My F1 Mid-Season Review

We are at the halfway point of the 2023 F1 season, and there's no better time for a review of all things racing. Which drivers, teams, and races have stood out, hopefully for good reasons, and what has been the story of the first 12 races? 

Driver Ws and Ls 

Formula One Drivers face absurd pressure in every race to perform, given the hypercompetitive nature of the sport. Some excel, and some crumble. I've picked out 3 drivers who have taken Ws (had a good season) and 3 more who have taken Ls (had a poor season). 

Nyck De Vries - L

Replaced after just 10 races? Replaced by Daniel Ricciardo in the second AlphaTauri seat? Nyck De Vries had a rough half-season. He has not shown the promise of his F2 Championship campaign and his cameo in Monza for Williams last year. F1 is a results business, and combined with Helmut Marko's short attention span, he needed much better performance. He got slapped by Tsunoda in qualifying and in the race head-to-head. He also had heavy crashes in Canada and Azerbaijan. It felt inevitable. I am not surprised, just disappointed by the decision, but it is probably the right move for both Red Bull and AlphaTauri. 

Sergio Perez - L 

Sergio Perez (Checo) is a fantastic driver. He can keep up with Max Verstappen at his best—a serious compliment. He was vocal about his championship ambitions but was taken to the cleaners. A 10-2 head-to-head defeat is not that embarrassing when you consider the generational talent beside him. However, missing five straight Q3s is. He has made an unbeaten car look average at times and seems to care more about driver of the day than winning races. He needs to return to early-season form, and hopefully the back-to-back podiums will bring his confidence back. The second red bull seat has a reputation, but he must be at the very least the perfect second driver to Max if he doesn't want a certain smiling Australian to take his seat. 

Lance Stroll - L

First things first, despite popular belief, Lance Stroll is very talented, deserves to be in F1, and he is a good driver. Alonso has made him look amateur, which does not help the "daddy's cash" chat die down. An 11-1 record in the race head-to-head needs work for sure, but Stroll's downfall has been mistakes and poor form, coinciding with the Aston Martin having pace. That has resulted in P9 in the standings, 102 points behind Fernando, despite having the 2nd/3rd quickest car for a large chunk of the season. I know Logan Sargeant and Kevin Magnussen have had poor seasons, but I expect a lot from Lance and more from the Aston Martin. He must improve his consistency and stop driving into drivers and walls if he wants to avoid his dad making a tough decision. 

Max Verstappen – W

If it comes across that I am downplaying Red Bull or Max’s achievements in this piece, I do apologize. The fact of the matter is that Max is a generational talent having a record-breaking season. He is the best driver right now, and possibly for as long as he wants to be in the sport. He has been nearly perfect this season, making arguably the most talented field ever bow down to his superiority. He’s leading both championships by himself and could easily break the record for wins in a row in two races. This is such common knowledge that I feel I don’t have to go into more detail. I prefer to discuss the more interesting narratives this season, but never forget the context of one of the most dominant seasons ever seen. 

Oscar Piastri - W

Rookie tax is something I use to give the benefit of the doubt to a driver struggling in their first season. Piastri had to adapt to the insanity of an F1 car, the pressure of the circus at every race, and being teammates with a top-6 driver in Lando Norris. Should I be surprised by the quiet Australian’s exceptional start to his F1 career? Probably not. He won Formula 3 and Formula 2 as a rookie in back-to-back seasons, a sign of serious talent. He even brushed off a rather amusing Alpine drama last year with one of the greatest tweets ever made. Sure, there is always room for improvement with racecraft, getting closer to Lando in qualifying, and learning the tyres. But I’ll say, ‘Here we go, to a podium before the end of the year and a nailed-on rookie of the year. McLaren have a good one. 

Fernando Alonso – W

I grew up watching Fernando the villain, maybe disliking the ‘lord of the eyebrows,’ but always respecting the man’s relentless ability to get the most out of a car. So, when he came out of retirement, I simply couldn’t back against him to succeed. But I believe he may be driving to a standard perhaps higher than even his championship years at Renault. Even if it’s not quite on that level, it is unprecedented what Alonso is doing at 42??? I cannot believe he’s that old; it’s been 22 years since his debut too. Interesting. P3 in the championship, 6 podiums in his first 8 races, and a decent career move—it’s all going the Spaniard’s way. He even achieved his 100th podium. Sure, he’s still the villain and runs his mouth occasionally for his own entertainment, but you must respect him. 

Best Race – British Grand Prix

An amazing race needs certain characteristics: a fight for the win, high-quality and numerous overtakes, some chaos, some memorable storylines, good qualifying, and tension throughout. We aren't spoiled for choice this year, unlike in 2021. Blame Adrian Newey. Entertainment is found in the midfield, however. Britain was my favourite, but I wouldn’t object to Australia for the pure insanity of the restarts and red flags. However, the confusion, the harsh penalty for Sainz, and a safety car finish sapped a lot of that joy. Britain began with the Silverstone hype and a stunning changing-condition qualifying that saw out-of-position starts for McLaren, Albon, and Perez. Norris took the lead in the first corner, a move that sent the crowd into a frenzy. Great moves were not hard to come by, and the tension of strategy and high-flying McLaren kept me on edge. A late safety car robbed Piastri of a likely first podium but gave a chance to Lando and Lewis to fight for a podium, perhaps even a win. Just kidding, Max bolted into the distance, but the fight for P2 was intense. Checo fought for 9 places gained, Ferrari messed up strategy-standard, and Albon snuck into P8 in a truck also known as the Williams. Strong performances from the British drivers and teams led to a buoyant atmosphere, felt through the cameras. I know you may be thinking British bias, but I would say the same if it were Max at Zandvoort or Daniel at Albert Park. It was a weekend full of entertainment, stories, and fantastic racing. Yes, I am jealous of those who went; leave me alone. 

