Verstappen ranked best driver by team bosses for 5th straight year
Max Verstappen has been voted as the best driver of the season for a fifth consecutive year by Formula 1 team bosses.
The voting, which is conducted by F1, asks the grid's team principals to rank their 10 best drivers of the season. A team principal or representative for eight of the 10 teams participated with only Ferrari and Verstappen's Red Bull absent from the vote.
Below are the full rankings for 2025:
| Rank | Driver | Team |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull |
| 2 | Lando Norris | McLaren |
| 3 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren |
| 4 | George Russell | Mercedes |
| 5 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin |
| 6 | Carlos Sainz | Williams |
| 7 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari |
| 8 | Oliver Bearman | Haas |
| 9 | Isack Hadjar | Racing Bulls |
| 10 | Nico Hulkenberg | Sauber |
The top two of Verstappen and current world champion Lando Norris share identical positions as last year's rankings. Meanwhile, Charles Leclerc saw the biggest decline, dropping four spots from last season's list. Fernando Alonso went up four spots, making him the biggest riser. Rookies Oliver Bearman and Isack Hadjar also cracked the top 10 rankings in their first full seasons.
One driver noticeably absent from the rankings is Lewis Hamilton, who fell out of the top 10 for the first time in his career. Hamilton had a dreadful debut campaign for Ferrari and failed to stand on the podium for the first time in his decorated 19-year career.