F1 Driver Power Rankings: Alonso on top despite Mercedes success
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ByEurosport
Updated 29/08/2016 at 19:48 GMT
Keith Collantine rates the F1 field after Nico Rosberg claimed victory in an action-packed Belgian Grand Prix in Spa.
McLaren's Fernando Alonso after qualifying
Image credit: Reuters
Nico Rosberg revitalised his championship hopes with his sixth win of the season and Lewis Hamilton recovered from starting on the back row of the grid to finish on the podium. But there were many other fine drives at Spa last weekend which didn't result in a top-three finish. F1 Fanatic's Keith Collantine judges who did the best job in the Belgian Grand Prix:
1. Fernando Alonso (up 12)
Started last after problems with Honda's latest power unit in practice. But his start was vintage Alonso: making up 10 places and even getting ahead of Hamilton, who he started alongside. Smart strategy by McLaren got him into the top five, which was far beyond where his car was capable of finishing. There was nothing he could do to keep Hamilton, Perez and Vettel behind, but seventh was a fine result.
2. Nico Hulkenberg (up 3)
Badly needs a change in luck to finally deliver that first podium finish. Had Force India not pitted him under the Safety Car and instead waited for the red flag this could have been his day.
3. Lewis Hamilton (no change)
Started at the back alongside Alonso and used the superior performance of the Mercedes to move up to third after the restart, passing Alonso and Hulkenberg. However he couldn't make his tyres last as well as Rosberg could.
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Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton of Britain drives during the Belgian F1 Grand Prix.
Image credit: Reuters
4. Daniel Ricciardo (down 2)
Compromised by front wing damage at the start until it was repaired. Once it was, Ricciardo's pace was excellent and he took a strong second place, lapping close to Rosberg's times.
5. Nico Rosberg (up 4)
With his team mate out of the equation and most of his closest rivals crashing at turn one, Rosberg had little chance to show what he's capable of. His tyre management was great, if a little hard to get excited about.
6. Valtteri Bottas (up 4)
Had his Williams in fourth place before the Safety Car period, but paid a high price for pitting too soon and dropped out of the points. His pace was much better than Massa's though and he took eighth place.
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Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes), Daniel Ricciardo (Red Bull) - GP of Belgium 2016
Image credit: AFP
7. Sergio Perez (up 10)
Finished behind his team-mate after getting held up at turn one at the start.
8. Kimi Raikkonen (no change)
Out-qualified Vettel and was the driver least culpable for the three-way tangle at the first corner. Verstappen thwarted his passing efforts as usual, though Raikkonen jumped him in the pits and managed to recover some points.
9. Jenson Button (down 8)
Did a great job in qualifying with the only McLaren which was running on Saturday, but was rammed out of the race by Wehrlein on the first lap.
10. Daniil Kvyat (up 10)
An unheralded 14th place was the product of a decent drive in a down-on-power car.
The rest of the grid
- 11. Sebastian Vettel (up 1)
- 12. Esteban Gutierrez (down 5)
- 13. Romain Grosjean (down 7)
- 14. Max Verstappen (down 9)
- 15. Carlos Sainz Jnr (down 4)
- 16. Jolyon Palmer (up 3)
- 17. Felipe Massa (up 1)
- 18. Felipe Nasr (down 2)
- 19. Esteban Ocon (new entry)
- 20. Kevin Magnussen (down 4)
- 21. Marcus Ericsson (no change)
- 22. Pascal Wehrlein (down 8)
Keith Collantine is the editor of Formula One blog F1 Fanatic
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