The best F1 driver in history is a debate that has, and will continue to, rage as long as Formula 1 exists, but we look at who the best drivers are statistically.
In terms of career wins and total career points, Lewis Hamilton is the best Formula 1 driver to have ever graced a circuit. The Brit has taken wins in 30 different countries, won a race in almost every season he’s competed in, and is currently tied on world championships with Michael Schumacher, having narrowly missed out on taking an eighth world title in 2021 to Max Verstappen. Hamilton holds many of Formula 1’s records and, with a contract that runs to the end of 2023, he looks to be able to push even further ahead on many of them.
While he missed becoming champion in his first season by a single point, he became the (then) youngest world champion the following year. Fourteen years later he’s secured six more titles, and is hunting for an eighth.
Read more about Hamilton's first 100 wins here.
When considering the best F1 driver, Michael Schumacher immediately springs to mind. He was, until the rise of Hamilton, the face of domination in Formula 1: seven titles (five of them consecutive), a seemingly insurmountable number of wins, unrelenting competitiveness – Schumacher changed the game in F1 with his combination of dedication, passion, and, of course, raw talent.
While he took two titles with Benetton, he’s far more well-known for his time with Ferrari. He joined the team in 1996 and, after some highs and lows in the following years, the combination struck gold in 2000. What followed in the next five years were five world titles, 48 wins, and a record book that had Michael Schumacher’s name in almost every field.
His second stint in F1 wasn’t as successful as his first, yielding a single podium to add to his collection. However, his 91 wins, 155 podiums and 68 pole positions still put him high up in any statistical analysis. See our top 10 Schumacher victories here.
While his form in Formula 1 slowed towards the end of his career, there was a time when Sebastian Vettel was virtually unbeatable.
Vettel’s F1 career started in 2007 and, in his first three years, he took nine podiums and five wins, though this was nothing on what was to come. Over the next four years he became the face of F1, winning four consecutive championships and becoming the youngest world champion in the process (taking the accolade from Lewis Hamilton). He also secured the records for most podium finishes in a season, most wins in a season, most pole positions in a season, most laps led in a season, most consecutive wins, most consecutive grand slams, and most wins from pole position in a season.
Unfortunately for Vettel the regulation changes in 2014 didn’t suit Red Bull (or him), and the team quickly fell back through the pack. He went from nine consecutive wins in the final nine races of the 2013 season to not winning a single race until 2015, and since that 2013 season he’s ‘only’ taken 14 wins. Despite that he was still widely regarded as one of the best drivers on the grid until his retirement at the end of the 2022 season, and his list of records is likely to stand for many more seasons.
Read more about Sebastian Vettel's top 10 wins here.
It was Alain Prost's meticulous style that allowed him to go up against Ayrton Senna – the bitter feud that he is best remembered for. His secret weapon was brainpower, as well as speed, and he possessed a natural precision in his driving that allowed Prost to become France's first world champion in 1985.
In 1987 he beat Jackie Stewart's record of 27 wins and a year later McLaren won 15 out of 16 races across the season, which is testament to both Prost and Senna's skill. Prost remained at the top of his game until his retirement, taking his fourth and final title for Williams at 38 years old.
One of motorsport's most legendary figures, Ayrton Senna remains the benchmark for raw talent and charisma.
His depth of commitment to a lap and his constant desire to push the boundaries for more has meant that Senna has a special place in the hearts of many motorsport fans. His three titles give a sense of what could have been had he not died at the San Marino Grand Prix in 1994. A combination of natural speed and restless ambition gave Senna an edge rarely seen.
Such is his legacy that even nearly thirty years after his death, Senna's cars and how he won his greatest F1 title are still talked about.
Max Verstappen, son of former Formula 1 driver Jos, spent just one year in car racing before making his F1 debut. While he got to grips with the single-seaters in the Florida Winter Series, his junior career is best remembered for his 2014 European Formula 3 campaign when he finished third in the championship behind Tom Blomqvist and title-winner Esteban Ocon.
This single season, in which he took 10 wins from 32 races, including six consecutive wins, was enough to earn him the move up to F1, taking a seat at Red Bull sister team Toro Rosso for 2015 and becoming the youngest-ever grand prix driver. His inaugural F1 season returned some success in middle-of-the-pack machinery – 10 points-paying finishes from 19 races – but it was his second season where he really announced his entry in F1.
Getting the call up to the senior Red Bull team five races into the 2016 season, replacing the beleaguered Daniil Kvyat, Verstappen took his first win immediately at the Spanish GP, aided by Mercedes team-mates Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton crashing out together on the first lap.
He’d take a further nine wins by the end of the 2020 season, before the tweaked technical regulations for the 2021 season resulted in Red Bull producing a car truly capable of fighting for the world title. With the Red Bull much closer to the previously dominant Mercedes car, Verstappen and Hamilton engaged in an arduous, season-long battle for the title. The fight came down to the final lap of the final race, with Verstappen just taking the honours ahead of the seven-time world champion for his first title since karting in 2013.
The 2022 championship has been a much easier time for the Dutchman by comparison. Though he failed to finish two of the opening three rounds due to reliability trouble, Verstappen has taken 12 wins thus far, with his win in Suzuka proving enough to take the title. With a second crown to his name, it remains to be seen how many more he can add to his tally.
Fernando Alonso is a two-time world champion with a reputation as a fearless, aggressive racer, though his career can be defined as much by what didn’t come as the two titles he won.
The Spaniard spent three years in Formula 1 before scoring the first of his two consecutive crowns, taking the title with a comfortable 21 point lead over Autosport