The most important results of the year according to Jolyon Palmer

In 2023 we witnessed records, watched fierce competition on the circuits, and the following year will be remembered with the victories of Max Verstappen and Red Bull Racing. But that’s not all, says Jolyon Palmer, former Formula 1 driver and now expert on the official website of the championship.

This is what he drew attention to when summarizing last season’s results…

Best driver – Max Verstappen

There can be no doubt about it. Verstappen had a great season and performed absolutely flawlessly. He brought his rivals to the point where no one even thought about fighting him seriously.

Max showed incredible skill and consistency, and what was most impressive was how confidently he handled many difficult situations. He was fast in the rain in Monaco and Zandvoort, despite being on slicks, and managed to survive the hustle and bustle of wet qualifying in Montreal, for example. Although his winning streak could be interrupted at any moment, in Max’s case it seemed like it would never happen.

Overall, Max Verstappen and his team had an absolutely sensational season.

Best team – Red Bull Racing

There is no doubt about this either. Choosing the best team is the easiest, because Red Bull is unbeatable this season. Not only was her driver the best, but she was the only one whose cars were 100% reliable on Sundays.

The team rarely made mistakes in choosing tactics, and pit stops on average remained exemplary throughout the season. Add to that the RB19, which was superior to its rivals, and there is no reason to be surprised that Red Bull had a near-perfect season.

Best Performance – Carlos Sainz

In this category, first place must be given to Carlos Sainz for his performance in Singapore. This was the only race in which the Red Bull team did not fight for victory, and in that situation the battle for first place unfolded between several contenders.

Both Ferrari drivers, Mercedes drivers and Lando Norris took part, but Sainz did the best job: he took victory. It was a great example of a smart approach to fighting on the court, with the Spaniard acting very skillfully and carefully.

Joyful moment – ​​McLaren at Silverstone

Lando Norris showed the promise of McLaren’s updated car at the previous round in Austria, but it was at Silverstone that we saw both team drivers utilize the MCL60’s full potential, with Oscar Piastri finally able to showcase his talent.

Best Race – Las Vegas

In Las Vegas there was everything: drama at the start, drama in the final corner, many daring overtakes and notable incidents, and Max’s victory was only certain in the final laps.

The debut Grand Prix of Las Vegas was memorable, although racing on city circuits may not be everyone’s cup of tea. Of course you don’t want every stage of the championship to take place on such circuits, but if the race was interesting to watch, it can’t be called bad.

Best non-obvious result: Ocon’s podium in Monaco

Pierre Gasly took the podium at Zandvoort, which also falls into this category – there the Alpine driver used excellent tactics, but Esteban Ocon’s 3rd place in Monaco was achieved in a fair fight on a track where the taste of success is even sweeter .

Esteban and his team had a great race, which was quite chaotic, and we can only be happy for Alpine, because in 2023 both riders were on the podium.

Surprise of the year – Fernando Alonso and Aston Martin

This is another great story that has been going on all season. Who could have foreseen that Fernando Alonso would be regularly competing for places in the top three for the first time in a decade?

Aston Martin managed to build a fast car, which is a great achievement, and Fernando managed to get everything he was capable of out of the AMR23. Moreover, the car, which provided good acceleration out of corners, suited his driving style and proved to everyone that he was still capable of a lot at the age of 42.

Rookie of the Year – Oscar Piastri

Oscar wasn’t the only newcomer to Formula 1 this year, but he was definitely the best rookie we’ve seen in a long time. He acted very calmly and methodically behind the wheel, and when faced with difficult situations he adapted quickly, and we were convinced that he was very talented indeed.

His teammate, Lando Norris, driving another McLaren car, set excellent guidelines, and it was not easy to overtake him, but Oscar managed.

The other two debutants, Logan Sargent and Nyck de Vries, were disappointing, meaning there wasn’t much competition in this category, but worth mentioning was Liam Lawson, who replaced the injured Daniel Ricciardo in five races and earned points.