©Ferrari
P3: Charles Leclerc, Ferrari 8.17/10 (171.5 in total)
We were concerned that Charles Leclerc's promotion to Ferrari on the back of a single rookie season with Sauber would put too much pressure on the then 21-year-old Monegasque and that he might struggle under the frenzied Tifosi spotlight. His first outing for the Scuderia was solid but unspectacular (we gave him a 7.0) but Bahrain was a different level altogether as he clinched a maiden pole position and went on to beat his team mate Sebastian Vettel to claim the first of ten podium positions in 2019. That was the first of four 9.5 ratings we gave Leclerc through the season (see also Silverstone, Monza and Singapore); but then we have to talk about Belgium, where Leclerc scored the first perfect 10.0 F1i rating of the season, securing his first career F1 victory having started once again from pole. It was a brilliant performance signalling a post-summer break purple patch for Ferrari, but the downside is that it also led to increasing friction between Leclerc and Vettel that will be a major headache for team principal Mattia Binotto to manage in 2020.
