Chinese GP driver ratings: Antonelli shines, Hamilton impresses and Ocon falters

Kimi Antonelli steals the show with a historic Chinese GP victory, as George Russell and Lewis Hamilton shine on a dramatic day in Shanghai.

Some big names faltered, with surprising lows for Esteban Ocon, Sergio Perez, and non-starters shaping a dramatic ranking list.

Chinese Grand Prix 2026: Full Driver Ratings and Analysis

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Kimi Antonelli – 9.5

It wasn’t quite perfect; there was a late locked brake. But that aside, it was an extraordinary performance from Kimi Antonelli. He put himself in the right place in qualifying with pole position, but was then made to work for it in the opening stages with threats from the two Ferraris and his own teammate. He kept his head, and importantly maintained the lead when the early Safety Car emerged, giving him a key strategic advantage when it came to the pit stop. That afforded him the opportunity to pull clear and control the race, which he did, becoming the first Italian to win an F1 race in more than two decades. Plus, his skid exiting the hairpin on the final time was absolutely delectable.

George Russell – 9

He started second and finished second. On the surface, it was a simple job and not especially special. Only Russell was forced to work for it. Russell, swamped off the line, was forced to battle through Charles Leclerc’s and Lewis Hamilton’s Ferraris in the opening laps. While he broke free, the timing of the Safety Car, and the need for him to stack in pit lane (as well as others choosing to stay out) complicated his day. Patient when he needed to be, and able to use his car to put the moves in that were needed saw him climb his way back up to second. That required patience, experience, and pace. For that, Russell scores well, though not quite as well as his teammate.

Lewis Hamilton – 9

A maiden Ferrari podium is just rewards for a fine, aggressive drive from a man many had written off. We’ve seen glimpses that the Old Lewis is still in there, and in China he demonstrated that he remains a force. Good reactions and awareness resulted in track position off the line, and his experience allowed him to remain ahead of Charles Leclerc in the other Ferrari. It was gloriously elbows out at times and a reminder as to why he has won seven world championships. The Mercedes is a faster car, so to lose out to George Russell does nothing to diminish his accomplishment.

Charles Leclerc – 7

He looked to have had Lewis Hamilton covered, then came a lock up at the end of the back straight that opened the door for his Ferrari teammate. He faded a little in the closing stages to end the race three seconds adrift of Hamilton, having for a time threatened to skip away. It was a fun, combative drive – one that had an overture of internal superiority – but one he was ultimately unable to win. It wasn’t a bad drive, but it wasn’t as good as Lewis’.

Oliver Bearman – 9.5

Fifth is a huge result for Haas – a win of sorts for F1’s comparative David amongst a pit lane filled with Goliaths. Bearman’s performance was exemplary, building on a strong qualifying performance. But it wasn’t that alone. He had to avoid the spinning Isack Hadjar early and of course benefited from the lack of McLarens on the grid too. A clean pit stop helped his cause, as did retirements elsewhere, but for a car that perhaps lacked the outright pace, the young Brit remained a factor in the top six throughout with a controlled drive – there were no flashy, aggressive moves. It’s that lack of zing, the absence of a highlights-reel moment, that means he hasn’t scored higher.

Pierre Gasly – 8

A solid performance from Pierre Gasly delivered Alpine some well deserved points. In the midst of a sometimes chaotic midfield, the Frenchman remained disciplined and saw him hover towards the bottom end of the top 10 once the race settled down. He then steadily moved forward as others had issues or incidents, or simply faded as the race wore on, enabling him to pick up an important and well-deserved sixth place. He maximised what was available to him, and that’s exactly what the team needs right now. Had he got Bearman, he’d have scored a 9.

Liam Lawson – 8

Lawson was comparatively quiet for much of the Chinese GP, rising from 12th on the grid to seventh at the flag. Some of that was the result of misfortune elsewhere, but also a byproduct of good tyre management. There were no clear errors or missteps, allowing him to deliver points in a race devoid of a headline moment. A clean performance, exactly what Alan Permane and the Racing Bulls team was after.

Isack Hadjar – 5

An opening lap spin blotted Isack Hadjar’s copybook early. A solo error, it was costly as he plummeted down the order to compromise his race from Lap 1. While he recovered well, and saw the flag in eighth, there was more on offer for the Frenchman and, driving for Red Bull, he should have delivered.

