Our Top 50 drivers of the year… (40th to 31st)

31. Matt Campbell

Winner of the 24 Hours of Daytona in GTP, winner of the 12 Hours of Bathurst

Matt Campbell was unstoppable at the start of the season. The Queensland Australian won the Daytona 24 Hours (along with Dane Cameron, Felipe Nasr and Josef Newgarden) and then the Bathurst 12 Hours (with Ayhancan Güven and Laurens Vanthoor) in quick succession. A few days later, he was the fastest in the Hyperpole at the 1812 km of Qatar. All with Porsche. Holder in the World Championship ofEndurance with the German manufacturer for the rest of the year, the 29-year-old driver did not enjoy further success after that, but did score four podiums in WEC at the wheel of the Porsche 963 n°5 with Frédéric Makowiecki and Michael Christensen. Additional weight on the long distance rounds of theIMSA Alongside Dane Cameron and Felipe Nasr, the Aussie finished on the podium at Sebring and Petit Le MansPorsche's American title this season is also a bit his own.

32. Louis Delétraz

Winner of the 12 Hours of Sebring in GTP, European Le Mans Series champion in LM P2, poleman of the 24 Hours of Le Mans in LM P2

24th in 2023, Louis Delétraz is ranked 32nd in our top 50 for the 2024 season. Last year's LM P2 world champion, the Swiss driver once again confirmed that he had become one of the benchmarks in Endurance this season. Of course, he did not benefit from the showcase that is the WEC, but the son of Jean-Denis Delétraz continued to exercise his talents across the Atlantic, in IMSA, or in the European Le Mans Series. In Uncle Sam's country, the former Haas driver F1 Team finished on the podium at the 24 Hours of Daytona (3rd) and won the 12 Hours of Sebring with Acura thanks to an overtaking on Sébastien's Cadillac Bourdais six minutes from the end. In ELMS, he won a third title in four years and stood out at the 24 Hours of Le Mans by setting the best time in the Hyperpole in LM P2. Unfortunately for the Swiss, the Sarthe curse continues with a new second place in the category, the third in a row.

33. Oliver Bearman

11th of Formula 2, a successful interim at Haas and Ferrari an F1

How do you rank Oliver Bearman? It was indeed almost mission impossible! The Briton has been very disappointing in Formula 2, securing only one pole position (Jeddah, which he lost for not honouring it) and 3 victories, but all of them on the reverse grid. His 12th place in the championship would never have earned him a place in our top 50. However, the 19-year-old has managed to seize his chance in Formula 1 when he had the opportunity. Substitute for Carlos Sainz In Saudi Arabia, he gave Ferrari the points for 7th place on a difficult circuit, and even had the luxury of beating Nico Hulkenberg twice in qualifying during the two Grands Prix he made with Haas (Baku and Brazil). If he was not irresistible in the rain in Sao Paulo, he nevertheless brought points back from Azerbaijan to the American team. Without a difficult season in F2, he would have been ranked much higher.

34. Andrea Kimi Antonelli

6th in Formula 2, two victories

Without wanting to, the kid from Bologna was one of the most anticipated drivers of the year, if not the most anticipated. Firstly because Mercedes sent him straight to Formula 2 after his FRECA title and especially because he was mentioned as a candidate to replace Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes before the start of the season. But the boy was able to cope with this pressure by learning weekend after weekend. Scrutinised closely, he gradually warmed up with a first Sprint victory at Silverstone before winning a fortnight later in the Main Race in Hungary. A very solid performance that showed all the seriousness of the Italian who learned from his mistakes of the day before to impose his law 24 hours later. Not to mention that he dominated his experienced team-mate Oliver Bearman, 12th at the final whistle. Mercedes was convinced and promoted him directly alongside George Russell without making him go through the box Williams. Proof of the confidence that reigns around the young transalpine hope.