On the Up – McLaren

Keep an eye on the Woking-based outfit. The car brought to Bahrain displayed too many bus-like characteristics, and it needed upgrades. 10 races later, McLaren were the second-quickest car. A frightening turn around. With two young drivers showing their talent and a team that seems to understand their car better and better, there’s a big opportunity to climb the Constructors Championship in the second half of the season. Staying grounded, not getting complacent, and giving their drivers a chance to showcase their speed is the key to success, and I am confident in their chances. 

Fraud Watch – Alpine

If you had told me before this season that Alpine would be underperforming, I would have assumed a lack of driver harmony was at fault. Despite incidents in Hungary and Australia, Gasly and Ocon have had solid seasons. The Alpine hierarchy has let them down time and time again. The revolving door of a CEO, team principal, technical director, sporting director, executive directors, and drivers (Alonso and Piastri) indicates a toxic culture. A bureaucratic corporate mess is not a recipe for racing prosperity. Matteo Binotto at Ferrari felt similar problems, and these are the hardest to change. Leave motorsport people to run motorsport teams, leave engineers to engineer the cars, and leave businesspeople to run the business side of the team. I fear for Alpine. An investment by Ryan Reynolds is not going to be enough without serious restructuring. 

Best Overtake – Magnussen on Sargeant, Monaco

I am a sucker for a good overtake, and even more of a sucker for a Monaco overtake. Kevin Magnussen had a chaotic Monaco race, and I couldn’t stop laughing at his attempt to drive the streets on hard tyres in the rain. Stunning effort, Kev, but the strategists have let you down there. Nonetheless, there was nothing funny about his move on Sargeant. A full send at Mirabeau was a sight to behold, with great racing from the pair of them, and the Viking showed commitment and bravery throughout the race. Honourable mentions to George Russell around the outside of Charles Leclerc at Luffield and a lovely dummy move from Alonso to the inside on Lewis Hamilton at the tricky turns 9 and 10. He did say it was "too easy," so sorry Fernando, I guess it cannot win. 

Biggest Surprise – Fernando Alonso and Taylor Swift dating rumours 

What even was this? An absolute fever dream, a ridiculous crossover, and some exceptional commentary and social media content. 

Some of the best moments 

The restart in Australia was an amazing watch that ended up meaning very little. Still, the Alpines crashing, the Sainz incident, and whatever Logan Sargeant decided to do were all very entertaining. 

The Austrian sprint race did a decent job at stopping the blind hatred of the sprint format, with Nico Hulkenberg's heroics at the forefront, finishing P4 in the tyre-munching Haas. It's always a good race in tricky, damp conditions. 

Hungary qualifying usually outperforms the race in terms of enjoyment, and mega laps from Zhou Guanyu, Valtteri Bottas, and the returning Ricciardo were highlights. Hamilton claimed a stunning first pole in 33 races. Just three thousandths of a second separated him from Max. What an atmosphere at the Hungaroring! 

Monaco was a decent race this year by Monaco procession standards, but qualifying every year is the best of the year by my standards. It was a joy to behold, with highlights of previous winner Perez's crash, cracking laps from Fernando and Tsunoda, and extreme tension to the final second in each session. I thought Alonso had it, until the most daring and outrageous sector 3 from Max. If you ever need proof that it's not just the car, watch that lap. 

Looking ahead 

I love F1, never want to miss a race, and still find satisfaction in every race. But this season is testing my patience. When a team wins every race and a driver wins eight races in a row and counting, fans are going to get bored. I am not blaming Red Bull. Formula One is the pinnacle of motorsport, and it is all about meritocracy, a point even Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff was quick to point out. You must reward those who get it right. Adrian Newey can see airflow; he is a genius, and his team has built the best car by a country mile. Congratulations to them! They have earned this season’s dominance, and no one should take it away from them. They could win 23 races this year, and we wouldn’t bat an eyelid. Is that good for the sport? I don’t think so, especially if it is like this next year. 

This is not just about Max or Red Bull; it's about Mercedes and Lewis, Vettel and Red Bull, Schumacher and Ferrari, and many more. I don’t think it’s what the sport should promote, and regulations and changes like the cost cap should always look to even the field. New winners, close seasons, and competitive races throughout the field create the best seasons. What makes this season the worst is the lack of competition at all. Lewis had Rosberg and Vettel to fight; some seasons were very close. Vettel had to win two final clutch races to win two of his championships. It was dominant overall, but within the season, it was competitive. And that, I don’t mind. More could be done to stop this from happening, especially at the end of a season. Not as a punishment but to generate better seasons and interest in the sport. 2021 had the world’s attention, and it came from a regulation that ‘nerfed’ Mercedes. A stronger rule on capital expenditure to help smaller teams catch up is an idea. Looser rules on intellectual property release could be extreme but could help teams stay closer from year to year. Perhaps even banning work on future cars until a certain date will stop a victorious team from starting early after securing the title. 

I don’t know the solution, but I do know what the discourse about F1 this season is like. It is dull. I cannot give enough flowers to Max and the Red Bull team, they are the best, but another season of this will hurt everyone in the sport. It is not about Max winning; I want close competition every race and throughout the year, and after that, I don’t mind who takes the crown. The FIA and Liberty Media have a good thing going, but to keep the hype train going, they must promote competition, hopefully as organically as possible. 

Image - By Lukas Raich - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=133976957