F1 Power Rankings: Top 10 Drivers After Monaco Grand Prix

The 2019 Monaco Grand Prix was a thrilling duel between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen, with the contest eventually clinched by the 2018 world champion who kept his cool despite coming increasingly under pressure by the Dutchman.

But round-six of Formula 1's 2019 season also brought about an interesting slew of results for several drivers particularly from the midfield, for instance, those from McLaren, Renault, Toro Rosso.

What was also impressive was Sebastian Vettel finishing second at the famous Principality, the German earning his best finish so far with six races done and dusted.

For a race weekend that saw the world-renowned 78-lap contest being held at the back of a great tragedy, in the form of legendary driver Niki Lauda's passing, it could be said that the contest brought about some spectacular and some not so memorable results for various drivers on the grid.

So how does the grid stack up with 15 more races to go? And who are the top ten drivers thus far?

Sportskeeda bring you the Power Rankings post the 2019 Monaco Grand Prix:

#10 Sergio Perez

Perez hasn't had a great year if it could be said. But the Mexican driver has held the fort for Racing Point to a good extent in managing 13 points, identical as Kimi. This has helped him stand ninth on the Driver Standings for the 2019 F1 season.

That said, we all know that the noted Mexican driver, someone who's yet to win a Grand Prix in F1, isn't with the strongest team.

But perhaps this is also the reason why his lackadaiscial form, something in stark contrast to his 2018 performance, where post four races, he had already bagged 15, doesn't seem all that surprising.

Rememeber that at the 2018 race at Baku, Sergio Perez bagged a decent P3, at a track he's done really well in the recent years.

Furthermore, Perez, who's ninth on the grid ahead of Raikkonen, has scored consistently for Racing Point while his teammate Lance Stroll has struggled quite a bit in 2019.

But it remains to be seen what "Checko" can do in the 15 races that are yet to be held. Maybe, a top 5 finish will happen soon.

#9 Kimi Raikkonen

The Iceman has scored all the points so far for Alfa Romeo but hasn't been all that good of late

The Iceman had announced that he didn't wish for any special celebrations at Monaco, the last Grand Prix that we saw. The reason? He was competing in his 300th Grand Prix event. In fact, in hindsight it seems Kimi made the right call for he failed to collect a single point.

Not that this was the first time this season that the noted Alfa Romeo driver missed out on scoring any points. The 2019 Spanish Grand Prix too wasn't the best outcome for Kimi, who once again went without scoring.

But in the six races that have happened thus far, if there's someone who's scored those 13 points for Alfa Romeo then it's Ferrari's last world champion, Kimi Matias Raikkonen.

For someone who's both the oldest man on the grid and also the fastest on the grid, Kimi's strong results albeit driving not the fastest car on the grid as seen at Australia, Bahrain, China, and Baku have gone on to reflect the fact that Kimi's still got it.

Plus, his overtakes on Kvyat's Toro Rosso at China was stuff of legends. That said, it's only imperative that the Iceman bounces back to form as quickly as possible to make the most of an interesting battle in the midfield that has seen Alfa Romeo perhaps punch above its weight vis-a-vis the likes of Haas, Renault, and McLaren on some occasions.

#8 Carlos Sainz Jr.

Carlos Sainz has been consistent thus far for McLaren

McLaren driver Carlos Sainz Jr. has made quite a few strides for McLaren this season. This, it must not be forgotten, happens to be the Spanish driver's very first year in a legacy team, one for which his own racing idol Fernando Alonso drove starting 2015.

And thus far, with six races done, Carlos Sainz Jr. has scored 18 points and occupies the seventh step on the grid where the Driver Standings matter.

This, it can be seen, isn't too terrible a start for a driver who doesn't have all the experience in the world but happens to possess, the drive to better himself.

The equation so far for McLaren with their more experienced man among the two (including newcomer Norris) is fairly simple.

The better Sainz scores, having begun his journey in 2015, the better the team's outcome.

