F1 power rankings: Who were the top 10 drivers of 2023?

The FIA’s prize-giving gala may have come and gone, but that doesn’t mean it’s too late to hand out our own accolades to Formula 1’s most impressive drivers. Using the series’ current points-scoring system, each of theScore’s Formula 1’s editors voted on the top 10 pilots of the 2023 season.

Here are the results.

1. Max Verstappen, Red Bull

Points from votes: 125

What a shocker: Verstappen comes in at the No. 1 spot and collected all of our first-place votes. His 2023 campaign defied history, coming as close to a perfect season as Formula 1 has seen in its current era. With a record-breaking 19 wins, the three-time world champion ensured that the Dutch national anthem is hardwired into all our brains.

2. Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin

Points from votes: 87

Alonso’s still got it. The 42-year-old finished fourth, his best placement since 2014, and had the highest point differential on the grid, a 125-point increase from 2022. The Spaniard also out-qualified teammate Lance Stroll 19 times, notched six podium finishes in his first eight races, and became one of only six drivers to earn 100 podiums in their F1 career. Not a bad inaugural season with Aston Martin.

3. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes

Points from votes: 69

The Mercedes garage hasn’t been quiet about its discontent with the W14. But Hamilton still managed to speed ahead and finish top 10 in every race but two – his forced retirement in Qatar and his disqualification in Texas. It wasn’t a season to remember for the seven-time world champion, but 2023 showed that regardless of a car’s inconsistency, Hamilton and a Mercedes is still a strong combination.

4. Lando Norris, McLaren

Points from votes: 63

The season didn’t start so well for the Papayas. In McLaren’s first eight races, Norris and Oscar Piastri both struggled, finishing with an average grid position of 13.1 and 13.3, respectively. Austria marked Norris’ turning point; he earned points in every subsequent race exempting his retirement in Las Vegas and finished an average position of 5.0. With six P2 finishes among his seven podiums and his sixth-place spot in the drivers’ championship his highest yet, Norris solidified his status as one of next season’s front-runners.

5. Charles Leclerc, Ferrari

Points from votes: 50

It was a volatile year for the Monegasque driver. Between reliability woes to start the season and a general lack of comfort with Ferrari’s SF-23, Leclerc looked far from the early title challenger seen last year. That all changed in the schedule’s final stretch as the Ferrari driver closed with eight top-five finishes over his last 11 races, including four podiums.

6. Carlos Sainz, Ferrari

Points from votes: 44

Sainz pulled off what seemed impossible this season: beating Red Bull and Max Verstappen in Singapore, earning his second grand prix win in the process. Singapore wasn’t Sainz’s only major accomplishment – the “Smooth Operator” led 77 laps this season, bested only by the Red Bull pairing, and secured a hard-fought P3 in Monza, Ferrari’s home race. Sainz was relatively dependable in 2023, finishing 5.7 on average – consistent with his placement on this list.

7. George Russell, Mercedes

Points from votes: 34

Russell appeared to be in no-man’s-land for most of the season, lost in the shuffle of an ever-changing upper-midfield scrap. When he did get involved in some high-stakes affairs, he either tripped over his own feet (see Singapore, Montreal) or encountered bad luck (see Qatar, Zandvoort). While his year featured a disappointing amount of mistakes, Russell did put together a number of impressive – if incomplete – drives, and some of those flaws were no fault of his own.

8. Oscar Piastri, McLaren

Points from votes: 28

If there’s one main conclusion to draw from Piastri’s rookie year, it’s that he’s got superstar potential. The former Formula 2 and 3 champion showed why he was such a heralded prospect by holding his own against teammate Norris and the rest of the grid once McLaren upgraded its machinery. The Australian was also only one of two non-Red Bull drivers to score a victory this season after winning the Qatar sprint.

9. Sergio Perez, Red Bull

Points from votes: 16

Though his two wins were enough to crack our rankings, Perez left a lot on the table as he struggled to get to grips with the RB19 for most of the season. The veteran scored just 13 top-five finishes and made an identical number of appearances in Q3 in 2023. While it doesn’t help that Checo’s teammate is three-time world champion Verstappen, Perez barely did enough to quiet speculation over his future at Red Bull.

10. Alex Albon, Williams

Points from votes: 9

It’s been a perfect marriage between Albon and Williams as the Thai pilot continues quietly racking up brilliant drives for the iconic outfit. His 2023 was arguably his best season in the series yet as he recorded a 22-0 thrashing of rookie teammate Logan Sargeant, but that wasn’t close to his most notable accomplishment: Albon dragged Williams to seventh place in the constructors’ championship almost single-handedly with 27 points and seven top-10 finishes.