Carlos Sainz – 7

Points for Williams at this point of the season are a mark of success. It’s been tough, but Sainz drove a strong race to pick up points in ninth. He benefited from the non-starting McLarens and Max Verstappen’s late retirement, and he was without the pace to make strong inroads, but he held on in the latter stages to deliver a good result for an under-performing car.

Franco Colapinto – 8

For a time, Franco Colapinto was a serious chance of being driver of the day. That of course went to maiden race winner Kimi Antonelli, but if it weren’t for a clumsy move from Esteban Ocon, the race might have offered much more for the Argentinian. Once he’d been punted, Colapinto never full recovered. Nonetheless, for what was in his control, he delivered well and still managed to deliver points for Alpine. A fine performance.

Nico Hulkenberg – 6

Audi just didn’t quite have it in China, but to see the flag in itself is an accomplishment – Hulkenberg didn’t even start in Australia, if you recall. His race was clean, without incidents of note, but the car simply didn’t have the pace needed to deliver more in terms of results.

Arvid Lindblad – 6

There was no repeat of the Sprint collision from Saturday as Lindblad saw the flag in 12th. Having started 15th, that suggests a positive race, only it fails to account for the attrition ahead of him. He was well behind Liam Lawson, who has to be the benchmark, but equally he stayed out of trouble when many didn’t. Laps, at this point of his career are king, and so on that metric alone that it was a decent drive, if not brilliant. The key will be improving his qualifying (though in fairness, more laps in practice would help that).

Valtteri Bottas – 6

A lap down and towards the back of the field, Bottas at least saw the flag for Cadillac. He had the better of teammate Sergio Perez, who is his only competitor at this point, and managed the race as you would expect a veteran to. There was that moment with Perez on the opening lap as the Mexican misjudged his braking, but in terms of net cost there was none – or very little – for Bottas. And for a team this early in its development curve, that’s critical.

Esteban Ocon – 3

The clash with Franco Colapinto was clumsy, and he was rightly penalised for it. To his credit, Ocon took ownership and apologised post-race, but for a driver of his experience, in a race like that when points were on the table, it’s inexcusable. While his instincts were good – to attack while Colapinto’s tyres were cold – the execution left a lot to be desired. He got to the flag, which is important in terms of data, but he should have been much higher in the order, especially on a day when his far less experienced teammate Oliver Bearman was fifth.

Sergio Perez – 3

China was not a weekend that will rank highly for Sergio Perez. While Cadillac was not expected to deliver great things, tangling with teammate Valtteri Bottas would have been close to the top of the list of things not to do. His Lap 1 move was below what should be expected of a veteran, especially one employed primarily to help the team gather data and learn.

Max Verstappen – 5

A mid-pack starting place was unusual enough, and that was not helped by a sluggish start that saw him lose places off the line. From there, it was a recovery drive but without the sort of race-winning machinery he’s grown accustomed to in recent seasons. He’d recovered to sixth, which was probably the best he was going to get, when he suffered a powertrain issue. Verstappen had been struggling for balance throughout the weekend, but it was an underwhelming exit for what had been a somewhat anonymous performance from the driver regarded as the current benchmark in F1.

Fernando Alonso – 5

Adrian Newey suggested vibrations caused the drivers to suffer, and might force them to retire. His pre-Australian GP words proved prophetic with Alonso having to stop amid discomfort in the car. Onboard footage showed him doing what he could to get some feeling in his hands, but even the combative Spaniard eventually had to give up. Before that, his impact on the race was negligible, meaning he scores modestly as he didn’t put a foot wrong, was simply hamstrung by his Aston Martin.

Lance Stroll – 5

Reliability issues meant Lance Stroll’s Aston Martin conked out after nine laps to draw an early Safety Car. In those early laps, the Canadian stayed out of trouble but also offered little for us to gauge how well he performed as a driver. As such, like Alonso in the other Aston, he gets a par score. He wasn’t good, he wasn’t bad; he was barely there.

Oscar Piastri, Lando Norris, Gabriel Bortoleto, Alex Albon – 0

A grand total of four drivers failed to even start in China, and so we can hardly afford them a driver rating. Their score of zero then is no reflection on them, but acknowledgement that they could do nothing in Shanghai, and can only hope for a better weekend (and perhaps a racing lap for Oscar Piastri) in Japan.

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