List of Formula One World Drivers' Champions

Michael Schumacher, seven-time Formula 1 Champion.

The Formula One World Drivers' Championship (WDC) is awarded by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) to the most successful Formula One racing car driver over a season, as determined by a points system based on Grand Prix results.

The Drivers' Championship was first awarded in 1950, to Giuseppe Farina. The first driver to win multiple Championships was Alberto Ascari, in 1952 and 1953. The current Drivers' Champion is Lewis Hamilton, who won his first World Championship in 2008, regained it in 2014 and retained it in 2015, the sixteenth time in which a British driver has won the title (a record). He is the ninth of ten Britons to win the title (another record), with Jenson Button succeeding him in 2009 after his first championship.

A driver becomes the World Champion each season as soon as it is no longer mathematically possible for another to beat him whatever the outcome of the remaining races. The Drivers' Championship has been won in the final race of the season 28 times in the 66 seasons it has been awarded. The earliest in a season that the Drivers' Championship has been clinched was in 2002, when Michael Schumacher secured the title with six races remaining.

Overall, thirty-two different drivers have won the Championship, with German Michael Schumacher holding the record for most titles, at seven. Schumacher also holds the record for most consecutive Drivers' Championships, winning five from 2000 to 2004. The United Kingdom has produced the most World Championship winning drivers with ten; Brazil and Finland are next with three each. Of the 32 drivers to win the World Championship, 20 are still alive. The most recently deceased is Sir Jack Brabham (1926–2014). Among teams, Scuderia Ferrari has produced the most World Championship winning drivers with 15.

