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Formula 1 is one of the few sports in which the playing field for its competing athletes isn't equal for all. Every driver except for his teammate has different equipment, none of the cars are equal in terms of performance.
This makes the task of identifying which competitor is the fastest of them all a difficult one. For example, Lewis Hamilton may have four of the last five driver's championships, but who's to say that Max Verstappen, Daniel Ricciardo or Fernando Alonso wouldn't have had similar success in that Mercedes? Add into the mix that every circuit is unique, and it makes the endeavour an impossible one, and that's before you allow for different generations of talent.
With that being said, some drivers' statistics don't reflect their overall talent, and there are some drivers that are generally overlooked when it comes to identifying the best of the current crop, and here are a few examples.
#1 Nico Hulkenberg
Nico Hulkenberg may hold the record for the most race starts without scoring a podium, but the German's talent is clear for all to see. He finished best of the rest in the driver's standings in 2018, and we´ve explained why we think he'll give Ricciardo a run for his money in the Renault this year in another article.
The one criticism which we think is valid for him is that he does have a tendency to make mistakes when the chance of a podium presents itself. For instance, he made an unforced error at the 2017 Azerbaijan Grand Prix which ruined his chance at a top 3 finish had he stayed in the race.
He also could've gotten second place at Brazil in 2012, but he ran into Hamilton which ended his chance of finishing the race in the upper echelons of the points.
Rest assured, though, if Renault produce a 2019 challenger that is closer to the top 3 teams, don't rule him out to beat his podium duck.
#2 Sergio Perez
While Hulkenberg has never scored a podium in F1 before, his ex-Force India teammate Sergio Perez has made a habit of it. Checo has stood on the podium at least once in five of the last seven seasons, despite never racing for a team that expects to do so.
Perez is quick, beating Esteban Ocon, Hulkenberg and Kamui Kobayashi in the same machinery, but his best asset is his consistency. Pirelli's tyres degrade quickly if you aren't smooth, but Sergio makes them last longer than almost any other driver. Perez also finished in the coveted "best of the rest" spot in 2016 and 2017.
In 2013, he was brought in as Hamilton's replacement at McLaren, and while he failed to live up to expectations there, he's exceeded them at both Sauber and Force India. Honestly, Perez will probably make mince-meat of Lance Stroll this year at Racing Point.
#3 Romain Grosjean
Romain Grosjean was famously branded as a "first-lap nutcase" by Mark Webber in 2012, but the Swiss-born Frenchman has come on leaps and bounds since this remark. Grosjean rapidly improved after being retained by Lotus for 2013, claiming six podiums and regularly being one of Vettel's closest challengers during the German's record-breaking season.
Lotus struggled to adapt to the V6 regulations, but that didn't stop Grosjean from completing some standout drives, including his stunning podium at Spa in 2015. Yes, Vettel's puncture helped RoGro out, but the Frenchman was unbelievably quick that weekend and even he couldn't explain how he got that third place.
Grosjean's move to Haas has given him a new lease of life, although he was out-scored by the next man on this list last year. Grosjean's issue is that he hasn't quite managed to get his consistency together, as we saw during the first half of 2018, but on his day, Romain is one of the fastest drivers on the grid.
#4 Kevin Magnussen
It's never easy going up against Jenson Button in the same car, just ask the aforementioned Perez. Kevin Magnussen has established himself as a solid driver in Formula 1, but his route to Haas was far from a straightforward one.
The Great Dane had a solid debut campaign in 2014 but was dropped in favour of Alonso for the following year, it's never easy going up against two world champions. 2016 saw him become a part of the revived Renault outfit, and K-Mag significantly out-performed Jolyon Palmer (albeit not the best of drivers).
2018 was arguably his best year, though, as Magnussen placed ninth in the driver's standings, and could've been higher if Haas didn't make some rookie errors of their own (such as in Australia).
Yes, his defending is too robust at times, and that will land him in even more trouble if he doesn't amend this, but Rome wasn't built in a day and at just 26-years-old, Magnussen has plenty of time to improve.
In short, Haas have a very solid driver line-up, if the VF-19 is fast, the pair of Magnussen and Grosjean will deliver.
#5 Valtteri Bottas
Admit it, you didn't see this one coming when you started reading this article.
Valtteri Bottas may have had a horrible 2018 season, (so much so that we ranked him as one of the worst drivers of last year) but the Finn was very unlucky and has proved his speed numerous times in the past.
Since joining F1 with the Williams team in 2013, he consistently out-performed his car. In Canada during his rookie season, he qualified an incredible P3 in the Williams, a car that only finished in the points twice that year.
When the switch to V6-turbo engines came in 2014, Bottas had the chance to show his quality, out-scoring Vettel, Alonso and his experienced teammate Felipe Massa. Consistent podium finishes through to 2016 earned Valtteri the Mercedes drive for 2017, and he performed well, winning three times.
Of course, Hamilton has won 20 races and two driver's titles in the time he's been teammates with Bottas, but we are talking about one of the fastest drivers ever in the form of his life.
One bad season, does not make a poor driver, if Bottas re-centres himself for 2019, he'll be back to winning ways.
Overall, if we had to pick one, it would be Sergio Perez, of the four drivers on this list who aren't a part of a top 3 team, the Mexican deserves the promotion more than the rest.
Who is Formula 1's most underrated driver? is it one of the five that we listed or someone else? let us know in the comments below!
