Top 5 F1 drivers of the decade (2020-present)

The F1 landscape is going through one of its golden eras where drivers from three different generations are right at the front of the grid, fighting for top honors. There are three multiple world champions on the grid, along with a lot of young drivers trying to make their name.

By 2024, we're in the fifth year of the 2020s, a decade where we still have brilliant talents like Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton on the grid, battling talent like Max Verstappen, George Russell, and Charles Leclerc. At the same time, there are talented prodigies like Kimi Antonelli and Ollie Bearman looking to make their way to F1 in 2025.

With that being said, in the current decade that began in 2020, who are the top 5 drivers that stand out more than anyone else? Let's take a look as I share my list for the same.

Criteria:

For the rankings, of course, success is an important metric, but sometimes that is dependent on the type of car a driver has under him. It's about performance, consistency, and being brilliant over this five-year stretch.

#5 George Russell (Mercedes F1)

In No. 5, I've kept George Russell. The young British driver was still very young and only in his second year of the sport in 2020. Since then, he's spent two years in Williams and the other three in Mercedes. The driver started making his mark as early as 2020 and some felt that maybe a third year at Williams was not needed whatsoever. With that being said, the time from 2020 to 2024 has been quite successful for George.

He secured his first podium with Williams in 2021, he got his first pole position and win with Mercedes in 2022, and he's been a match for teammate Lewis Hamilton as well. While he's had a successful run since 2020 up till now, with impressive results for Mercedes, the reason he's not placed higher on the rankings is that there's still a bit left for the 26-year-old to do in order to become the complete product.

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#4 Lando Norris (McLaren)

Just like George, Lando Norris was still learning his strides in F1 in 2020. He did end up getting outscored by Carlos Sainz that season, however, since then, Norris has been more or less one of the top 5 drivers in F1. The cars that he has under him have increased in their respective levels, and the same has happened with Lando.

Just like George, there are still a few mistakes that Lando is prone to from time to time, which prevents him from being the complete package.

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#3 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)

In P3 we have Charles Leclerc. Now this was an interesting debate because, in terms of performance and consistency, the new version of 2024 makes the last few years look worse. With that being said, Charles in 2020 was a very impressive driver already and one of the best. While he did have some great peaks, there were a few weekends that went begging because of his eagerness.

If the rankings were from 2022 onwards, there's a legitimate argument to be made Charles Leclerc has been the second-best driver in F1. The 2020 and 2021 seasons had a few too many mistakes holding him back from being placed second in these rankings.

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#2 Lewis Hamilton(Mercedes)

The reason Lewis Hamilton seals a spot in P2 is primarily because the driver got an impressive headstart in 2020 and 2021 over everyone else. He was definitively the best driver in F1 in 2020 and second-best in 2021.

Since then, while his performances have dipped, the drop hasn't been substantial enough to throw him out of contention. The driver is still the second-best of this decade, and for someone approaching 40 years of age, this is impressive.

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#1 Max Verstappen(Red Bull)

At the top of the ratings, we have Max Verstappen, who became the benchmark in F1 in 2021 and has not looked back since then. The Red Bull driver doesn't make mistakes too often, doesn't have off days, and is blindingly fast.

That kind of combination is rare and that's just what one sees in the best on the grid. Max Verstappen is the complete package and that is why he's looked at as the best driver in F1 right now.