35. Joey Logano

Champion of NASCAR Cup SeriesEdit

It may seem cruel to see a NASCAR champion so low on the list, but while he walked away from Phoenix with the coveted trophy, Joey Logano hasn't had the best of seasons. The Middletown, Conn. native became champion with the worst average finish of 17.2. While he won three of his four playoff victories, Logano came extremely close to elimination, which he avoided thanks to a disqualification of Alex Bowman at the Charlotte Roval. Heading into Round 26 of the season, the final race of the regular season, Logano was 22th in the championship. To his credit, the No. 2014 Ford driver understood the playoff system implemented in XNUMX and used it to great effect, as evidenced by his third title in seven years. Of his last four appearances in the final round, three ended with him winning the title, and that can't be a fluke...

36. Aliaksandr Malykhin

GT3 Endurance World Champion

While his entry into the season with the flag of the small Caribbean island of Saint Kitts and Nevis may have raised a smile before the start of the season, Aliaksandr Malykhin made no one laugh once he was on the track. The 37-year-old driver from Belarus proved formidable in the Hyperpole exercise with two pole positions. In Qatar, the opening round of the season, he won alongside his teammates Joel Sturm and Klaus Bachler, putting the #911 Manthey Pure Rxcing Porsche 3 GT92 R on course for the first world title in the brand new GT3 category. With six podiums in eight races, including two victories, the trio dominated the WEC season in their class and were logically crowned at the end of the season. The only downside was a gearbox problem that deprived the future world champions of a triumph at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, despite being in an ideal position on Sunday morning.

37. Yuki tsunoda 

12th in the Formula 1 world championship

The year 2024 was supposed to be the year of confirmation for Yuki Tsunoda, and it was… alas, without the reward at the end. The Japanese driver had a very solid season as leader of the Racing Bulls team, despite strong internal competition. Throughout the season, the 24-year-old driver was put in competition with his teammates – Daniel Ricciardo first, then Liam Lawson – with the carrot of a possible promotion within the parent team, Red Bull. If he managed to beat his two direct opponents, and despite his 30 points collected during the season (against 12 for Ricciardo and 4 for Lawson), the Austrian team snubbed Yuki Tsunoda and preferred to choose the New Zealander to replace Sergio Pérez. A choice that may surprise and which will mark, perhaps, a break between the Japanese and the Austrian clan at the end of 2025…

38. Sami Pajari

WRC2 champion, three rallies in Rally1 with Toyota

Sami Pajari was the sensation of the season in WRC. In three rallies in the premier category with Toyota, the 23-year-old Finn has shown impressive adaptability. Immediately in the rhythm of his much more experienced comrades, the protégé of the Japanese manufacturer has shown great mastery on the hybrid Rally1, as well as a mixture of maturity and carefree driving. In Finland, for his first rally in the premier category, he failed just off the podium with a first special stage victory as a bonus! And yet, we haven't mentioned his victorious campaign in WRC2, since Sami Pajari took the crown in the WRC antechamber in his second full season, and for the first year of the Yaris Rally2 in competition! A future great who convinced Toyota enough to get a full-time seat in 2025.

39. Ott Thank you

3rd in the WRC world championship, 2 victories

The presence of the 2019 World Rally Champion in our top 50 is obviously not a surprise, but finding him only in 39th place could surprise more than one. The Estonian has not been bad this season, finishing 3rd in the standings and winning the Sardinia and Central Europe rallies in particular. However, we obviously expected more from a driver of his standard and with the track record that he has. The Estonian was a little slow to get going, and struggled to get into the rhythm of his teammate Thierry Neuville from the Monte Carlo rally. However, he was able to increase his pace to the point of having signed a solid end to the season, with 4 podiums in the last 6 rallies. The Nordic will want his revenge in 2025.

40. Martin Sesks

3 WRC participations in Rally1 with M-Sport, 5th in the Rally of Poland

The vice-champion ofERC in 2023 has impressed more than one this season. This year, the young Martins Sesks came to an aging WRC that is still too closed to young talent, bringing a welcome freshness and mastery. The Latvian was impressive for his debut in the premier class: with the support of the promoter and M-Sport, he got the most out of his Ford Puma to take 5th place in Poland on his first rally in Rally1! In Latvia, at home, Martins Sesks was deprived of an incredible podium because of a transmission problem… in the last special stage of the rally! Despite an early retirement in Chile after two punctures, the young 24-year-old driver showed a lot of potential and could aim even higher in the coming years. Unfortunately, without a solid budget, it will be difficult to see Martins Sesks full-time in the WRC next year…