RacingNews365's F1 Spanish Grand Prix driver ratings

The Spanish Grand Prix saw Max Verstappen prevail ahead of Lando Norris in a closely-contested tie.

Rivals of Red Bull have upped their pace at recent events, with every race weekend now looking like a toss-up for who could come out on top.

Those who finished on the podium impressed, but others further down the order endured a more challenging weekend.

How did all of the drivers fare across the event? RacingNews365 has weighed in with our driver ratings.

The top five

Max Verstappen - 9.5

For the first time since mid-2022, Verstappen has gone three grand prix weekends without a pole position. However, margins were close and in the race, the Dutchman made the difference with an early overtake for the lead en route to sealing another race victory in pursuit of a fourth title.

Lewis Hamilton - 9.0

It's been a while since Hamilton has walked away from a weekend with a satisfying result, but he managed to do so in Spain. Out-qualifying his team-mate and perfecting his race strategy, Hamilton claimed his first podium of the campaign - a welcome boost amid a difficult final campaign with Mercedes.

Lando Norris - 8.5

Norris is riding a wave of confidence, and that shone through on Saturday when he claimed his second career pole position. However, a botched start and an inability to clear Russell in the opening stint dented his chances at victory. A second place result is a welcome consolation, but there was evident disappointment at McLaren after the chequered flag over what could have been.

George Russell - 8.5

Benefitting from the slipstream on the opening lap of the race, Russell pulled off a spectacular move on Norris and Verstappen to move to the head of the pack. However, pushing early on his Soft tyres forced him to pit early and resulted in a less-than-optimal strategy but managing to hold onto fourth and stay ahead of the Ferraris offered an additional boost to Mercedes.

Pierre Gasly - 8

For the second race in a row, Alpine scored points with both of its drivers while Gasly crossed the line in ninth on both occasions. As the French manufacturer recovers from its difficult start to the season, Gasly enjoyed a clean weekend to bag valuable points for the team.

The bottom five

Carlos Sainz 5

It was an overall messy weekend for Sainz, and indeed Ferrari. Qualifying in sixth place with agonisingly close gaps separating Ferrari and Mercedes, Sainz went aggressive early on and burned out his Soft tyres after making contact with team-mate Charles Leclerc. The Spaniard conceded his lack of tyre management likely cost a shot at a podium result.

Yuki Tsunoda - 4

RB's pace mysteriously disappeared in Spain, with both Tsunoda and Ricciardo dropping out of qualifying at the end of Q1. In the race, Tsunoda struggled with his car and went backwards to cap off a difficult weekend for the Japanese driver.

Valtteri Bottas - 4

As he looks to place himself in contention for a 2025 F1 seat, the Spain outing was not a favourable one for Bottas. Compromised by a less-than-ideal strategy, Bottas slipped down the order while team-mate Zhou Ganyu progressed forward.

Sergio Perez - 3

Having started the current F1 campaign in strong fashion, Perez's slump in form greatly mirrors those which have been present throughout his career at Red Bull. Although he managed to advance into the final stage of qualifying for the first time since Miami, the Mexican only rose to eighth after starting 11th with a grid penalty. With Red Bull's rivals quickly closing in, Perez must pick up his form or risk putting his team at risk in the championship fight.

Logan Sargeant - 2

Nothing is going Sargeant's way - another dismal weekend in Spain saw him qualify at the rear of the field, pick up a three-place grid penalty and get lapped twice. Struggling with the performance of his car floor, Saegeant's weekend was spent firmly at the back of the field.