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The Bahrain GP produced a Ferrari 1-2 as the Italian team kickstarted their championship campaign with a flawless first race of the season. The race saw some impressive performances up and down the grid. Concurrently though, some drivers could not live up to the expectations.
Having said that, let's take out our report card and see how every driver fared at the Bahrain GP.
2022 F1 Bahrain GP: Driver ratings
Mercedes
Lewis Hamilton (Started: 5th, Finished: 3rd)
Driver rating: 8.5
Lewis Hamilton did what he always does best. Keeps himself in the game, does not get overly aggressive, and puts himself in a competitive situation. And then, in the end, pressure Sergio Perez when a podium was on the table.
Hamilton performed at a very high level at the Bahrain GP and didn't do too much wrong.
George Russell (Started: 9th, Finished: 4th)
Driver Rating: 7
It was a solid first weekend for George Russell. He was more or less on the pace of his illustrious teammate throughout the weekend. He did make the mistake in qualifying that cost him at least 3 places on the grid, but overall Russell was more or less where Bottas was in the same cockpit and performed slightly better in the race.
Red Bull
Max Verstappen (Started: 2th, Finished: DNF)
Driver Rating: 9
The missed podium and maybe even a win is going to be frustrating when Max Verstappen recollects the Bahrain GP. Looking back at the weekend, however, it's hard to say too many bad things about his performances. Ferrari did appear to be the better car at the Bahrain GP and a second place was probably the best he could have done if not for the late DNF.
Sergio Perez (Started: 4th, Finished: DNF)
Driver Rating: 7.5
It was a much better weekend for Perez if we use the 2021 season as the benchmark. The Mexican didn't mess up his qualifying and was fighting Carlos Sainz for the podium until the safety car period that triggered Red Bull's implosion.
Ferrari
Charles Leclerc (Started: 1st, Finished: 1st)
Driver Rating: 9.5
Charles Leclerc showed that he belonged at the top in the Bahrain GP. Beating Max Verstappen in a tense qualifying session was the foundation over which he built his race performance as well.
After fending off Verstappen at the start of the race and keeping the Red Bull driver behind him after the first stop, Leclerc raced with control as he systematically streaked away from the Ferrari driver after that point.
Carlos Sainz (Started: 3rd, Finished: 2nd)
Driver Rating: 8.5
Carlos Sainz was the perfect supporting cast for Charles Leclerc throughout the weekend. He narrowly missed out on pole and lined up third for the race. During the race, he was able to hold off Sergio Perez for the podium and then in the end benefitted from Max Verstappen's DNF to pick up the second position in the race.
Not as good as his teammate, but the Spaniard still put together a solid weekend for the team.
McLaren
Lando Norris (Started: 13th, Finished:15th)
Driver Rating: 6
There's not much to say about Lando Norris' race. The young Brit dragged his car out of Q1 on Saturday to qualify 13th on the grid. Shockingly, however, he slipped down the grid in the race and finished 15th.
The car at Lando's disposal is simply not competitive enough for points at the moment and the team will be looking to turn that around in the upcoming races.
Daniel Ricciardo (Started: 18th, Finished: 14th)
Driver Rating: 5
Not much to say about Daniel Ricciardo's weekend either. The Australian was still getting used to the car by the time we reached qualifying and the McLaren driver was eliminated in Q1.
The race was deceptively better as he made up a few places but was primarily hindered by McLaren's lack of speed as he could not make much progress.
Alpine
Fernando Alonso (Started: 8th, Finished: 9th)
Driver Rating: 6
The Bahrain GP was probably the first time in Fernando Alonso's career that he had to give way to his teammate three times in a single race. The Spaniard had a great qualifying session as he lined up his Alpine in 8th. The race, however, was an entirely different situation as Alonso suffered from high tire degradation and had to yield to his teammate every time they made their pitstop.
Esteban Ocon (Started: 11th, Finished: 7th)
Driver Rating: 7
It was a strong start to the season for Esteban Ocon. The Frenchman was beaten in qualifying by his teammate but the Bahrain GP showed why Ocon wasn't able to match Alonso's time on Saturday.
Ocon had set up the car, primarily keeping the race in mind. He was able to preserve his tires much better and made his way through the field to finish an impressive 7th.
