It’s eight races down for the ongoing Formula 1 campaign, and Max Verstappen is running away with the world championship just like last year, so obviously he’s the biggest winner in 2023.
A look at the Formula 1 2023 results will tell you that the Dutchman is on course for another successful title defence because he has already won six out of the first eight races, including four in a row.
But besides Verstappen, who are the other winners so far this season? Join us today as SBOTOP lists down some of the winners (and losers) in 2023.
Winner: Lewis Hamilton
Mercedes now have a solid foundation to build on, and Lewis Hamilton is the biggest reason why.
Following their 2-3 finish in the Spanish Grand Prix. Hamilton, who finished second in Catalunya, followed up with a third place finish in the Canadian Grand Prix, but his teammate Russell unfortunately suffered a DNF.
Hamilton’s P3 outing at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve meant that Mercedes now have back-to-back podium finishes for the first time this season, which moved him past the 100-point mark.
The seven-time world champion is happy that the team is heading in the right direction. However, there’s still one thing left missing, which is a race win. It’s been two years since Hamilton won his last race, so he’s really itching to get one, given his high standards.
It’ll take a miracle at this point for him to catch up with Verstappen, based on the Formula 1 2023 odds, but finishing the season at P2 in the drivers’ standings might not be so bad after all.
Loser: Sergio Perez
Speaking of second place, that spot is currently occupied by Sergio Perez, who has lost momentum in the past few races. After winning podiums in four out of the first five races, the Mexican hasn’t won one at all in the last three, with the Monaco Grand Prix being his worst result.
Last week, Perez had a weekend to forget at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. He had a poor qualifying round that saw him start 12th on the grid, and then he was left confused as to why his car lacked pace compared to his teammate, Verstappen, after eventually finishing sixth.
The gap between Perez and Verstappen is now 69 points. Even if Verstappen retires in the next two races, he’ll still retain his table lead.
And with Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso coming, Red Bull must find a way to equip Perez with the necessary machinery to fend off his nearest challengers, which would help in their pursuit of their second straight constructors’ title.
Winner: Fernando Alonso
After a blip in Catalunya, Fernando Alonso was back on the podium in the Canadian Grand Prix last time out. After a slow start to the race in comparison to Hamilton, Alonso made a remarkable comeback on Lap 23 to overtake his former McLaren teammate, eventually finishing P2.
The Spaniard is currently third in the drivers’ standings (only nine points behind Perez). He has been the only standout performer for Aston Martin this year, with six podiums in the last eight races, which is twice as many as he had in his seven previous seasons combined.
Alonso’s performances may have got Aston Martin thinking that they are one of the top contenders this season, especially when they were second behind Red Bull at one point in the constructors’ standings.
This would be true if his teammate, Lance Stroll, could keep up. They are now overtaken by Mercedes in the constructors’ standings, but overall, it’s nice to see the two-time world champion showing everyone that he still has it at 41 years old.
Loser: AlphaTauri
AlphaTauri are now at the bottom of the constructors’ standings after yet another poor outing last weekend. The Faenza-based outfit lost both cars in Q1, and Yuki Tsunoda and Nyck de Vries started P19 and P17 on the grid, respectively.
Tsunoda’s pace was encouraging to start, but he struggled for the rest of the race, eventually finishing 14th.
His teammate, de Vries, spent most of the race in traffic, and he even crashed into Kevin Magnussen. And that, along with a series of blue flags, meant that he finished far behind in points at P18. AlphaTauri have now failed to score in each of the last four Grands Prix, with Yuki Tsunoda being the only driver who has scored following his 10th place finishes in Australia and Azerbaijan. Nyck de Vries’ best finish, meanwhile, was P12 in the Monaco Grand Prix.
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