By season

Season	Driver	Age	Team	Engine	Tyres	Poles	Wins	Podiums	Fastest Laps	Points	Clinched	Point Margin
1950	Giuseppe Farina[1]	44	Alfa Romeo	Alfa Romeo	P	2	3	3	3	30	Race 7 of 7	3
1951	Juan Manuel Fangio[2]	40	Alfa Romeo	Alfa Romeo	P	4	3	5	5	31	Race 8 of 8	6
1952^1	Alberto Ascari[3]	34	Ferrari	Ferrari	F P	5	6	6	6	36	Race 6 of 8	12
1953^1	Alberto Ascari[3]	35	Ferrari	Ferrari	P	6	5	5	4	34.5	Race 8 of 9	6.5
1954	Juan Manuel Fangio[2]	43	Maserati^2	Maserati	P	5	6	7	3	42	Race 7 of 9	16.86
			Mercedes^2	Mercedes	C
1955	Juan Manuel Fangio[2]	44	Mercedes	Mercedes	C	3	4	5	3	40	Race 6 of 7	16.5
1956	Juan Manuel Fangio[2]	45	Ferrari	Ferrari	E	6	3	5	4	30	Race 8 of 8	3
1957	Juan Manuel Fangio[2]	46	Maserati	Maserati	P	4	4	6	2	40	Race 6 of 8	15
1958	Mike Hawthorn[4]	29	Ferrari	Ferrari	E	4	1	7	5	42	Race 11 of 11	1
1959	Jack Brabham[5]	33	Cooper	Climax	D	1	2	5	1	31	Race 9 of 9	4
1960	Jack Brabham[5]	34	Cooper	Climax	D	3	5	5	3	43	Race 8 of 10	9
1961^1	Phil Hill[6]	34	Ferrari	Ferrari	D	5	2	6	2	34	Race 7 of 8	1
1962^1	Graham Hill[7]	33	BRM	BRM	D	1	4	6	3	42	Race 9 of 9	12
1963^1	Jim Clark[8]	27	Lotus	Climax	D	7	7	9	6	54	Race 7 of 10	21
1964^1	John Surtees[9]	30	Ferrari	Ferrari	D	2	2	6	2	40	Race 10 of 10	1
1965^1	Jim Clark[8]	29	Lotus	Climax	D	6	6	6	6	54	Race 7 of 10	14
1966	Jack Brabham[5]	40	Brabham	Repco	G	3	4	5	1	42	Race 7 of 9	14
1967	Denny Hulme[10]	31	Brabham	Repco	G	0	2	8	2	51	Race 11 of 11	5
1968	Graham Hill[7]	39	Lotus	Ford	F	2	3	6	0	48	Race 12 of 12	12
1969	Jackie Stewart[11]	30	Matra	Ford	D	2	6	7	5	63	Race 8 of 11	26
1970	Jochen Rindt[12]	28	Lotus	Ford	F	3	5	5	1	45	Race 12 of 13^3	5
1971	Jackie Stewart[11]	32	Tyrrell	Ford	G	6	6	7	3	62	Race 8 of 11	29
1972	Emerson Fittipaldi[13]	25	Lotus	Ford	F	3	5	8	0	61	Race 10 of 12	16
1973	Jackie Stewart[11]	34	Tyrrell	Ford	G	3	5	8	1	71	Race 13 of 15	16
1974	Emerson Fittipaldi[13]	27	McLaren	Ford	G	2	3	7	0	55	Race 15 of 15	3
1975	Niki Lauda[14]	26	Ferrari	Ferrari	G	9	5	8	2	64.5	Race 13 of 14	19.5
1976	James Hunt[15]	29	McLaren	Ford	G	8	6	8	2	69	Race 16 of 16	1
1977	Niki Lauda[14]	28	Ferrari	Ferrari	G	2	3	10	3	72	Race 15 of 17	17
1978	Mario Andretti[16]	38	Lotus	Ford	G	8	6	7	3	64	Race 14 of 16	13
1979	Jody Scheckter[17]	29	Ferrari	Ferrari	M	1	3	6	0	51	Race 13 of 15	4
1980	Alan Jones[18]	34	Williams	Ford	G	3	5	10	5	67	Race 13 of 14	13
1981	Nelson Piquet[19]	29	Brabham	Ford	M G	4	3	7	1	50	Race 15 of 15	1
1982	Keke Rosberg[20]	34	Williams	Ford	G	1	1	6	0	44	Race 16 of 16	5
1983	Nelson Piquet[19]	31	Brabham	BMW	M	1	3	8	4	59	Race 15 of 15	2
1984	Niki Lauda[14]	35	McLaren	TAG	M	0	5	9	5	72	Race 16 of 16	0.5
1985	Alain Prost[21]	30	McLaren	TAG	G	2	5	11	5	73	Race 14 of 16	20
1986	Alain Prost[21]	31	McLaren	TAG	G	1	4	11	2	72	Race 16 of 16	2
1987	Nelson Piquet[19]	35	Williams	Honda	G	4	3	11	4	73	Race 15 of 16	12
1988	Ayrton Senna[22]	28	McLaren	Honda	G	13	8	11	3	90	Race 15 of 16	3
1989	Alain Prost[21]	34	McLaren	Honda	G	2	4	11	5	76	Race 15 of 16	16
1990	Ayrton Senna[22]	30	McLaren	Honda	G	10	6	11	2	78	Race 15 of 16	7
1991	Ayrton Senna[22]	31	McLaren	Honda	G	8	7	12	2	96	Race 15 of 16	24
1992	Nigel Mansell[23]	39	Williams	Renault	G	14	9	12	8	108	Race 11 of 16	52
1993	Alain Prost[21]	38	Williams	Renault	G	13	7	12	6	99	Race 14 of 16	26
1994	Michael Schumacher[24]	25	Benetton	Ford	G	6	8	10	8	92	Race 16 of 16	1
1995	Michael Schumacher[24]	26	Benetton	Renault	G	4	9	11	8	102	Race 15 of 17	33
1996	Damon Hill[25]	36	Williams	Renault	G	9	8	10	5	97	Race 16 of 16	19
1997	Jacques Villeneuve[26]	26	Williams	Renault	G	10	7	8	3	81	Race 17 of 17	39 (3)^4
1998	Mika Häkkinen[27]	30	McLaren	Mercedes	B	9	8	11	6	100	Race 16 of 16	14
1999	Mika Häkkinen[27]	31	McLaren	Mercedes	B	11	5	10	6	76	Race 16 of 16	2
2000	Michael Schumacher[24]	31	Ferrari	Ferrari	B	9	9	12	2	108	Race 16 of 17	19
2001	Michael Schumacher[24]	32	Ferrari	Ferrari	B	11	9	14	3	123	Race 13 of 17	58
2002	Michael Schumacher[24]	33	Ferrari	Ferrari	B	7	11	17	7	144	Race 11 of 17	67
2003	Michael Schumacher[24]	34	Ferrari	Ferrari	B	5	6	8	5	93	Race 16 of 16	2
2004	Michael Schumacher[24]	35	Ferrari	Ferrari	B	8	13	15	10	148	Race 14 of 18	34
2005	Fernando Alonso[28]	24	Renault	Renault	M	6	7	15	2	133	Race 17 of 19	21
2006	Fernando Alonso[28]	25	Renault	Renault	M	6	7	14	5	134	Race 18 of 18	13
2007	Kimi Räikkönen[29]	28	Ferrari	Ferrari	B	3	6	12	6	110	Race 17 of 17	1
2008	Lewis Hamilton[30]	23	McLaren	Mercedes	B	7	5	10	1	98	Race 18 of 18	1
2009	Jenson Button[31]	29	Brawn	Mercedes	B	4	6	9	2	95	Race 16 of 17	11
2010	Sebastian Vettel[32]	23	Red Bull	Renault	B	10	5	10	3	256	Race 19 of 19	4
2011	Sebastian Vettel[32]	24	Red Bull	Renault	P	15	11	17	3	392	Race 15 of 19	122
2012	Sebastian Vettel[32]	25	Red Bull	Renault	P	6	5	10	6	281	Race 20 of 20	3
2013	Sebastian Vettel[32]	26	Red Bull	Renault	P	9	13	16	7	397	Race 16 of 19	155
2014	Lewis Hamilton[30]	29	Mercedes	Mercedes	P	7	11	16	7	384	Race 19 of 19	67
2015	Lewis Hamilton[30]	30	Mercedes	Mercedes	P	11	10	17	8	381	Race 16 of 19	59

