The 2022 season was the first in the new era of Formula 1, with major regulation changes that came into effect at the start of the year allowing teams to go back to the drawing board in their hunt for success.
Max Verstappen and Red Bull cruised to both championships as their rivals struggled to take advantage of the new rules and former F1 champion Nico Rosberg has now revealed his top five drivers of the season.
In fifth place comes Lando Norris, who finished as the best of the rest driver in the championship standings as he continues to impress with McLaren.
The Brit was the only driver outside of Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull to score a podium in 2022 and has been linked with a move to Red Bull in recent weeks, should McLaren not become championship contenders in the near future.
READ: Lewis Hamilton snubs Max Verstappen as he refuses to participate in voting
Fourth in Rosberg’s rankings comes his former teammate Lewis Hamilton, with the German claiming that the seven-time world champion was very unlucky at the start of the season before improving alongside the W13 towards the latter stages of the year.
Hamilton finished sixth in the drivers’ championship and went the entirety of 2022 without a win, meaning the 37-year-old was not able to avenge the heartbreak of 2021 as he would have liked.
In third place is championship runner up Charles Leclerc, with Rosberg suggesting that the Monegasque driver would have been in contention for his maiden world title had he not been let down by his team numerous times over the course of the year.
The 25-year-old initially looked to be the favourite for the championship before Max Verstappen found his unbeatable form to claim his second consecutive championship.
The surprise in Rosberg’s ranking is George Russell who comes in second place, ahead of Leclerc and his veteran teammate Lewis Hamilton.
Rosberg has credited Russell’s consistency and ability to always be in and around the top five over the course of the season despite Mercedes struggles.
The Brit picked up the first win of his career in Brazil and finished two places above Hamilton in the championship, topping off an impressive first year with Mercedes for Russell.
READ: Valtteri Bottas reveals Sebastian Vettel story
The obvious winner of Rosberg’s 2022 driver rankings is Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, who broke all sorts of records on his way to his second championship.
The Dutchman won a record 15 races in 2022 and scored the most points in an F1 season ever, actually outscoring every team other than Ferrari and Mercedes on his own.
With Red Bull’s rivals struggling in 2022, the 25-year-old will be in for a sterner test next year as teams continue to learn under the new regulations.