Charles Leclerc (P6, 15 pts): 8.5/10
After three pretty flawless performances to start the 2022 season, this was perhaps the first chink we've seen in Charles Leclerc's armour this year. Faster than anyone in wet practice, Leclerc surfed the conditions and was also quickest in the first round of qualifying later the same day. But after that, the balance of power for the weekend shifted towards Max Verstappen who went on to beat Leclerc for pole position. From second on the grid, the Ferrari driver took the lead at the start of the sprint and seemed to have victory in the palm of his hands, but right front tyre graining saw him start to slip and slide allowing Verstappen to regain the advantage by the flag. "We may have paid the price for pushing too hard at the start," Leclerc admitted. When it came to the Grand Prix he lost out badly at the start and dropped to fourth; while he was soon able to get back past Lando Norris, the Red Bulls at the front were just too strong. He tried to pressure Sergio Perez into making a mistake but in the end it was Leclerc who made the error, spinning out on lap 52. He was able to get underway again and went on to salvage sixth, but this was the first falter we've seen from the championship leader, one that enabled Verstappen to slice into Leclerc's formerly burgeoning points lead.
Valtteri Bottas (P5, 12 pts): 8/10
When Valtteri Bottas was dropped by Mercedes at the end of 2021, it felt like a cruel reward for the Finn's five seasons of solid contributions in service of the team's success. But now it feels like he owes Toto Wolff a thank you card for providing him with the ejector seat that carried him clear of his old team's meltdown, and into the safe harbour of Alfa Romeo's current remarkable renaissance. Unlike his former team mate Lewis Hamilton he had no trouble making it into the final round of qualifying on Friday, and the sprint race then saw him pick up an extra spot to start the Grand Prix from seventh on the grid. Although he lost out when the lights went out to flying starts from Kevin Magnussen and George Russell, the incident for Daniel Ricciardo and Carlos Sainz balanced things out and he was still seventh when the safety car was deployed. He then spent virtually the entire afternoon chasing down Russell, and he turned the pressure up in the closing laps but ultimately just missed out on what would have been a very sweet victory indeed over his replacement at Mercedes. Even so, fifth place is further proof of how Bottas and Alfa Romeo seem to have unexpectedly found the ideal partnership for success.
