his fifth successive driver-of-the-year accolade in Formula 1's exclusive peer voting system, despite falling agonisingly short of a fifth consecutive drivers' title in 2025.

The anonymous poll, conducted amongst the grid — with all but four drivers participating — saw the Red Bull driver edge out newly-crowned world champion Lando Norris for top honours.

Using the standard F1 points allocation system, drivers ranked their top 10 colleagues, with Verstappen earning 25 points from six different ballots to claim victory.

Norris, who secured his maiden championship after a thrilling season-long battle, finished runner-up in the peer rankings for the second consecutive year.

The McLaren driver's title triumph came after withstanding intense pressure from both Verstappen and team-mate Oscar Piastri during a compelling campaign.

George Russell claimed third place, rising one position from last year's standings. The Mercedes driver's exceptional season featured two grand prix victories and seven additional podium finishes, demonstrating consistent performance throughout the year.

Piastri occupied fourth position, improving one spot despite his championship challenge fading during the autumn months. The Australian had led the standings by 34 points at one stage before his form dipped significantly.

Charles Leclerc rounded out the top five, dropping two places despite extracting maximum performance from Ferrari's SF-25. The Monegasque driver secured seven podiums during a challenging campaign that saw the Scuderia finish fourth in the constructors' standings.

Carlos Sainz maintained sixth position after a remarkable recovery at Williams. Following a difficult start at Grove, the Spaniard delivered two podiums during an impressive second half of the season.

Fernando Alonso climbed two places to seventh, with the two-time world champion producing standout drives in Aston Martin's AMR25.

Alex Albon secured eighth after his finest campaign with Williams, whilst rookies Oliver Bearman and Isack Hadjar completed the top 10, earning recognition for their impressive debut seasons.

Pierre Gasly narrowly missed inclusion despite 10 qualifying appearances in the third sector with Alpine's challenging A525.

Notably, seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton failed to appear in the rankings for the first time since the poll's inception, reflecting his difficult debut season at Ferrari.

The four drivers who did not take part were: Hamilton, Nico Hulkenberg, Lance Stroll and Yuki Tsunoda.

Check out the full ranking below! [HERE] is a link to the 2024 standings.