Twelve of the 24 races on the 2025 Formula One schedule are in the rearview mirror as the traveling circus makes its way to Spa this weekend for the Belgian Grand Prix. The summer break may still be two weeks away, but at the exact midpoint of the race schedule, it feels appropriate to again take stock of this year’s drivers.
Sports Illustrated released the first set of 2025 power rankings back in April, ahead of the Miami Grand Prix—and plenty has changed since then. Though McLaren teammates and championship frontrunners Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris continue to lead the pack, there’s been a lot of jockeying for position behind them. Whether it be a Ferrari driver on the rise or Nico Hülkenberg climbing his way up in a Sauber, here’s how the pecking order stacks up at the halfway point:
1. Oscar Piastri
Previous ranking: 1
It’s only right that the championship leader at the halfway point claims the top spot in the rankings. Though he’s won just once across six races since Miami, Piastri still has the highest floor of any driver this season. During that same six-race stretch, the 24-year-old McLaren driver hasn’t qualified worse than third and still leads his teammate head-to-head, getting the better of Norris in seven of the 12 qualifying sessions this season. The pressure is back on with Norris maintaining a slight edge as of late, but Piastri’s ability to limit the bad outcomes is perhaps his biggest asset in the intra-team fight.
2. Lando Norris
Previous ranking: 3
Many were ready to count Norris out after the first quarter of the season as he lagged behind Piastri in qualifying, failing to put himself into position to win races. Then, in the most important qualifying session of the season in Monaco, he delivered, claiming pole and effectively the race win on that Saturday. Since then, he’s won twice more in Austria and Great Britain and has finished outside of the top two just once in the past seven races. Even with the dramatic clash with Piasti in Canada, which resulted in a costly DNF, he’s only eight points shy of his teammate headed to Spa. Norris got hot at the right time last season to make McLaren the constructors’ championship favorite, but faltered down the stretch—a result he can’t repeat if he wants his first individual title.
3. George Russell
Previous ranking: 3
Ever the epitome of consistency, Russell continues to plod away, even amid rampant speculation about his future at Mercedes. A victory from pole position in Canada did wonders to show Toto Wolff and the Mercedes brass that the 27-year-old has what it takes to lead the team going forward. However, there has been the occasional disappointment, like in Monaco where a 14th-place result in qualifying took him out of the running for the Grand Prix. Misguided strategy calls in the rain at Silverstone also cost him valuable places in his home race. Still, looking at the whole body of work this season, Russell has done more than enough to justify his place at what’s expected to be one of the top teams in 2026.
4. Charles Leclerc
Previous ranking: 6
The situation at Ferrari seems to be getting better and Leclerc is a big reason why. The 27-year-old has racked up the third-most points over the past five races, which included three podiums—the only driver apart from the McLaren duo to do so. Familiarity with the Ferrari has also given Leclerc an 8–4 advantage in qualifying over Lewis Hamilton, but the challenge remains taking the next step. Since the disqualification in Canada, neither Ferrari has looked capable of challenging for wins, which remains the expectation for all involved. A bounce back from 14th at the British Grand Prix would probably be a good place to start.
5. Max Verstappen
Previous ranking: 2
The past few race weekends have done a number on Verstappen’s standing in the rankings, and it’s fair to say this has been his most tumultuous five-race stretch since 2021. Between his collision penalty in Spain to getting knocked out on the opening lap in Austria by Kimi Antonelli, the reigning world champ has been all over the map. Some of his dip in performance is the result of a struggling Red Bull car, and perhaps the inner turmoil within the team. But there’s no denying that Verstappen should bear some blame as well, all while rumors fly about a possible flirtation with Mercedes.
6. Nico Hülkenberg
Previous Ranking: 16
Hats off to Hülkenberg, who at 37 years old and well over a decade in the sport, finally notched his first F1 podium at the British Grand Prix. The result was the culmination of an impressive run of form for the Sauber driver. Hülkenberg has scored in each of the past four races—one of just five drivers to do so. What’s more remarkable is that he hasn’t qualified better than 13th for any of those starts, meaning he’s been able to make all the correct calls while carving his way up the grid on Sundays. After a dreadful start to the season, Sauber is all the way up in sixth and Hulkenberg is almost solely responsible as he eyes his best finish in F1 since 2018.
7. Lewis Hamilton
Previous ranking: 8
It’s been difficult to watch Hamilton get up to speed with a new team, but it’s clear that the situation is trending in the right direction. The seven-time world champion has found consistency in qualifying, making it into the top five in each of the last five race weekends. Yet like his teammate, Hamilton can’t seem to climb out of the tier just below the McLarens and get onto the podium. The 40-year-old is the defending champion in Belgium and has never finished a race at Spa worse than fourth, which bodes well for his chances this weekend.
8. Fernando Alonso
Previous ranking: 17
Experience pays off in F1 and that’s certainly been true for Alonso of late, who at 43 years old seems to be getting back on track at Aston Martin. The car may be a step slow, but the two-time world champ is squeezing out everything he can, making Q3 in five of his last six starts and getting into the points in each of the past four races. There was serious concern at the start of the season that Alonso may have overstayed his welcome, but Aston stayed patient and is showing serious improvement in both cars—consistency that will be vital as the midfield battle tightens up.