This is because with all due respect to Norris, who's proven his worth his salt (reference to context being strong drives in Bahrain and Baku), not an awful lot can be expected from a rookie driver, isn't it?

Also, in the last race at Monaco, it was Sainz who collected 8 valuable points for McLaren courtesy a fluent sixth.

#7 Daniel Ricciardo

F1 Grand Prix of Monaco where Ricciardo scored the only points for Renault

At the recently-concluded Monaco Grand Prix, Daniel Ricciardo scored a P9 while his teammate, Nico Hulkenberg went on to register another non-points finish.

This was both surprising and sad because now it's been five back-to-back races in which the German driver went without a single point.

To that end, Ricciardo, who had a disastrous start to the 2019 season, retiring from the opening race, which, by the way happens to be his home track (Australian Grand Prix at Melbourne Park) has gone on to record some swift improvements.

The man behind one of the sport's most enigmatic smiles and an infectious personality has collected a strong P7 at China and his recent P9 at Monaco.

Now even as this reads not exactly a strong performance since as of last year, as we saw Ricciardo collect wins at China and Monaco, it can be said that the Aussie's effort isn't disastrous since he's scored nearly all points for his team with the exception of Hulkenberg who scored 6 in the opening race (via his P7) of the season.

#6 Pierre Gasly

The Frenchman has set 2 fastest laps so far and finished in points in 4 races out of 6

The Frenchman has actually had a stellar season so far if you were to examine his results of 2019.

While much of the attention rests with Max Verstappen, his Red Bull senior and without doubt, the more accomplished driver, what can't be denied is the fact that Gasly has been quietly going about his job and driving home some fine results for his Red Bull racing team.

In the six races held so far, Gasly, who has scored 32 points and stands sixth on the Driver Standings is perhaps an unsung hero of the season, even as the statement may seem a bit too far-fetched since all that we've had are no more than six contests.

But think about it. You put a young man in a Red Bull, a team that has consistently finished inside the top three every year, second best only to Ferrari and the fairly inexperienced driver goes on to set not one but two fastest laps.

Is that too bad a performance?

At the Grands Prix of Bahrain and Monaco, Gasly demonstrated the magic he can do with pure speed, setting the fastest laps for the two races.

While at the famous night-race at Sakhir, he went at 1:34:742, at the recent Monaco Grand Prix, he would go on to set a belter of a lap at 1:14:279 during the closing stages.

#5 Charles Leclerc

F1 Grand Prix of Bahrain was an emotional race for Charles Leclerc

Until a few hours back, Charles Leclerc and Ferrari were supposedly on the verge of a breakdown. This wasn't some fan-made theory. This is what an Italian journal reported recently given how distraught the Monegasque driver was upon the conclusion of his home race.

We all expected Leclerc to reign at his home Grand Prix, an event clinched doggedly by Lewis Hamilton. But unfortunately, it wasn't the best possible race for Leclerc, who made one mistake too many magnified by his coming into contact with the Renault of Hulkenberg at around

While Charles Leclerc's talent is unquestionable and so is his ability to go quick in a car, illuminated by the fact that at Baku the 21-year-old set the fast lap, what hurts his chances is that he's part of a team that hasn't really gotten its act together in the strategy department.

This was evident at races such as the Spanish Grand Prix where the Ferrari duo were seen battling one another while the Mercedes lot, also inarguably quicker were chipping away into the lead.

Why didn't Ferrari act then? Also, why was Leclerc held up behind Vettel in the earlier races is something that qualifies to become a modern-day mystery, perhaps something on the lines of the Bermuda triangle question.

#4 Sebastian Vettel

Sebastian Vettel recently collected a fighting second at the Monaco Grand Prix of 2019. This was the best-possible result for the German driver currently participating in season number five with the Scuderia.

That said, Vettel's second at the famous Principality was more down to the five-second penalty handed to Max Verstappen than having anything to do with his imperious pace.

To that end, what can't be denied is that the it is the Ferrari driver that has been doing a lot of point scoring for the Italian marquee where the past few races stand.