Notes

Bold indicates the team also won the Constructors' Championship (awarded since 1958).

1. ^ The 1952 and 1953 championships were run to Formula Two regulations. The 1961 - 1965 championships were run with former Formula Two regulations.
2. ^ Fangio competed in the 1954 Argentine and Belgian Grands Prix with Maserati, then completed the season with Mercedes.
3. ^ Rindt's championship was confirmed two rounds after he had been killed in an accident during qualifying for the Italian Grand Prix.
4. ^ Michael Schumacher scored 78 points during the 1997 season, 3 points behind Villeneuve, but was ejected from the championship for deliberately colliding with Villeneuve in the final race of the season, the European Grand Prix. This left Villeneuve with a 39-point margin over Heinz-Harald Frentzen with 42 points.

By driver

Michael Schumacher has won the World Drivers' Championship a record seven times – twice with Benetton and five times with Ferrari. Five titles with a single team is also a record.

Juan Manuel Fangio won the World Drivers' Championship five times with Alfa Romeo, Maserati, Mercedes and Ferrari. He held the record from 1955 until 2003.

Alain Prost has four titles, three for McLaren and one for Williams. He also came close to winning the title for Renault and for Ferrari.

Sebastian Vettel currently has four consecutive titles to his name, winning them all with Red Bull Racing.