9. Isack Hadjar
Previous ranking: 10
Hadjar continues to delight as one of the most pleasant surprises this season. He remains a step above Liam Lawson, outqualifying his Racing Bulls teammate 8–2 and looking like one of the more consistent rookies. Hadjar doesn’t look out of place as a first-year driver often, as evidenced by an impressive sixth-place finish on the notoriously tricky circuit in Monaco and following that result up with seventh in Spain. His last three outings have seen him fall out of the points places, but it’s difficult to count out the 20-year-old for long.
10. Kimi Antonelli
Previous ranking: 7
Antonelli’s high-end talent is readily apparent, but he remains one of the most difficult drivers to evaluate on a week-to-week basis. One week he’ll be on pole for the Miami sprint race, only to succumb to the pressure in front of the home crowd the following weekend in Imola and have to retire. Or when he became one of the youngest podium finishers in F1 history with his showing in Canada, only to come back with a brutal mistake in Austria, crashing on the first lap and taking out Verstappen with him. The lack of consistency is to be expected from an 18-year-old—remember, he just finished high school earlier this season. The talent is there, but Mercedes will hope for more steadiness from its driver of the future before the year is out.
11. Pierre Gasly
Previous ranking: 9
I’ve been bullish on Gasly’s performance this season amid the turmoil at Alpine. He consistently improves upon his qualifying performance, plus he's dominated both of his teammates this season on Saturdays. Sure, the results aren’t always there, but he consistently gets Alpine into Q3, having done so on four of the last six race weekends. The British Grand Prix could be a springboard to a better second half for the last-place team on the grid, but Gasly may have to singlehandedly drag the team there as he’s the only driver to not have a teammate score a point this season.
12. Alex Albon
Previous ranking: 5
Williams was expected to have a dip in performance when team principal James Vowles announced that the team wouldn’t put much more attention into the 2025 car in order to focus on the start of the new regulations next season. So Williams has taken a dive of late, scoring just four combined points since Monaco. Both drivers sound frustrated, with Albon in particular having reason to after three straight DNFs. He bounced back at the British Grand Prix, his eighth top-10 of the season, and showed that the car still has plenty to compete for—largely because of the driver behind the wheel.
13. Esteban Ocon
Previous ranking: 12
Ocon continues to have his difficulties in qualifying, which at this point can safely be attributed to the Haas machinery. And still, he manages to make an impact during races, climbing up into the points in three of the past five. Haas does have one of the more equal teammate pairings in the paddock, with Ocon maintaining a narrow advantage over Oliver Bearman when it comes to head-to-head qualifying. But it’s clear that the 28-year-old’s veteran savvy has benefitted him more during Grands Prix.
14. Liam Lawson
Previous ranking: 19
Lawson’s future in F1 seemed tenuous following his abrupt Red Bull demotion, but it’s certainly possible that the move could have been the best possible outcome. He looks much more confident in qualifying, headlined by a sixth-place start in Austria and two finishes in the points in the past five races. Lawson does seem to find himself in conflict during races fairly often and is tied for the most DNFs among drivers this season with four.
15. Lance Stroll
Previous ranking: 15
Yes, Alonso has outqualified Stroll in every race this season, but that hasn’t prevented the latter from delivering an occasional standout performance during a race. After being kept off the scoreboard since China, Stroll broke back through for seventh at the British Grand Prix, where he even threatened the top five at one point. The conundrum remains in qualifying, where the 26-year-old has made Q3 just twice over the last calendar year across 22 races.
16. Carlos Sainz
Previous ranking: 11
Expectations haven’t matched reality for the former Ferrari driver in his first season at Williams. Each week, he seems to be on the precipice of a breakthrough, but his qualifying performance has taken a massive dip since Imola, often leaving him too large of a deficit to make a real impact in races. Sainz will have an important part to play down the stretch this season as a fading Williams team tries to hold onto fifth place in the constructors’ standings.
17. Oliver Bearman
Previous ranking: 13
Three straight 11th-place finishes have been cruel for the Haas rookie, especially after qualifying so well at Silverstone. But like his teammate, Bearman has improved upon his starting spot almost every time out, bettering his spot on the grid in five of his last six races. Haas is lingering behind the bulk of the midfield teams, but could make a run in the second half of the season with better Saturday showings.
18. Gabriel Bortoleto
Previous ranking: 20
Congratulations to Bortoleto for scoring his first points in F1 at this year’s Austrian Grand Prix. Of course, the key for the reigning F2 champion was putting himself in position during qualifying, where he finished eighth. Improvement each and every week is the key for any rookie and Bortoleto has made at least Q2 four times in the past seven races after doing so just once in his first five F1 outings.
19. Yuki Tsunoda
Previous ranking: 14
Tsunoda’s freefall at Red Bull has been difficult to watch. While at first appearing to be just a few tenths behind Verstappen, the last five races have been disastrous. Tsunoda hasn’t made Q3 since Miami and hasn’t scored points since Imola, with his best result this year being ninth in Bahrain. Red Bull, currently fourth in the constructors’ standings, has 172 points this season—and Max Verstappen is responsible for 165 of them.
20. Franco Colapinto
Previous ranking: N/A
Colapinto is the only new addition to the rankings, having replaced Jack Doohan at Alpine in Imola, but he can’t be thrilled by how things have gone thus far. After impressing in 2024 in relief of Logan Sargeant at Williams, the 22-year-old hasn’t gotten up to speed. He’s qualified in 19th or 20th in half of his six outings this year, two of which came while his teammate was scoring points for the team. If the trend continues, Alpine’s second seat will almost certainly be one of the few spots available for 2026.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as F1 Drivers’ 2025 Power Rankings: McLaren Duo Reigns As Nico Hülkenberg Makes Massive Leap.