Save for Max Verstappen’s cakewalk towards winning his third career Formula 1 title, 2023 has been generally exciting, particularly because of the competitive chasing pack.
At the same time, this season has also seen a couple of stars enjoying a breakout campaign with solid Formula 1 2023 results. But on the flip side, there have also been a few drivers who have failed to live up to their expectations so far this term.
So, who are these drivers? Learn more about them by continuing to read below.
The Breakouts – Liam Lawson & Oscar Piastri
Liam Lawson came out of the shadows when he took over for Daniel Ricciardo, who continues to recover from his hand injury that he sustained at last month’s Dutch Grand Prix.
The New Zealand international finished P13 in Zandvoort before ending up in P11 in the Italian Grand Prix and Japanese Grand Prix, but his best performance was in the Singapore Grand Prix, where he finished P9, easily AlphaTauri’s best result of the season.
By becoming the youngest driver on the Formula 1 grid, the 21-year-old’s rise has been one of the most surprising stories (in a good way) this season. But he is not just a feel-good story, as he has proven that he is more than ready to race full-time in Formula 1.
Lawson should continue to represent AlphaTauri alongside teammate Yuki Tsunoda since Ricciardo is still on the mend. And if he finishes again within the Top 10, that will surely boost his SBOTOP Formula 1 2023 odds of getting a permanent seat sooner rather than later.
Oscar Piastri is another surprise package that deserves plaudits. The 2023 campaign has been a rollercoaster ride overall for him, but for the most part, it has been good.
Piastri had a miserable start in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. He finished outside the points in a few more races, but it was in Silverstone where he started to see his fortunes turn around.
The 22-year-old finished fourth in the British Grand Prix, and he followed it up with a P5 outing in Hungary. Piastri’s momentum was slightly halted in Spa with another DNF, but three of his next four races were within the top 10, with a P3 finish in Suzuka, Japan, being his best result yet.
Because of Piastri and Norris’ upturn in form, McLaren are in the mix for a top four finish in the constructors’ standings. That is amazing considering they couldn’t even get a single point at the start of the year.
The Flops – George Russell & Logan Sargeant
George Russell’s 2023 campaign isn’t a failure per se, but he is on this list considering how he fared last season. Last year, the British driver was, in fact, one of the breakout stars because he finished fourth in the drivers’ standings, which was better than the likes of Carlos Sainz Jr. and teammate Lewis Hamilton.
But this season, George Russell is in eighth place with only one podium finish thus far, compared to eight in his first year with the Silver Arrows.
Russell’s frustrations boiled over during the Japanese Grand Prix, where he and Hamilton found themselves racing one another on multiple occasions. In fact, at the conclusion of the event, the two were seemingly ignoring each other, which isn’t a great look at all.
To be fair, Russell and Hamilton have maintained a harmonious working relationship up to this point, and they will continue to be teammates at least until the end of the 2025 season.
So there’s not much reason to believe that they won’t patch things up soon, especially since they’re right in the mix for second in the constructors’ standings.
But for Logan Sargeant, it feels like he’s on borrowed time here in Formula 1.
In his rookie campaign, the American driver has yet to finish inside the points, and he’s had a string of costly crashes that only put him under more unwanted pressure.
Williams are probably cutting Sargeant some slack because they deserve a ton of blame for giving him a subpar car to work with, but the Oxfordshire-based outfit has laid out some targets that he’ll need to hit in the final races of the season to maintain his place.
There’s only one seat still up for grabs on the Formula 1 grid for next year, with the lone vacancy coming from, you guessed it, Williams. Even with the public backing of team principal James Vowles, we won’t be surprised if Sargeant is going to be replaced soon.
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