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The 2023 F1 season ended in Abu Dhabi. While there were a few drivers who put together strong drives all through the year and contributed heavily to their teams, there were others who were unable to do their bit.
When a driver is signed by a team, the primary job of that driver is to deliver on the task provided to him. What's the task? Well, it is to extract the most from the car provided to them.
More often than not, what happens is that one driver extracts a decent performance from the car while his teammate is unable to do so. These teammates end up being 'dead weights' for their respective teams.
On the 2023 F1 grid as well, there were a few drivers that proved to be dead weights for their respective teams. Who are these drivers? Let's take a look.
#5 Sergio Perez (Red Bull)
It might come as a surprise to find Sergio Perez here. It's not often that we see the championship runner-up on such a list.
Having said that, the kind of season Perez put together raised more than a few questions.
The Mexican started the season well. He looked comfortable in the car and was there and thereabouts with Max Verstappen in the first few races.
Perez had not one but two impressive wins over his teammate, in Baku and Jeddah. Unfortunately for him, however, the win in Baku flipped a switch in the mind of Verstappen, after which he kicked things up a gear.
With his title challenge unraveling, Perez crumbled under pressure and proceeded to have a poor run of results. Things got so bad that in a car that was comfortably the fastest, he just scraped through to finish second in the championship.
#4 Kevin Magnussen (Haas F1)
Kevin Magnussen had a wholesome return to F1 last season with Haas. He wasn't expected to come back to the sport at the start of 2022, but then Russia started a war which put in motion a chain reaction.
Magnussen's first season back was impressive, and he even secured his first-ever pole position. But in the second season the Danish driver has seen a one-sided drubbing from Nico Hulkenberg.
It was not just the one-sided qualifying tally that was disappointing for Magnussen, it was also the fact that there was a huge gap between him and the German. The 2023 F1 season was a bad one for Kevin Magnussen, to say the least, and he would be hoping to bounce back in 2024.
#3 Guanyu Zhou (Sauber)
A young driver who made his way to F1 after decent success in F2, Guanyu Zhou was expected to show some kind of improvement in his second season. But to be honest, there doesn't seem to be anything that warrants a third season with Sauber.
There is Valtteri Bottas at Sauber, who is clearly past his prime. He's not as consistent and seemingly not as hungry as he used to be in his Mercedes days. Despite that, Zhou trailed his F1 teammate every time they raced.
The kind of growth that you expect from a young driver has just not been visible. There were even questions asked about why Sauber was willing to extend his contract beyond this season even though Theo Pourchaire was available.
Zhou has proven to be a major liability for his team in 2023, and finds himself in P3.
#2 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)
One of the names that many would have expected to find on this list was Lance Stroll.
Most observers would tell you that Stroll is not a top-tier talent. And in the 2023 F1 season, it almost seemed unfair to pair him with Fernando Alonso. That put a lot of stress on Stroll's shoulders, which he didn't handle particularly well.
Stroll's seat is going to be a topic of conversation next year as well as he finds himself in P2 on this list.
#1 Logan Sargeant
Topping the list is none other than Logan Sargeant. While many would have felt bad for the American F1 driver this season, and cheered when he got to stay for another year, there's no argument that the driver has had a poor season.
Getting whitewashed in qualifying by Alex Albon is not a good thing at all. Losing a few tenths to your teammate even as the season comes to a close is just not something that wins too many votes.
Sargeant has had a rough start to his F1 career, and he'll need to work on a lot of things to win over the team if he's kept for next season.
