Lando Norris leads the F1 2026 momentum ranking with +10.78. Behind the leader come Charles Leclerc (Ferrari, +3.67), Max Verstappen (Red Bull, +3.56), Isack Hadjar (Red Bull, +3.42) and Nico Hülkenberg (Audi, +2.00). First to fifth is separated by 8.78. Recent points-per-race rate compared with the season-to-date average.
The Dutch Grand Prix rewrote the top of the table: Lando Norris climbed 1 place into first. Nobody has pushed harder over the last three rounds than Lando Norris (McLaren): 6, 25, 25 across the Belgian, Hungarian and Dutch Grands Prix — comfortably clear of the level set over the rest of the season. Going the other way, George Russell (Mercedes) has given up the most ground: 0, 6, 15 across the Belgian, Hungarian and Dutch Grands Prix, below the standard set earlier in the year.
So why is this ranking worth your time? Because it is exactly the kind of question every fan argues about and almost nobody actually counts. This one is counted: 22 drivers and 12 races of the F1 2026 season, built race by race from the official classifications. No votes, no opinions, no cherry-picked highlights — if a driver moves here, something real happened on track. And it recomputes itself after every Grand Prix, so the next time the argument comes up, the answer is already up to date.
Updated after the Dutch Grand Prix
Through 12 rounds of 2026, Lando Norris (McLaren) leads this table at +10.78, built from 12 counted races.
Behind him, Charles Leclerc holds second on +3.67, while Max Verstappen rounds out the top three at +3.56.
As with every Measure ranking, the numbers are computed directly from official race data and refreshed after each round. The big mover this round is Andrea Kimi Antonelli, up 16 places to P6. Arvid Lindblad heads the other way, down 10 places to P16.
After round 12 at the Dutch Grand Prix, the Momentum ranking still has Lando Norris (McLaren) out front on +10.78 across 12 races counted. Behind him, the fight for the next spots is razor-thin: Charles Leclerc sits second on +3.67, only a fraction ahead of Max Verstappen on +3.56 in third. The biggest jump belongs to Andrea Kimi Antonelli, who rockets up 16 places to P6 with +1.78, while Fernando Alonso climbs four to P8 on +0.56 and Oscar Piastri gains three to P17 despite a −1.22 value. On the downside, Arvid Lindblad drops 10 to P16 (−1.11), Liam Lawson slides six to P14 (−0.67), and Lewis Hamilton falls three to P20 on −3.00. What makes this update stand out is the split personality of the table: the top spot looks firmly controlled, yet positions just behind are tight enough that small swings can reshuffle the order quickly, and Antonelli’s surge shows how sharply momentum can change within a single round’s update.
Average championship points per race over the most recent 3 rounds, minus the average over every earlier round this season. A positive value means a driver is scoring faster right now than they were before; negative means they have cooled off. Requires at least 3 recent rounds plus 2 earlier rounds as a baseline, so this ranking only appears once enough of the season has been run. Ties are broken by total season points, then alphabetically.
Average championship points per race over the most recent 3 rounds, minus the average over every earlier round this season. A positive value means a driver is scoring faster right now than they were before; negative means they have cooled off. Requires at least 3 recent rounds plus 2 earlier rounds as a baseline, so this ranking only appears once enough of the season has been run. Ties are broken by total season points, then alphabetically.
After every Grand Prix. The standings above reflect results through the Dutch Grand Prix.
A higher value is better — the driver at the top of the table is the strongest by this measure.
Lando Norris (McLaren), with +10.78.