F1 drivers: Best of the rest

• It is common to have your driving skills overlooked when you do not win the race or place first on the podium.
• We look at the “best of the rest” in F1 drivers.

It is common to have your driving skills overlooked when you do not win the race or place first on the podium but keep in mind that you must be among the world’s greatest drivers to compete in Formula 1.

Even if you are competing for a backmarker, you will have invested many hours in go-karts, single-seaters, and the simulator used by your team.

We look at the “best of the rest” in F1 drivers.

Esteban Ocon

Esteban Ocon. Photo/Autosport

Esteban Ocon is a man who rarely comes up while discussing the best drivers in the sport. The Frenchman should be renowned for his improvement if there is one thing. He finished seventh in his first full season with Force India, but after being fired after Lawrence Stroll bought the team in 2019, Ocon’s F1 career appeared to be in serious jeopardy.

After sitting out for a year, he was given another shot with Renault, this time teaming up with Daniel Ricciardo. He would place 12th that year, including on the podium in Sakhir, and one position better in the 2021 season, which also marked the year of his maiden Formula One victory.

One of his rarest F1 accomplishments was accomplished by him in 2022 when he went up to P8 and defeated teammate Fernando Alonso in points over the course of a season.

At the age of 26, Ocon has transformed into a sort of Mr Reliable. He averages a P9 result throughout the course of his career, and in 2023 he added a podium finish in Monaco to his resume.

The Frenchman’s performances over the past several years have demonstrated how brilliant he truly is, but it is doubtful that he will win a move to a team like Ferrari, or Red Bull, or even return to the one that developed him in Mercedes.

Pierre Gasly

Pierre Gasly. Photo/Sky Sports

Pierre Gasly is another man who made it out of the jarring fall out of the Red Bull pit door. The Frenchman revived his career with AlphaTauri after leaving the team midway through the 2019 season, earning the team’s first and only victory since their rebranding as well as a podium finish in the 2021 Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

However, when AlphaTauri’s performance declined after the 2022 rules, Gasly reached his limit at Red Bull’s sister company and began to look for other opportunities.

A transfer to Alpine later took the place of the intended one-year extension, and Gasly has had trouble getting settled there.

He had consecutive P9 finishes in the first two races, which were followed by two insignificant grand prix, but he now seems to be finding his form, as seen by his P4 qualifying finish in Spain until impending penalties dropped him.

Where Gasly falls on the skill scale for F1 drivers is unclear, but even if he is a step down from the top tier, many teams would be happy to have him in their garage.

Nico Hülkenberg

It appeared as though the German’s F1 career was over after the 2019 season after being benched in favor of Esteban Ocon.

He was 33 years old, held the regrettable record for the most races without a podium, and faced retirement from the sport he had joined nine years earlier.

Hülkenberg maintained interest through reserve driver positions at Racing Point before joining Aston Martin. As a result, Hülkenberg made a few super-sub outings, particularly at the 70th Anniversary Grand Prix in 2020, where he started P3 and finished P7. As a result, when Haas was searching for an experienced driver who still held his super license, Hülkenberg emerged as a top contender.

However, expectations were still rather modest. Many people believed that Hülkenberg would lose out to Kevin Magnussen, who had shone in his own return season in 2022 since the attention was more on Mick Schumacher’s exit, but so far, that hasn’t been the case.

Magnussen has been outscored by Hülkenberg six points to two. Hülkenberg is usually seen fighting for a top-10 position, and he has generally outperformed everyone’s expectations with the exception of those in the Haas garage.

Alex Albon

Alex Albon. Photo by Sky Sports

Discussing Red Bull drivers, Alex Albon is another individual that merits inclusion on this list. The British-Thai racer was one of several who endured the humiliating departure from Red Bull, but like Pierre Gasly, he has recovered and is again back in the saddle.

His most notable contribution during his year as a Red Bull reserve driver was a claim that Red Bull had him reenact the historic Verstappen-Hamilton collision at Silverstone as part of their plea before he returned to full-time racing with Williams in 2022.

Since then, he has unquestionably restored his image in a vehicle that sometimes lacked the resources to compete.