Driver	Total	Season(s)	Championship Winner
Michael Schumacher	7	1994, 1995, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004	24th
Juan Manuel Fangio	5	1951, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1957	2nd
Alain Prost	4	1985, 1986, 1989, 1993	21st
Sebastian Vettel	4	2010, 2011, 2012, 2013	32nd
Jack Brabham	3	1959, 1960, 1966	5th
Jackie Stewart	3	1969, 1971, 1973	11th
Niki Lauda	3	1975, 1977, 1984	14th
Nelson Piquet	3	1981, 1983, 1987	19th
Ayrton Senna	3	1988, 1990, 1991	22nd
Lewis Hamilton	3	2008, 2014, 2015	30th
Alberto Ascari	2	1952, 1953	3rd
Graham Hill	2	1962, 1968	7th
Jim Clark	2	1963, 1965	8th
Emerson Fittipaldi	2	1972, 1974	13th
Mika Häkkinen	2	1998, 1999	27th
Fernando Alonso	2	2005, 2006	28th
Giuseppe Farina	1	1950	1st
Mike Hawthorn	1	1958	4th
Phil Hill	1	1961	6th
John Surtees	1	1964	9th
Denny Hulme	1	1967	10th
Jochen Rindt	1	1970	12th
James Hunt	1	1976	15th
Mario Andretti	1	1978	16th
Jody Scheckter	1	1979	17th
Alan Jones	1	1980	18th
Keke Rosberg	1	1982	20th
Nigel Mansell	1	1992	23rd
Damon Hill	1	1996	25th
Jacques Villeneuve	1	1997	26th
Kimi Räikkönen	1	2007	29th
Jenson Button	1	2009	31st

Drivers in bold have competed in the 2016 World Championship.

By nationality

Country	Total	Drivers	Seasons	Drivers by Name (titles)
United Kingdom	16	10	1958, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1968, 1969, 1971, 1973, 1976, 1992, 1996, 2008, 2009, 2014, 2015	Mike Hawthorn (1), Graham Hill (2), Jim Clark (2), John Surtees (1), Jackie Stewart (3), James Hunt (1), Nigel Mansell (1), Damon Hill (1), Lewis Hamilton (3), Jenson Button (1)
Germany	11	2	1994, 1995, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013	Michael Schumacher (7), Sebastian Vettel (4)
Brazil	8	3	1972, 1974, 1981, 1983, 1987, 1988, 1990, 1991	Emerson Fittipaldi (2), Nelson Piquet (3), Ayrton Senna (3)
Argentina	5	1	1951, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1957	Juan Manuel Fangio (5)
Finland	4	3	1982, 1998, 1999, 2007	Keke Rosberg (1), Mika Häkkinen (2), Kimi Räikkönen (1)
Australia	4	2	1959, 1960, 1966, 1980	Jack Brabham (3), Alan Jones (1)
Austria	4	2	1970, 1975, 1977, 1984	Jochen Rindt (1), Niki Lauda (3)
France	4	1	1985, 1986, 1989, 1993	Alain Prost (4)
Italy	3	2	1950, 1952, 1953	Giuseppe Farina (1), Alberto Ascari (2)
United States	2	2	1961, 1978	Phil Hill (1), Mario Andretti (1)
Spain	2	1	2005, 2006	Fernando Alonso (2)
New Zealand	1	1	1967	Denny Hulme (1)
South Africa	1	1	1979	Jody Scheckter (1)
Canada	1	1	1997	Jacques Villeneuve (1)

Drivers in bold have competed in the 2015 World Championship.

By constructor

Constructor	Country	Total
Ferrari	Italy	15
McLaren	United Kingdom	12
Williams	United Kingdom	7
Lotus	United Kingdom	6
Mercedes^1	Germany	4
Red Bull	Austria	4
Brabham	United Kingdom	4
Renault	France	2
Cooper	United Kingdom	2
Benetton	United Kingdom	2
Tyrrell	United Kingdom	2
Alfa Romeo	Italy	2
Maserati^1	Italy	2
BRM	United Kingdom	1
Matra	France	1
Brawn	United Kingdom	1

Constructors in bold have competed in the 2016 World Championship.

