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It was an all-important win for Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel on Sunday at the Belgian Grand Prix, finishing just ahead of his championship rival Lewis Hamilton.
Vettel's win reduces the gap to 17 points behind Hamilton with 8 races remaining on the 2018 calendar.
Sunday's race was the first meeting since all 20 drivers and the 10 teams returned from their three-week summer break.
For Renault's Nico Hulkenberg, it looked as though he had not recovered from his summer vacation.
The German rammed into the back of Fernando Alonso's McLaren on turn 1 at the start of the race, Alonso's car then flew over Charles Leclerc and took out the Sauber driver in the process.
It was another dramatic race in this bizarre 2018 championship that we are witnessing in front of us.
How did the drivers get on in Sportskeeda's driver ratings? Let's find out.
#10 Williams
Lance Stroll - 13th
Lance Stroll might be counting down his last few races in a Williams car after his father, Lawrence Stroll, has put Force India back in business.
Now Lance's future may see the Canadian racing in a pink panther in just a matter of weeks.
And would anyone blame Stroll for getting a seat at Force India when we all know it is currently performing a lot better than Williams?
Driver's rating - 3/10
Sergey Sirotkin - 12th
Sergey Sirotkin may have to welcome Williams' reserve driver Robert Kubica in the next few days or weeks.
For Sirotkin and Williams, Sunday's race was another undramatic weekend as yet again the cars in white struggled to compete.
But there were positives after both Sirotkin and Stroll finished ahead of Stoffel Vandoorne and Brendon Hartley.
Driver's rating - 3/10
#9 Force India
Esteban Ocon - 6th
What a weekend it was for Force India but especially Esteban Ocon who experienced being in the top three in Saturday's qualifying.
The Frenchman's future in F1 is looking very tricky at the moment with rumors of Lance Stroll to take over his seat in a matter of weeks.
But last weekend Ocon reminded the F1 community of what he is capable of as a racer.
Driver's rating - 7/10
Sergio Perez - 5th
Sergio Perez was able to do his part for the team on both days by starting the race in 4th before out racing his teammate Ocon.
Perez looks to be the favourite out of the two to keep his seat at Force India after the new owners saved the future of the company.
With just the Italian Grand Prix this weekend, who knows what Force India can do in Monza...
Driver's rating - 7/10
#8 Sauber
Charles Leclerc - DNF
Charles Leclerc will no doubt be gutted with how Sunday's race went after Nico Hulkenberg's poor attempt at braking on the first corner cost Leclerc a DNF from the race.
Luckily the design of the halo looked to have saved Leclerc's life when Fernando Alonso's car flew over his head.
But with a starting grid position in 12th, points for Leclerc and the team were truly a missed opportunity.
Driver's rating - 1/10
Marcus Ericsson - 10th
For Sauber, at least one of their cars made it home in one piece.
Marcus Ericsson started the race just behind his teammate Leclerc in 13th position.
With the retirements of Leclerc, Kimi Raikkonen and Daniel Ricciardo - it certainly helped the Swede achieve a point by finishing in 10th place.
Driver's rating - 5/10
#7 Toro Rosso
Pierre Gasly - 9th
One of the most talked about drivers on the grid at the moment, there's nothing Pierre Gasly can't smile about.
The Frenchman will next year be racing alongside Max Verstappen at Red Bull for podiums and race wins. What is there not to look forward to for Mr Gasly?
Yet again on Sunday - Gasly achieved another points finish for Toro Rosso who will surely miss him at the end of the season.
Driver's rating - 6/10
Brendon Hartley - 14th
There have been so much driver transfers discussed over the summer break and one of the very few who have not been mentioned is Brendon Hartley.
The New Zealander's future in F1 looks very slim while his teammate has just been offered a promotion to the sister team.
Hartley failed yet again to outperform Gasly and also missed out on the points by finishing second to last behind the Williams.
Hartley is not making it easy for him out there.
Driver's rating - 3/10
#6 McLaren
Fernando Alonso - DNF
It's not the first time Alonso has gone out of a race in spectacular fashion on turn one of Spa Francorchamps.
Let's not forget the start of the 2012 race when Romain Grosjean went into Lewis Hamilton and Alonso himself - the Lotus just missed the Spaniard's head when there was no halo existence six years ago.
