Carlos Sainz (P4, 12 pts): 8/10
Carlos Sainz was forced to sit out first practice in favour of Ferrari Driver Academy's Robert Shwartzman putting him on the back foot in FP2 (where he was sixth) and FP3 (down a place to seventh). Maybe without that disadvantage he would have been slightly ahead of team mate Charles Leclerc in qualifying, but instead he was a tenth and a half off the Monegasque and had to settle for fourth on the grid. That exposed him to an early attack from Lewis Hamilton when the lights went out on Sunday. Hamilton won the initial battle but was told to hand the place back for exceeding track limits, only to pass Sainz again a lap later. That looked like the matter was settled, but Hamilton started to struggle and Sainz was soon back in fourth place. Sainz had been tasked with mirroring Sergio Perez' two-stop strategy but in the end the Red Bull was too strong and Sainz could do little except watch on as Perez gave chase to Leclerc in the final laps to decide who would be 'vice-champion' of 2022, while Sainz blamed Hamilton's early 'clumsy driving' for missing out on the chance of a podium.
Sergio Perez (P3, 15 pts): 8.5/10
Some dismiss the runner-up spot as being 'first of the losers', but the chance of finishing as this year's 'vice-champion' clearly appealed to Sergio Perez who came into the season finale at Abu Dhabi tied on points with Charles Leclerc. Friday practice was fairly average for the Mexican (fifth in FP2 which was topped by his team mate Max Verstappen) but he was quickest in final practice and gave Verstappen a run for his money in qualifying before settling for second place in a Red Bull lock-out of the front row. When the race started, Perez took the inside line and briefly claimed the lead from his team mate; this was the moment when Max could have helped Checho win the race and P2 in the championship, but that would never have occurred to the Dutchman who slammed the door and cruised to victory. Perez tried to use a two-stop strategy to hunt down Leclerc in the final laps, but in the absence of even token assistance from Verstappen it was not to be, and third ahead of Carlos Sainz was the best he could manage.
