POWER RANKINGS: Which drivers made all the right moves in Mexico City?

Carlos Sainz delivered a masterclass in Mexico City by charging to a pole position and race victory double for Ferrari. But which other drivers impressed our judges across the weekend? Scroll down to check out the latest Power Rankings leaderboard.
READ MORE: Sainz surges to Mexico victory as Verstappen hit with two penalties for Norris moves
Carlos Sainz was on fire from his first lap to his last at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, bagging both pole position and the race win in a statement performance. He temporarily lost his lead to Max Verstappen at the start, but reclaimed the position in style and never looked back thereafter.
READ MORE: ‘I really wanted this’ – Sainz overjoyed as he achieves goal of ‘one more win’ before Ferrari exit with Mexico masterclass
Kevin Magnussen was another star of the Mexico City weekend, having charged to Q3 and finished firmly inside the top 10 positions for Haas. Not only that, the Dane spearheaded the team’s charge over Nico Hulkenberg and reminded everyone in the paddock exactly what he’s capable of when all the right ingredients come together.
READ MORE: ‘I’m finding my rhythm again’ – Magnussen overjoyed with ‘perfect day’ in Mexico after Haas secure double points finish
Lando Norris had another dramatic weekend thanks to his second (and third) run-in with title rival Max Verstappen in as many weeks. After the Dutchman copped two time penalties, the McLaren driver made sure he clawed back some of the points benefit – snatching a bonus P2 via Charles Leclerc’s late mistake.
READ MORE: ‘I was ready to expect something like this’ – Norris offers take on Verstappen’s ‘not very clean driving’ after latest battle in Mexico
Pierre Gasly gave Alpine some cause for optimism as the 2024 season draws to a close, delivering a similarly impressive performance to Magnussen and Haas with a Q3 and points double. His place in the pole shootout was secured when Yuki Tsunoda crashed out, but he proved it was no fluke by hanging on for a reward in the race.
READ MORE: Enter for your chance to win a pair of Ocon and Gasly boots as the Alpine duo celebrate 150 race starts
Nico Hulkenberg did not quite have the pace of team mate Magnussen throughout the weekend, but still performed well enough to give Haas a double Q3 appearance and points finish. That added to his impressive display in the squad’s heavily-updated car at the United States Grand Prix, which has provided a late-season boost.
READ MORE: 5 Winners and 5 Losers from Mexico City – Who got the fiesta started at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez?
Leclerc admitted he was on the back foot compared to team mate Sainz for most of the weekend, having started by missing FP1 to give Ollie Bearman another outing. He took advantage of the Norris/Verstappen drama to run P2 and looked set to complete back-to-back one-twos, only for a wild moment at the final corner to scupper his efforts.
READ MORE: Vasseur hails ‘perfect weekend’ from Sainz but bemoans ‘idiots’ that hampered Leclerc
Hamilton is tied with his future Ferrari team mate on this week’s Power Rankings list, having won the ‘best of the rest’ battle to finish P4 behind Sainz, Norris and Leclerc. It came after some close racing with fellow Silver Arrows man George Russell – the pair allowed to go wheel-to-wheel and managing to keep it clean.
READ MORE: ‘Neither of us are silly’ says Hamilton as he bests Russell in Mercedes’ Mexico City intra-team battle
Russell is next up after losing out to Hamilton by a few seconds at the chequered flag. It was another incident-affected weekend for the younger Briton, who crashed heavily in free practice – following on from a shunt in Austin – and had to nurse a damaged front wing in the intra-team scrap with his seven-time world champion team mate.
F1 NATION: Sainz on top, more Norris vs Verstappen, and Perez’s pain – it’s our Mexico City GP review
Franco Colapinto could not quite score another points finish in Mexico, but he gave another solid account of himself as his stand-in stint develops. After dropping out in Q1, the Argentinian – backed by plenty of travelling supporters – worked his way up the order to P12, leading the Williams charge after Alex Albon crashed on the first lap.
READ MORE: Colapinto insists his goal is to stay in F1 as he responds to 2025 Sauber links
Liam Lawson is the last driver in the top half of this week’s list after a mixed second weekend back. The New Zealander was on course for a place in Q3 until team mate Yuki Tsunoda shunted and brought ouf the red flags, while his race showed promise before a tense encounter with home hero Sergio Perez.
READ MORE: ‘I’m not just going to get out of his way’ – Lawson frustrated after fierce battle with Perez in Mexico
Valtteri Bottas and Oscar Piastri are the two men to just miss out on a top-10 spot, the Kick Sauber driver this time managing to join the fight en route to P14 and the McLaren racer turning a Q1 elimination into eighth position.