The likes of McLaren’s Lando Norris, Alpine’s Esteban Ocon, and Williams’ (now Mercedes) George Russell delivered some great performances.
Follow Us
The 2021 Formula One season was undoubtedly one of the most exciting and dramatic seasons of all time. The championship protagonists, Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen pushed each other to the limit. The championship was decided in the final lap of the last race of the season which saw Verstappen edge past Hamilton and become Red Bull’s first world champion since Sebastian Vettel. However, it was just not these two drivers that made their mark. Several young drivers made the season their own and have the potential to be world champions themselves in the future. The likes of McLaren’s Lando Norris, Alpine’s Esteban Ocon, and Williams’ (now Mercedes) George Russell delivered some exceptional performances that will surely be etched in fans’ minds for quite a while.
When McLaren signed Australian driver Daniel Ricciardo ahead of the 2021 season, many believed that the 32-year-old would be the number 1 driver in the team. Lando Norris was supposed to be his understudy, learning from the veteran over the course of the season. Not many people expected the 22-year-old driver from Bristol to drastically outshine his teammate and become one of the most popular drivers in the sport.
Practice makes progress. ?
What’s in store for @LandoNorris in 2022? ?? pic.twitter.com/yXE4OoKB6Q
— McLaren (@McLarenF1) December 18, 2021
Norris finished the season in sixth place behind his good friend and former teammate Carlos Sainz. That indeed is an outstanding result for someone as young as him. There has only been two occasions where the Brit finished outside the points in the season, the Belgian GP and the Hungarian GP.
Norris’ best performance was undoubtedly at Monza when he finished in second place behind his teammate Ricciardo. He was on the podium for a total of four times in the season and he finished with 160 points in total.
George Russell might not have ended his season high up the table, but his performances have been exceptional considering he was a part of the Williams team. He was impressive on more than one occasion when it came to qualifying. The Brit had his best qualifying session in the Belgian GP where he qualified in P2. Russell was outstanding in the Russian GP qualifying as well, ending up P3 on the grid.
The 23-year-old scored points four times in the season, including an extraordinary second-place finish in the Belgian GP. Russell finished the season in 15th place with 16 points on the table. He has been signed by Mercedes for next season and it will be exciting to see how he performs with the silver arrows.
Also Read – Formula One news: The most memorable races of the 2021 season
Alpine driver Esteban Ocon had an incredible season which saw him win his first Grand Prix. Ocon was one of the brightest stars and will have a lot of expectations pinned on him ahead of the 2022 season. The Frenchman finished in the points an incredible 14 times in the season and he has delivered decent performances in qualifying as well.
The highlight of the 25-year-old’s season has to be the Hungarian GP. Ocon found himself leading the race after what was a chaotic start and he never looked back. The Frenchman, with some help from his teammate Fernando Alonso, became a Grand Prix winner for the first time in his career at the Hungaroring. It was the race that put Ocon on the map and he will be looking to make a mark in 2022 as well.
2023 Formula E Hyderabad ePrix: Preview, Dates, Tickets, Live Streaming, all you need to know
