List of Formula One World Drivers' Champions

Michael Schumacher (top left) and Lewis Hamilton (top right) have each won the championship a record seven times during their careers, while Sebastian Vettel (bottom left) holds the record for being the youngest Driver's Champion, having won the 2010 Formula One World Championship at 23 years and 134 days old. Max Verstappen (bottom right) is the current World Driver's Champion, having won the championship thrice in a row.

Formula One, abbreviated to F1, is the highest class of open-wheeled auto racing defined by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), motorsport's world governing body.[1] The "formula" in the name refers to a set of rules to which all participants and cars must conform.[2] The Formula One World Championship season consists of a series of races, known as Grands Prix, held usually on purpose-built circuits, and in a few cases on closed city streets.[3] The World Drivers' Championship is presented by the FIA to the most successful Formula One driver over the course of the season through a points system based on individual Grand Prix results.[4] The World Championship is won when it is no longer mathematically possible for another competitor to overtake their points total regardless of the outcome of the remaining races,[5] although it is not officially awarded until the FIA Prize Giving Ceremony held in various cities following the conclusion of the season.[6][7]

Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton hold the record for the most World Drivers' Championships, both having won the title on seven occasions. Juan Manuel Fangio is third with five titles.[8][9] Schumacher also holds the record for the most consecutive drivers' titles with five between the 2000 and the 2004 seasons.[10] Nigel Mansell holds the record of competing in the highest number of seasons before winning the World Championship, entering Formula One in 1980 and achieving the title in 1992, a span of 13 seasons.[11] Nico Rosberg has the highest number of Grand Prix starts before winning his first title, a period of 206 Grands Prix between the 2006 Bahrain and the 2016 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.[12][13] Sebastian Vettel is the youngest winner of the World Drivers' Championship; he was 23 years and 134 days old when he won the 2010 championship.[14] Fangio is the oldest winner of the World Drivers' Championship; he was 46 years and 41 days old when he won the 1957 title.[15]

As of the 2023 season, out of the 775 drivers who have started a Formula One Grand Prix,[16] the 73 titles awarded have been won by a total of 34 different drivers.[8][9] The first Formula One World Drivers' Champion was Giuseppe Farina in the 1950 championship and the current title holder is Max Verstappen in the 2023 season.[8][9] The title has been won by drivers from the United Kingdom 20 times between 10 drivers, more than any other nation, followed by Brazil, Finland and Germany with three drivers each. The title has been won by drivers from Scuderia Ferrari 15 times between 9 drivers, more than any other team, followed by McLaren with 12 titles between 7 drivers.[8] The Drivers' Championship has been won in the final race of the season 30 times in the 72 seasons it has been awarded.[17] Schumacher holds the record of earning the championship with most Grands Prix left to run in a season with six when he won the 2002 title at that year's French Grand Prix.[18] Due to the points system, on two occasions (John Surtees in the 1964 season and Ayrton Senna in the 1988 season) a world champion scored fewer points overall than a driver who finished second in the championship.[19]

  1. ^ "About FIA". Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). 24 February 2015. Archived from the original on 1 May 2020. Retrieved 13 April 2020.
  2. ^ Williamson, Martin. "A brief history of Formula One". ESPN. Archived from the original on 6 April 2015. Retrieved 23 December 2020.
  3. ^ Hughes, Mark; Tremayne, David (2002). The Concise Encyclopedia of Formula 1. Parragon. pp. 82–83. ISBN 0-75258-766-8.
  4. ^ "2020 Formula One Sporting Regulations" (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). 7 April 2020. pp. 3–4. Archived (PDF) from the original on 12 April 2020. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
  5. ^ "How Lewis Hamilton can clinch 2019 F1 title at Mexican GP". Fox Sports. 24 October 2019. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  6. ^ Murphy, Luke (8 December 2018). "Hamilton & Mercedes F1 officially crowned at FIA Prize Giving Ceremony". Motorsport.com. Archived from the original on 8 December 2020. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  7. ^ Morlidge, Matt (7 December 2019). "Lewis Hamilton officially crowned 2019 F1 champion at FIA gala". Sky Sports. Archived from the original on 20 December 2019. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  8. ^ a b c d Diepraam, Mattijs (3 November 2019). "European & World Champions". 8W. Archived from the original on 14 April 2016. Retrieved 18 September 2020.
  9. ^ a b c "Drivers' Championships". ChicaneF1. Archived from the original on 5 July 2020. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  10. ^ "World Champion titles Consecutively". Stats F1. Archived from the original on 7 December 2020. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  11. ^ Lynch, Steven (5 November 2010). "At the tenth time of asking". ESPN. Archived from the original on 27 November 2020. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  12. ^ Benson, Andrew (2 December 2016). "Nico Rosberg retires: World champion quits Formula 1 five days after title win". BBC Sport. Archived from the original on 23 June 2019. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  13. ^ "World Champion titles Grand Prix before". StatsF1. Archived from the original on 27 November 2020. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  14. ^ "On this day: Sebastian Vettel becomes youngest Formula One champion". Sport360. 13 November 2010. Archived from the original on 7 February 2021. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  15. ^ Lynch, Kevin (19 August 2015). "1957: Oldest Ever F1 World Champion". Guinness World Records. Archived from the original on 19 October 2017. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  16. ^ "Grands Prix chronology". Stats F1. Archived from the original on 21 October 2014. Retrieved 16 October 2014.
  17. ^ Cite error: The named reference :1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  18. ^ Esler, William (25 October 2015). "The earliest drivers' championship wins in F1 history". Sky Sports. Archived from the original on 12 November 2020. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  19. ^ "What happened the last time F1 used dropped scores?". The Race. 12 April 2020. Retrieved 8 May 2023.