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We’re already one-third of the way into the Formula 1 season, but although there’s still a long way to go we have already got an idea of how the battles between team-mates are playing out.
As drivers always say, your team-mate is always your best yardstick and it’s also the easiest way to measure their performance. While there are countless variables at play, looking at qualifying and race performances for each duo allows us to decide who is winning the battle so far.
By taking an early look at the qualifying and race performances of every team’s two drivers, and particularly at the dry-weather qualifying gaps (judged on the last segment of qualifying in which both appeared with anomalies eliminated), we can take a snapshot of how things stand based on the limited data \set built so far.
Later in the season, we will revisit the team-mate battles in more depth once the available data is drawn from a wider range of race weekends and circuits and there has been more time for the outliers. But for now, here are the winners and losers – and the undecideds – so far.
MERCEDES
Lewis Hamilton v Valtteri Bottas
By all available metrics, Hamilton has the advantage here. He has outqualified Bottas four times out of six, with his average advantage in dry conditions 0.081s. On top of that, he was a massive 1.8s quicker in the rain-hit qualifying for the Styrian Grand Prix.
In races, Hamilton has also beaten Bottas five times out of six with the only reverse in the season-opening Austrian Grand Prix.
Winner: Lewis Hamilton
RED BULL
Max Verstappen v Alex Albon
Alex Albon’s struggles are well documented, but it’s important to remember he’s a driver only in his second season up against a proven superstar in Max Verstappen. So perhaps it is no surprise to see that Verstappen has outqualified him six times out of six and been ahead on the five occasions both have finished.
The big concern is the qualifying deficit. Not only has Albon failed to reach Q3 twice, he is also just over half-a-second on average slower than Verstappen on Saturdays. That’s the second-biggest gap in the field and is the key area to improve given his effective race performances.
Winner: Max Verstappen
FERRARI
Sebastian Vettel v Charles Leclerc
This battle appeared to be destined to be closer, with the duo both having their moments on top and times when they were behind in the first three race weekends of the season. But once F1 reached Silverstone, Leclerc has decisively taken control as Vettel has floundered.
Leclerc is ahead 4-2 with an average advantage of 0.342s in dry conditions. That’s exaggerated by the massive 0.912s gap at Silverstone and drops to a more representative 0.176s if you disregard it.
In races, Leclerc has been ahead on three of the four occasions where both have finished, the exception being the Hungarian Grand Prix where Vettel was ahead both on Saturday and Sunday.
Winner: Charles Leclerc
McLAREN
Lando Norris v Carlos Sainz
The numbers point gently towards Lando Norris, who has more points, has finished ahead four times out of six, a 4-2 qualifying head-to-head advantage with an average advantage of 0.137s in the dry, but this really is too close to call at this stage.
This is because Sainz has had a little more misfortune, notably the late tyre failure that cost him fifth place at the British Grand Prix and promoted Norris. This, combined with the cooling problem that cost Sainz on the 70th Anniversary Grand Prix weekend and the pitstop travails he’s struggled, not to mention the fact he was a brilliant third in the wet qualifying for the second Red Bull Ring race, distorts the picture.
Given we’ve only had six races, it’s inevitable some battles will still be tight and this is one of them, with Sainz and Norris set to push each other hard all season.
Winner: Too close to call
RENAULT
Daniel Ricciardo v Esteban Ocon
Ricciardo has so far outclassed Ocon, with the only exception being wet qualifying for the Styrian Grand Prix where the Frenchman really showed his class by setting the fifth fastest time. He might even have been third but for a wild moment in the last corner in Q3 having had to run used wets. But that has been the only true high point for Ocon.
Ricciardo has finished ahead three times in the four races both finished, spinning and dropping behind the one-stopping Ocon in the 70th Anniversary GP. In qualifying, he has had an average dry advantage of just over three-tenths.
While it’s a conclusive ‘victory’ for Ricciardo, Ocon is returning to F1 after a spell on the sidelines and joining a new team. Given he also complained of an engine weakness in recent events that will be eliminated by a power unit change for Spa, the battle is far from over.
Winner: Daniel Ricciardo
ALPHATAURI
Pierre Gasly v Daniil Kvyat
Ever since he returned to what was then called Toro Rosso after last year’s Summer break, Gasly has dominated Kvyat in qualifying. He’s beaten him six times out of six this year with an average advantage of three-tenths of a second.
It’s been a little different in the races, with the honours even in the four races both have finished. Each has had slices of misfortune – Kvyat in the first Silverstone race when he crashed through no fault of his own and Gasly with a dire strategy the weekend after that cost him a big result – but while things are a little more even Gasly is the one who has seized the opportunity to deliver the big results.
Winner: Pierre Gasly
RACING POINT
Lance Stroll v Sergio Perez
Setting aside Nico Hulkenberg’s two-race stint in place of Perez at Silverstone, the battle at Racing Point has been a fascinating one.
Stroll’s haul of 40 points shows he’s been a consistent force, but is only eight points ahead of Perez’s tally given just 60% of the time to collect them. But points are a poor measure. Instead, we should look to the fact Stroll and Perez are level on the qualifying head-to-head. Although Perez has a slender advantage of 0.033s on the dry-pace average it was Stroll who did the better job in the wet at the Styrian Grand Prix.
We need more data on this to make a conclusive judgement, especially given the disruption to Perez’s season.
Verdict: Too close to call
ALFA ROMEO
Kimi Raikkonen v Antonio Giovinazzi
While Giovinazzi has had the upper hand on qualifying performances by a dry average of a shade over a tenth of a second, until Raikkonen appeared to be woken up by a car that was much more to his liking in Spain, the Italian’s race execution hasn’t been as good.
It’s a picture distorted by diverging strategies given the team’s attempts to try and force a good result out of uncompetitive machinery, but Raikkonen has been four times out of five when both has finished and continues to be a dependable performer on Sundays.
Winner: Antonio Giovinazzi
HAAS
Romain Grosjean v Kevin Magnussen
The Haas battle is the most difficult to judge given the team’s struggles and the tendency of the drivers to get on well with varying car characteristics. But while Grosjean, as shown with his pace in qualifying for the second Silverstone race and on Friday in Spain, can still be stunningly quick on his day, Magnussen has been the more reliable.
The Dane is ahead 4-2 on the qualifying head-to-head and on the three occasions both have finished he has always been ahead. The way he dealt with the opportunity at the Hungaroring, which Grosjean also had, showed that on that day he was just a little more on top of the challenges of the race.
Winner: Kevin Magnussen
WILLIAMS
Nicholas Latifi v George Russell
This is a crushing victory for George Russell, which is no surprise given how highly-rated he is and Nicholas Latifi’s rookie status. In 27 weekends, Russell has still yet to be outqualified by a team-mate, with his four Q2 appearances showing how well he’s performing.
The average gap from Russell to Latifi is a massive seven-tenths in dry qualifying, but that is distorted by a few scruffy runs on Saturday from the inexperienced Latifi – who it should be noted did make Q2 on merit in Hungary.
Russell has also finished ahead on the five occasions both have finished, although Latifi has turned in some decent race drives and took the best overall Williams result with 11th in Austria.
Winner: George Russell
