Round 21 F1 GFT AI Driver Rankings: Brazil — Russell’s 1st GP win, Leclerc and Perez tied for 2nd in points
13 November 2022
By Bob Francis, Managing Editor
Go Full Throttle Racing News
AUTÓDROMO JOSÉ CARLOS PACE, SÃO PAULO, Brazil — George Russell, who also won the Sprint qualifying race on Saturday, won the Brazil GP with Lewis Hamilton 2nd for a Mercedes 1–2 finish in Sao Paulo.
The Battle for 2nd in F1 Driver Points
With Max Verstappen’s 14 wins, 429 points, and 559 laps led, the 2022 Championship is his and has been for weeks. But to be decided is P2 and P3 for the season points, and after the Mexico GP Red Bull’s Perez and Ferrari’s Leclerc are tied at 290 points each. While there was no change in the GFT AI Driver Rankings Leclerc still holds the edge as our algorithms weigh Wins (3 vs 2) and Laps Led (310 vs 147) among the other inputs into our models for a 354.3 to 321 advantage in the GFT AI scoring models.
Finally, Mercedes Delivers
Both Mercedes cars were strong all weekend, but Ferrari delivered a strong performance as well placing Carlos Sainz P3 and Charles Leclerc P4. The veteran Fernando Alonso delivered a solid 5th place with Verstappen 6th and Perez 7th as Red Bull suffered from issues (some self-inflicted) all race costing them in the end.
“What an amazing feeling,” said Mercedes’ race winner George Russell. “Just a huge thank you to the whole team for making this possible. It’s been an emotional rollercoaster this season.
“This race, a really tough race. I felt in control, Lewis was super-fast and when I saw the Safety Car, I thought, ‘Oh Jesus, this is going to be a really difficult end’, and he put me under so much pressure — but [I’m] so happy to come away with the victory.”
Up Next? The Finale in Abu Dhabi
The 2022 season finale is in Abu Dhabi on November 18–20 at the Yas Marina Circuit
