2023 F1 mid-season driver ratings part two: Ferrari inconsistent, McLaren improving and confusion at Alpine

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With the 2023 Formula 1 mid-season break now in full swing, it’s time to give judge how Ferrari, McLaren and Alpine have fared so far this season.

It’s now just over less than three weeks until F1 returns to action at the Dutch Grand Prix in Zandvoort.

This is part two of the review of the 2023 F1 season, with an analysis of how Red Bull, Mercedes and Ferrari have got on so far already available to read.

The F1 midfield is one of the most exciting parts of the grid right now.

Although the top four teams have opened up a gap over the rest of the pack – with Red Bull in another stratosphere at the top – that may not be how the season ends up finishing.

Ferrari: B, Charles Leclerc: B, Carlos Sainz Jr.: B-

Ferrari gambled on their car development before the season even began as they looked to create an advantage – or at least catch up to – Red Bull before the Bahrain GP.

Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz Jr. qualified just behind Christian Horner’s team but didn’t fare so well in the race.

Leclerc’s bad luck from last season carried over the winter break, as what looked set to be a comfortable podium finish was snatched away by a mechanical failure.

The Monegasque driver has since recorded three podiums, including joining the Red Bull’s on the rostrum at Spa.

Sainz has finished fourth or fifth on five occasions not including sprint races but has yet to break into that top three.

Ferrari have sometimes looked like the second-fastest car on the grid, but on other occasions struggled to finish in the points.

Leclerc has outdriven Sainz for much of the season, but they’ve both also suffered from more poor strategy calls from the team.

If they can iron those issues out, then they’ll back themselves to comfortably finish above Aston Martin by the time the season ends.

McLaren: B, Lando Norris: A, Oscar Piastri: A-

Very few people would have expected McLaren to be in the top half of the Constructors’ Championship after the first five races.

Oscar Piastri was the first driver of the season to retire in Bahrain and Lando Norris joked at the end of the race that the best thing about it was, ‘the mechanics had a lot of pitstop practice’.

The pair picked up points after a dramatic Australian Grand Prix, but the team’s fortunes really turned around in Austria.

Norris loves the circuit and secured a stunning fourth place, but that was only the beginning of McLaren’s comeback.

The young Brit recorded back-to-back second places while Piastri was unlucky not to be on the podium at either Grand Prix.

The rookie got his maiden podium in the sprint race at Spa and McLaren will be eyeing Aston Martin in the Constructors’ Championship despite the 93-point deficit.

McLaren’s poor start to the season explains their B rating, but both drivers have impressed regardless of how good or bad their car was that weekend.

Alpine B-: Pierre Gasly: B-, Esteban Ocon: B

There was so much promise at the French team before the start of the season after the chaos of their driver search last year.

Watching Oscar Piastri struggle in the first few races with McLaren while Pierre Gasly was lining up alongside Esteban Ocon would have raised a few smiles.

However, a furious Laurent Rossi blasted his drivers after they threw away a double points finish when they collided in Australia.

Gasly has finished between seventh and 13^th in every Sunday race he’s completed this season.

That consistency is OK, but not what the one-time race winner would have wanted from his first six months at the team, although a Sprint podium in Spa suggests better days are coming.

Esteban Ocon’s year has been very similar, however, his rating is slightly higher due to a fantastic weekend in Monaco that saw him return to the podium.

There’s been turmoil behind the scenes at Alpine, with Rossi moved on and three senior figures, including team boss Otmar Szafnauer all parted ways during the Spa race weekend.

Bringing in the right replacement could make or break Alpine’s season, although they’re chances of catching the top five teams, or being caught by the bottom four teams looks unlikely.