Following a poor start to the season, given a P4 at Australia followed by a P5 at Bahrain, the four-time world champion, one who established a reign at Red Bull (during those great years) has gone on to collect some strong finishes for Ferrari courtesy two back-to-back P3 at China and Azerbaijan.

But guess what? We all know that Sebastian Vettel, who's made a bit of a habit of floundering at the race starts can do a hell lot better. And this is something the driver needs to immediately address, given the fact that he's failed to win a race so far in six attempts.

#3 Max Verstappen

F1 Grand Prix of Spanish GP where Max clinched a strong 3rd place finish!

Max Verstappen has been a lion-hearted performer for Red Bull. This is something that was also acknowledged by his team principal, Chrisitan Horner.

Where his Monaco drive is concerned, then it was evident that the only driver that nearly gave Lewis Hamilton a run for his money was the famous Dutchman, someone who happens to be the youngest race winner in Formula 1, as seen in the 2016 Spanish Grand Prix.

But unfortunately, the five-second penalty that was handed out to "Mad-Max" made it difficult for the driver to finish on the podium, Verstappen having to contend with only a fourth.

That said, make no mistake. In more occasions has Verstappen managed to punch above his weight vis-a-vis the Ferrari of his rivals, Charles Leclerc and Sebastian Vettel.

Take the Spanish Grand Prix for example where the Ferraris were caught napping and the Red Bull was bolstered by Mad Max, impressive as ever.

Also, what was most impressive from Horner's main man was the season-opener where Verstappen put his Red Bull on the third step of the podium, finishing behind only the Mercedes drivers.

While his teamamte has ably supported the more experienced of the two drivers, it cannot be doubted one bit that it is Max who's played the sheet anchor role for Red Bull.

#2 Valtteri Bottas

F1 Grand Prix of Australia where Bottas won the season-opener

Should the 2019 season be called the "return of the Wingman" or the "Wingman fights back?"

No, let's dispense with silly titles. For Bottas doesn't need one. What he needs is to be respected.

Valtteri Bottas is second-best to Lewis Hamilton so far in 2019. This is not only in speed but also in pure stats where the 2019 season stands with six races done and fifteen more to go.

The Finnish driver missed out on a podium at Monte Carlo, despite being the second quickest behind teammate Lewis Hamilton (in the quali) at the 78-lap run.

But make no mistake. Bottas, up until the Monaco Grand Prix was the only other driver who finished consistently on the podium alongside the 2018 world champion, Lewis Hamilton.

We possibly cannot forget the aggressive streak which he demonstrated to win the season-opener at Australia, a race where it seemed that there was nothing that the others were able to do to contain the Finn.

Valtteri Bottas' contribution at upholding Mercedes this season can be gauged from the simple fact that had it not been for his consistent finishes- P2 at Bahrain and China and the glorious win at Baku, as seen a month ago- Mercedes may not have been where they are currently, i.e., right on top of the Constructor Standings, yet again.

#1 Lewis Hamilton

There's nothing that can stop "Hammertime", isn't it? In a sport where Kimi Raikkonen is hailed for his unflappibility, it remains to be seen whether anyone can contest the fact that it is the Briton who is consistently unflappable?

Nothing seems to distract the Mercedes drivers. Attacking and quick on the grid and calm and sweet off it, Lewis has won 4 races out of 6 this season and occupies the top slot of the 2019 Driver Standings, thus marking himself as the undisputed champion driver that he is.

While to many the five-time world champion's triumph seems down to the car he has at his disposal, it would be silly to discount the Stevenage-born Lewis Hamilton's focus and resilience, something that's enabled him to score 85 pole positions, 77 race wins, and 42 fastest laps.

That Lewis may not go on to collect a sixth world title may seem like an anomaly in the usual run of things in F1, given the imperious form the driver has demonstrated since 2017. But so far, it doesn't look as if Ferrari or Red Bull can act as a thorn in his path.

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