1. Kimi Antonelli
With six wins and six pole positions, Kimi is clearly at the top of this list. Leading the championship by a comfortable 40 plus point margin over Lewis Hamilton and absolutely shredding his teammate, he has clearly been the best driver so far this year.
Even with some reliability issues costing him major points throughout the campaign, Kimi has continued to deliver and build a commanding championship lead. Whether it’s qualifying pace or getting the job done on Sunday, he has consistently been the man to beat.
At the halfway point of the season, Kimi Antonelli is clearly the driver to beat this year.
2. Lewis Hamilton
With one win and five podiums this year, Lewis Hamilton has been Mr. Consistent. Whether it’s brave three stop strategies like we saw in Spain or, yes, getting some help from a timely safety car, Lewis has continued to maximize his car and take advantage of every opportunity that comes his way.
Now in his second year in red, Hamilton is having a standout season and showing that he still has plenty left in the tank. He currently sits second behind Kimi, and with half a season still to go, this championship is far from finished.
Don’t be surprised if Lewis starts closing that gap to Kimi as the second half of the season begins. 🏎️🔥
3. Lando Norris
Lando Norris ends the halfway point of the season on a high after taking the win at the Hungaroring. The reigning World Champion has battled reliability issues throughout the year, while McLaren have been unable to fully capitalize on the Merc engine that has been so dominant this season.
Even through those struggles, Lando has managed to put together one win and three podiums so far. The World Champion continues to prove that he is a standout driver and that last year’s title was well deserved.
If McLaren can sort out some of their issues in the second half of the season, don’t count Lando out from adding a few more wins before the year is over.
4. George Russell
As the only driver on the grid besides Kimi with multiple wins, taking victories in Australia and Austria, George Russell has still had some big moments this year. But overall, George just hasn’t quite been himself.
Maybe the car isn’t suiting his driving style, or maybe the looming threat of Max potentially coming to Merc in the coming years is having an effect. Either way, something just hasn’t completely clicked.
George isn’t out of the title fight by any stretch of the imagination, but I don’t believe this has been a great season for him. Reliability issues certainly haven’t helped, and the terrible team call in Monaco only made things worse.
There is still plenty of season left, though. George just needs to keep his head down and drive.
5. Charles Leclerc
With one win at Silverstone and four podiums, the Prince of Ferrari has been driving well this year. Something about Monaco seems to do something to Charles, though, and the added pressure of his home race certainly doesn’t help when you end up putting it in the wall.
Outside of that, Charles has put together a super solid season. His drive at Silverstone was especially impressive, and even without the help from the safety car ending, I believe he still would have won that race.
Overall, it has been a strong first half of the season for Leclerc, and with the way he has been driving, I expect a few more wins from the Prince of Ferrari before the year is over. 🏎️🔥
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