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The 2024 F1 grid will be the same as last season. After a long time in F1, we have a grid that does not have a "pay driver."
All drivers have a set of skills that make them stand apart from their competitors. Compared to the grid that started the season in 2023, there's going to be a minor change as Daniel Ricciardo replaces Nyck de Vries in that original grid.
Having said that, every driver has a certain set of strengths and weaknesses. In this piece, let's try to get to know each of these drivers better and take a look at each one's key strengths.
So, without further ado, let's get straight to it.
Key strength of each F1 driver on the grid
Max Verstappen
One key strength of Max Verstappen is not necessarily his peak performance, but his ability to be relentless.
There aren't too many weekends in a year where one would feel that the Red Bull driver has had an off day and more often than not, this is what leads to him pulling away from everyone else.
Sergio Perez
When it comes to areas where Sergio Perez tends to excel, then it has to be his ability to be brilliant in wheel-to-wheel racing.
The Mexican didn't have a strong run in 2023 but when it comes to something like wheel-to-wheel racing, he has mostly been spot on.
Lewis Hamilton
When it comes to Lewis Hamilton, it has to be his motivation. A seven-time champion, who has won everything there is to win in F1, is still willing to put in the hard yards and drag a non-competitive car to strong results is just a hallmark of a great driver.
George Russell
For George Russell, it has to be the maturity and willingness to learn. He came to Mercedes last season and outscored Lewis Hamilton. Russell hasn't gone ahead and demanded the team leadership at Mercedes.
He has kept his head down, and even though the season has not been his best, he's not let his shoulders drop and was fighting for the podium in the last F1 race of the season.
Charles Leclerc
When we talk about Charles Leclerc, it has to be the copious amounts of talent that ooze out of him on a qualifying lap and how he leaves everyone behind when the car is in the window.
Carlos Sainz
For the 'smooth operator' as Carlos Sainz loves to call himself, it has to be his ability to continue to work hard on himself and the car, and then reach a point where he's very close to the elite talent in the world.
Lando Norris
In the case of Lando Norris, it does appear that the driver's heavily demanding nature where he finds it hard to accept anything less than perfection from himself is something that has helped him until this point in his career.
Oscar Piastri
For Oscar Piastri, after the first year what stands out is the Australian's ability to stand out in a car after continually working on himself and getting better. There's certainly scope for improvement but Piastri seems to have shown enough about how well he can perform in an F1 car.
Fernando Alonso
For the Spaniard, it has to be his perseverance. Fernando Alonso has spent almost a decade in cars that are just not on his level.
While others would have given up and left, he is still in F1 and trying to fight for that title.
Lance Stroll
Lance Stroll might be much maligned in the F1 community for getting a seat because of his father but there's one thing we can't deny - he deserves to be in F1 and has the talent to produce some impressive drives.
Esteban Ocon
When it comes to Esteban Ocon, it does appear that his tenacity is what reigns supreme. The driver will not take his role in an F1 team lying down irrespective of who his teammate is and fight tooth and nail.
The driver's tenacity has helped him succeed to this level in F1 and should hold him in good stead in the future as well.
Pierre Gasly
For Pierre Gasly, it has to be the fighting spirit that brought him back from the brink. The French driver was down and out after what happened to him in Red Bull. But the fact that he's been able to bounce back is certainly impressive and should be put down to his fighting spirit.
Alex Albon
For Alex Albon, it does appear that his biggest strength was his ability to understand that he might not have the talent of an elite like Charles Leclerc or George Russell but on his day, he can fight tooth and nail with them.
Throughout his junior career, Albon has tried to maximize whatever he feels is possible with the tools in front of him. The fact that he's been able to accomplish that surely makes him shine.
Logan Sargeant
It's hard to truly nail things down when it comes to Logan Sargeant because he's still only a year old in F1 and hasn't had the best of years. Having said that, one thing that stands out for Sargeant in his junior career has been his ability to extract the most from the car over a lap.
Qualifying has been his strength which is precisely why the whitewash against Alex Albon was concerning.
Yuki Tsunoda
When we're talking about Yuki Tsunoda, one has to give credit to the Japanese driver's talent that can be seen on some weekends. He is gifted in so many ways and certainly deserves to be on the F1 grid.
Daniel Ricciardo
For Daniel Ricciardo, it has to be his ability to be one of the best racers on the F1 grid. The Aussie is sensational when he has the car under him and has been notorious for pulling off a few sensational overtakes.
Valtteri Bottas
For Valtteri Bottas, it comes down to his ability to be one of the earliest to find a grip on the less grippy tracks.
Even though he was teamed up with someone like Lewis Hamilton, Bottas continued to have that advantage over his teammate and it is something that stands out for him over others.
Guanyu Zhou
It's still a bit early to speak much about Zhou Guanyu as although he has spent multiple seasons in F1, the not-so-competitive Alfa Romeo has hidden what he could truly achieve.
Having said that, on his day, the driver has shown that he's capable of taking on anyone in F1 and getting the better of them.
Nico Hulkenberg
For Nico Hulkenberg, it has to be the natural talent that he possesses while driving an F1 car. The German is brilliant over a lap but also very good in races as well. The thing that shines even more is his ability to adapt to a new car earlier than many would expect him to.
Kevin Magnussen
For Kevin Magnussen, it has to be his grit that has kept him in F1 for this long. The Dane went out of favor early at McLaren and was dropped after a season.
The fact that he's still in the sport and doing a great job is a testament to his grit and ability to keep grinding away.
