Formula One heads to Madrid this weekend for the first Spanish Grand Prix at the new Madring circuit. Expect red flags, crashes and a lot of chaos as drivers attempt to navigate 22 unfamiliar corners.
Our power rankings measure who will arrive in Spain in the best shape. We take into account recent form, raw speed, how much each driver is extracting from their car, momentum, and how well their strengths might suit Madrid.
After Zandvoort and Monza, here are our top 10 as well as our prediction for the race in Spain.
10 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi)
Form: Zandvoort P8, Monza P12. Championship: P15
Hulkenberg continues to squeeze plenty of pace out of the Audi. He started 13th in Zandvoort and climbed to eighth, picking up four useful points along the way. At Monza, he finished 12th, but his recent performances keep highlighting the same qualities. His experience means he reads races well and capitalises on opportunities.
9 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls)
Form: Zandvoort P12, Monza P8. Championship: P11
Lindblad’s 12th place at Zandvoort was overshadowed by Max Verstappen’s crash. A drive-through penalty for passing Pierre Gasly under double yellow flags dropped him out of contention after he was forced to take evasive action. Lindblad called the punishment “quite extreme” and felt eighth place had been within reach.
At Monza, Lindblad reached Q3 for a sixth successive weekend and raced from 10th to eighth, splitting the Alpines despite Racing Bulls losing speed on the straights. He has now scored in seven of the past eight races. For a 19-year-old rookie, he’s forcing us to pay attention. Madrid will prove tricky, and crashes are to be expected. Lindblad may suffer.
8 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
Form: Zandvoort P5, Monza DNF. Championship: P5
If Antonelli has been dubbed an ‘AI Agent’ for his ability to adapt and improve with each race, then Leclerc is a mere human, flaws and all. He had plenty of pace across both weekends but crashing out in Monza because he was too aggressive on the chicane against Lewis Hamilton is typical Leclerc. Many drivers make mistakes, and yet we always remember Leclerc’s.
He finished second in the Zandvoort sprint and fifth in the Grand Prix due to the virtual safety car – where he was perhaps a little unlucky as he had enough pace to push for a podium. Madrid offers him the opportunity to regroup.
7 Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
Form: Zandvoort P6, Monza P5. Championship: P7
Piastri started strongly at Zandvoort and passed Russell after the restart, but his pace faded dramatically after his first stint, leaving him perturbed. A slow pit stop compounded the problem and both Ferraris eventually passed him, leaving his team principal to conclude that the performance deserved better.
Monza produced a slightly improved result. He qualified third before a grid penalty dropped him to sixth, but he finished fifth after Norris passed him late on. There is clearly more pace in Piastri and the McLaren, but over the past two weekends Norris has been struggling to extract more from the car.
6 Pierre Gasly (Alpine)
Form: Zandvoort P10, Monza P7 Championship: P10
Considering his performance in Monza, perhaps Gasly deserves to be even higher in the rankings. He produced a superb final lap in qualifying to claim the first pole position of his F1 career, six years after claiming his maiden victory at the same circuit.
His driving, coupled with the team’s performance in helping him to capitalise from the powerful slipstream, allowed him to make history. A point at Zandvoort and a P7 finish in Monza demonstrate positive steps. Alpine can push for bigger targets in Madrid.
5 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari)
Form: Zandvoort P4, Monza P6 Championship: P3
Hamilton has made his frustrations with Ferrari clear. At Zandvoort, he felt a podium was within reach. Running on fresher tyres, Hamilton was stuck behind Leclerc while Ferrari debated how to manage the two cars. His sarcastic message, “Great waste of time there, guys”, summed up his mood.
At Monza, Hamilton started fourth but dropped towards 10th after Leclerc squeezed him into the gravel as they fought through the opening chicane. He recovered to finish sixth. Fred Vasseur, Ferrari’s team principal, has promised better from the team in Madrid.
4 George Russell (Mercedes)
Form: Zandvoort P3, Monza P2 Championship: P2
“It’s embarrassing, isn’t it? To start at the front and be beaten by your teammate from the back,” said David Coulthard on the Up to Speed podcast. Despite good drives at nearly all the circuits, Russell is suffering, as he sees his young teammate extract excellence from the same car to win consistently.
It makes it worse that Russell started in P2 at Monza. Russell has been superb in his own right over the past two weekends, but his inability to adapt his driving to secure maximum speed has been concerning.
3 Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
Form: Zandvoort DNF, Monza P3 Championship: P6
It’s controversial to place Verstappen so high on this list, considering his home weekend ended on the opening lap, but his response at Monza was emphatic. From fifth on the grid, he worked his way into the lead and kept enough pressure on Mercedes to influence their strategy before finishing on the podium. “I tried to battle, but we were just too slow on the straight,” said Verstappen.
The Dutchman's experience should make the difference in Madrid as the grid attempts to navigate a new chaotic circuit.
2 Lando Norris (McLaren)
Form: Zandvoort P1, Monza P4 Championship: P4
Norris was outstanding at Zandvoort. He took pole in qualifying, lost the lead to Antonelli after the restart, but then he fought back past the championship leader and drove away to make it back-to-back wins. Monza was always going to be a difficult circuit for the car due to McLaren’s weakness in straight-line speed and yet Norris climbed from eighth to fourth and beat his teammate again.
He’s certainly one of the grid’s most in-form drivers and will feel confident of the car in Madrid, a circuit better suited to its strengths.
Antonelli wins Italian GP – in pictures
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Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli celebrates his historic win at the 2026 Italian Grand Prix at Monza. AFP -
Kimi Antonelli celebrates with his Mercedes team after winning his home race in Italy. Getty Images -
Kimi Antonelli celebrates victory on the podium at Monza. Getty Images -
Italian fans surround the podium after Kimi Antonelli's win. Getty Images -
Second-placed George Russell, left, race winner Andrea Kimi Antonelli, second right, next to Max Verstappen who was third. EPA -
Kimi Antonelli after becoming the first home winner of the Italian GP in 60 years. Getty Images -
Mercedes driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli wins the Italian GP. EPA -
Charles Leclerc's Ferrari after hitting the barriers at Monza. Getty Images -
Ferrari teammates Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton clash at start of race. Getty Images -
Alpine's Pierre Gasly leads at the beginning of the Italian GP after starting in pole. AFP
1 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)
Form: Zandvoort P2, Monza P1 Championship: P1
“Che confusione, sarà perché ti amo,” rang the Italian song as Monza celebrated their prodigal son. The first Italian to win at the circuit since Ludovico Scarfiotti in 1966, Antonelli is proving to be astonishingly good, stirring up debate as to whether he’s a potential generational great.
Managing to win after starting P19 on the grid, the youngster has managed to break the home curse and win in front of his home fans, somsomething no other driver has done this seasonuch to Italy’s delight. Seven victories from 13 races, Antonelli boasts a 66-point championship lead and is currently the strongest driver on the grid.
Madrid podium prediction
1 Kimi Antonelli: Most in-form driver in the best car.
2 Lando Norris: The fast sections and sustained lateral loads should play to the McLaren’s strengths.
3 George Russell: Madrid ought to reward a balanced car. Mercedes have shown that quality across both high- and low-downforce tracks.