AlphaTauri
Pierre Gasly (Started: 10th, Finished: DNF)
Driver Rating: 7
Pierre Gasly dragged every ounce of performance possible from the car to qualify 10th in the race. He was performing even better in the race and was on his way to a points finish until his car turned into a barbecue.
It was a solid performance at the Bahrain GP for the Frenchman as he once again showed why he deserves to be in a better seat on the grid.
Yuki Tsunoda (Started: 16th, Finished: 8th)
Driver Rating: 7
First of all, let's admit one thing. Yuki Tsunoda was not as brilliant as Gasly if we look at the weekend in its entirety. During the Bahrain GP, however, Tsunoda was something else. The young Japanese driver qualified 16th in the race and made his way through the field to finish 8th in what was one of the more impressive drives of the race.
Aston Martin
Nico Hulkenberg (Started: 17th, Finished: 17th)
Driver Rating: 6.5
Nico Hulkenberg got the call on short notice for the Bahrain GP and had no prior experience driving this new generation of cars. That, however, did not stop him from qualifying higher than his teammate on Saturday.
The race went as predicted as Hulkenberg's rustiness and lack of race fitness were quite visible as he slowly dropped down the order in the end.
Lance Stroll (Started: 19th, Finished: 12th)
Driver Rating: 5.5
On the face of it, the progress from 19th to 12th in the Bahrain GP should look impressive. If you factor in the fortuitous timing of the safety car and the Red Bull implosion, however, it pales in significance.
It was a solid race from Lance Stroll, where his direct competition was a driver who had not raced in more than 18 months and wasn't race fit. A lot of work still needs to be done to extract more from the car and the driver at Aston Martin.
Alfa Romeo
Valtteri Bottas (Started: 6th, Finished: 6th)
Driver Rating: 7
It was a fairytale run from Valtteri Bottas. He qualified 6th for the Bahrain GP out of nowhere and then during the race he made his way through the field after a poor start to the race.
The 6th place finish was a little fortuitous as he benefitted from a safety car as well as the three retirements. All in all, however, it was a solid performance at the Bahrain GP for the Finn.
Guanyu Zhou (Started: 15th, Finished: 10th)
Driver Rating: 7
It was a solid job from the young Chinese driver. He was there or thereabouts when it came to the ultimate speed of the car as he followed the lead of his experienced teammate. Points on debut are a bonus as Guanyu Zhou tries to shed the image of a pay driver in F1.
Haas
Kevin Magnussen (Started: 7th, Finished: 5th)
Driver Rating: 8.5
Welcome back, Kevin Magnussen! This is exactly what fairytales are made of! Just a couple of months back, it would have been preposterous to consider Magnussen driving in F1. It would have been an even bigger joke to consider him finishing fifth at the Bahrain GP. Yet, this was what the Dane was able to achieve.
It was a solid reminder of how good a driver Magnussen truly is as he showed his experience over the inexperienced Mick Schumacher at Haas.
Mick Schumacher (Started: 12th, Finished: 11th)
Driver Rating: 6
The Bahrain GP should be an eye-opening event for Mick Schumacher. He was completely outclassed by his teammate and that is something that the young German had not experienced yet in F1.
Finishing outside the top-10 in a race where your teammate finished 5th is not how you start a season. Kevin Magnussen is an able benchmark for Schumacher but if he isn't able to beat him soundly then the future does not look bright for the young German.
Williams
Alex Albon (Started: 14th, Finished: 15th)
Driver Rating: 6.5
Alex Albon was pretty impressive with how he drove on his return to F1. Escaping Q1 without elimination was a surprise, but that just shows where Williams is in terms of the pecking order.
Albon tried to hang in there in the race but will ultimately finish 15th in the race. It was a strong start to the season for the Red Bull academy driver.
Nicholas Latifi (Started: 20th, Finished: 16th)
Driver Rating: 5
It was a disappointing Bahrain GP for Nicholas Latifi. The Williams driver was exposed yet again as Alex Albon, in his very first race with the team, was able to beat Latifi comfortably. With Nikita Mazepin chucked out of the grid, F1 fans might turn their eyes to Latifi as the other driver that's part of F1 only because of the money he brings with him.
So finally, here are our driver ratings for the 2022 F1 Bahrain GP:
