At the midway point of the 2023 F1 season, here is the first assessment

A strong team, but with some surprises

Formula 1 had not offered us such brutal domination as Red Bull’s this season in a long time. In 12 Grands Prix, Red Bull has left only crumbs for its opponents. While Red Bull has given the opportunity for some teams to step on the podium, none have been able to win a race. McLaren’s record of consecutive wins achieved in 1988 has already been surpassed in just half a season. The domination is total.

The season started with a surprise: Aston Martin. The British team made a sensational leap and became the second force on the grid during the first Grand Prix. Fernando Alonso indeed completed the podium on numerous occasions, totaling 6 podium finishes. But the Silverstone team had a setback after the Canadian Grand Prix and dropped in the standings, struggling to score big points.

Mercedes, on the other hand, has succeeded in making significant progress by abandoning its “0 pontoons” concept. Since the Spanish Grand Prix and Mercedes’ double podium, Toto Wolff’s men have established themselves as the second strongest team on the grid and have increased the gap on Aston Martin and Ferrari. Ferrari, which has never really managed to establish itself as a viable second force. In Azerbaijan, Austria, and Belgium, the prancing horse team managed to maximize its performance, but otherwise, Fred Vasseur’s men have faced significant difficulties.

The surprise of this first part of the season is McLaren. With the updates brought to Silverstone, the Woking-based team has truly transformed itself to become extremely competitive. A podium finish in Silverstone and Hungary, Zak Brown’s men have proven themselves. Even though they struggled a bit in Belgium, McLaren could be a destabilizing factor for the rest of the season. They have surpassed Alpine with their updates, which, on the other hand, has failed to show competitiveness. The French brand is going through a restructuring phase and will try to bounce back by the end of the 2023 season.

At the bottom of the standings, Williams stands out but Haas and Alfa Romeo are not far behind. It is AlphaTauri that is the team facing the most difficulty in this first half of the season, with only 3 points scored.

Max Verstappen extremely dominant

In reality, it’s not Red Bull but Max Verstappen who has swallowed everything: 10 wins in 12 Grand Prix and currently on a streak of 8 consecutive victories. When the season resumes in the Netherlands, his home country, he will have the chance to equal Sebastian Vettel’s record of 9 consecutive wins. Monstrous. Sergio Pérez, on the other hand, has been disappointing considering the performance of his car. The Mexican is still second in the constructors’ championship but definitively out of the race for the title against Max Verstappen: he now has a 125 point gap. With major difficulties in qualifying, he couldn’t keep up with the pace of his Dutch teammate and must now focus urgently on securing second place in the world championship. A true descent into hell for the Mexican, who will still have to pull himself together to keep his place at Red Bull.

Among the other drivers who have disappointed, Lance Stroll stands out. The Canadian has not been very impressive. With a competitive car for much of the first half of the season, Stroll finds himself 102 points behind his teammate Fernando Alonso, who is in third place in the driver’s championship. The Canadian driver has never performed at the level of his Spanish teammate. However, it is currently difficult to imagine him being replaced: his father Lawrence Stroll is at the head of the team.

On the surprises side, it is Oscar Piastri who has made an impression during the last races. With the developments brought to the McLaren in Silverstone, the Australian rookie has revealed himself to everyone. Fourth in Silverstone after being held back by the safety car for a podium, fifth in Hungary, Piastri has shown great potential. In Belgium, he even led the sprint race before being caught up by Max Verstappen, but still finished in second place. This young driver is building character and learning very quickly, so it wouldn’t be surprising to see him shine in the second half of the season.

Alex Albon has also been solid in his Williams, bringing back 11 points to the British team, which is in seventh position in the constructors’ standings at the break. Author of several strong performances such as in Canada or Silverstone, the Thai driver has perfectly exploited his car without making any mistakes. A nice revenge for someone who had a difficult start to his Formula 1 career at Red Bull.

There are many questions surrounding the second part of the season. Will a team manage to win a Grand Prix? Will Sergio Pérez make a comeback from his struggles? Who will come out on top in the battle between Mercedes, Aston Martin, Ferrari, and McLaren? And perhaps, which driver will not be on the grid next year due to poor performances?

The drivers’ ranking at the break

The ranking of the constructors at the break