Not what Alonso was expecting again in his first race since announcing retirement from the sport come the end of the season.
Driver's rating - 1/10
Stoffel Vandoorne - 15th
Nothing beats racing on your homeland when most of the fans will be cheering on for the local hero.
But for Stoffel Vandoorne it was a weekend to forget as the McLaren driver finished last on Sunday.
The Belgian Grand Prix was a good opportunity for Vandoorne to remind his bosses at McLaren on why they should keep him for next year.
Instead, he finished last in Friday's practise sessions and in Saturday's qualifying.
Driver's rating - 1/10
#5 Haas
Romain Grosjean - 7th
Romain Grosjean has improved a lot since his embarrassing DNF at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix earlier this year.
Throughout the summer break, there have been no concerns over the Frenchman's future at Haas which look to be good signs for the former Lotus driver.
Driver's rating - 6/10
Kevin Magnussen - 8th
Kevin Magnussen had respectfully a quiet race on Sunday by starting on the grid in 9th position.
The Danish racer finished one step ahead in 8th place as his strong season continues after this time last year, most of his fellow drivers questioned and criticised his racing.
Driver's rating - 6/10
#4 Renault
Nico Hulkenberg - DNF
Nico Hulkenberg will want to forget Sunday's race in a hurry after being responsible for the big pile-up on the first corner of the opening lap.
The Hulk failed to brake in time when all 20 cars approached turn one as the German rammed into Alonso seeing the Spaniard fly over Leclerc and knock both drivers out of the race.
Alonso has called for Hulkenberg to be banned for one race but it all depends on whether the FIA listen to his recommendation.
Driver's rating - 1/10
Carlos Sainz Jr. - 11th
Sunday was Carlos Sainz Jr's first race since his announcement of joining McLaren in 2019.
Sainz began the race in 19th position but thanks to the early group of retirements, the Spaniard used the advantage to climb up the grid.
But Sainz finished just outside the points zone in 11th place.
Driver's rating - 4/10
#3 Red Bull
Max Verstappen - 3rd
A top three finish for Max Verstappen on the return of the 2018 F1 season, is exactly what Verstappen ordered.
The Dutchman is now seen as the new leader of the Red Bull Racing group after Daniel Ricciardo announced his future would be with Renault.
And what a start it has been for the 21-year-old.
Driver's rating - 7/10
Daniel Ricciardo - DNF
Another frustrating moment of the season for both Daniel Ricciardo and Red Bull when the Australian had to retire 28 laps into the race.
Ricciardo may have two wins under his belt so far this year but there have been a few DNFs to his name.
How 2018 could have been so much more different for the 29-year-old.
Driver's rating - 1/10
#2 Ferrari
Sebastian Vettel - 1st
Sebastian Vettel's number one priority in the first race back was to finish ahead of Lewis Hamilton and he did just that.
The first half of the season ended with Hamilton snatching wins in Germany and Hungary leaving Vettel 24 points behind the championship leader.
Vettel will be delighted to have already started the comeback with a win in Spa - Ferrari's first win on the famous circuit since 2009.
Driver's rating - 9/10
Kimi Raikkonen - DNF
Kimi Raikkonen's podium run is no more after a rare retirement from the race on Sunday after just 9 laps in.
Before the summer break, Raikkonen had enjoyed five back to back podium finishes for Ferrari.
It was an early puncture to Raikkonen's right rear tyre who got caught up with the events of turn one on the opening lap.
Driver's rating 1/10
#1 Mercedes
Lewis Hamilton - 2nd
Lewis Hamilton will have a few concerns after Sunday's race as Ferrari's pace was much quicker than Mercedes.
The Briton lost the lead to Vettel midway through the opening lap on the straight as the German showed no real struggle to get passed the championship leader.
Hamilton now plans to ruin Ferrari's homecoming party in Monza.
Driver's rating - 7/10
Valtteri Bottas - 4th
It was an epic drive from Valtteri Bottas who many may forget that the Fin started the race in 17th position only to go and just miss out on a top-three finish.
In another race, Bottas would receive driver of the day for his emphatic drive.
The Mercedes team will be happy knowing Bottas can do a similar performance from the back of the grid - as we have all seen Hamilton do it on so many occasions.
Driver's rating - 8/10
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