1. ^ Fangio competed in the 1954 Argentine and Belgian Grands Prix with Maserati, then completed the season with Mercedes. This shared championship is counted for each of these constructors.

By constructor nationality

Nationality	Total
United Kingdom	37
Italy	19
Austria	4
Germany	4
France	3

By engine

Engine	Country	Total
Ferrari	Italy	15
Ford^*	United States  United Kingdom	13
Renault	France	11
Mercedes	West Germany/Germany	8
Honda	Japan	5
Climax	United Kingdom	4
TAG ^**	Luxembourg  Germany	3
Alfa Romeo	Italy	2
Maserati	Italy	2
Repco	Australia	2
BMW	West Germany	1
BRM	United Kingdom	1

Engine manufacturers in bold have competed in the 2016 World Championship.
^ * Ford Cosworth  United Kingdom

^ ** TAG Porsche  Germany

By tyre manufacturer

Pos	Manufacturer		Country	Total	Seasons
1	G	Goodyear	United States	24 (7)^1	1966–1967, 1971, 1973–1978, 1980, 1982, 1985–1997
2	B	Bridgestone	Japan	11 (6)^2	1998–2004, 2007–2010
3	P	Pirelli	Italy	11 (5)^3	1950–1954^4 ^5, 1957, 2011–2015
4	D	Dunlop	United Kingdom	8	1959–1965, 1969
5	M	Michelin	France	6	1979, 1981, 1983–1984, 2005–2006
6	F	Firestone	United States	4	1952^5, 1968, 1970, 1972
7	C	Continental	West Germany	2	1954^4–1955
	E	Englebert	Belgium	2	1956, 1958

Tyre manufacturers in bold have competed in the 2016 World Championship. Numbers in parentheses indicate championships won as the sole tyre supplier.

Notes

1. ^ Goodyear was the sole tyre supplier for the 1987, 1988 & 1992–1996 seasons
2. ^ Bridgestone was the sole tyre supplier for the 1999, 2000 & 2007–2010 seasons
3. ^ Pirelli was the sole tyre supplier for the 2011–2016 seasons
4. ^ Fangio competed in the 1954 Argentine and Belgian Grands Prix on Pirelli with Maserati, then completed the season on Continental with Mercedes
5. ^ Ascari competed in the 1952 Indianapolis 500 on Firestone tyres, then completed the season on Pirelli

Records

Youngest Drivers' Champion

	Driver*	Age**	Season
1	Sebastian Vettel	23 years, 133 days	2010
2	Lewis Hamilton	23 years, 301 days	2008
3	Fernando Alonso	24 years, 58 days	2005
4	Emerson Fittipaldi	25 years, 273 days	1972
5	Michael Schumacher	25 years, 314 days	1994
6	Niki Lauda	26 years, 197 days	1975
7	Jacques Villeneuve	26 years, 200 days	1997
8	Jim Clark	27 years, 188 days	1963
9	Kimi Räikkönen	28 years, 4 days	2007
10	Jochen Rindt	28 years, 140 days	1970 (posthumously)

* Bold text indicates driver has competed in the 2016 World Championship
** Measured at the race where the driver secured the championship

Oldest Drivers' Champion

	Driver	Age	Season
1	Juan Manuel Fangio	46 years, 41 days	1957
2	Giuseppe Farina	43 years, 308 days	1950
3	Jack Brabham	40 years, 155 days	1966
4	Graham Hill	39 years, 262 days	1968
5	Nigel Mansell	39 years, 8 days	1992
6	Alain Prost	38 years, 214 days	1993
7	Mario Andretti	38 years, 193 days	1978
8	Damon Hill	36 years, 26 days	1996
9	Niki Lauda	35 years, 242 days	1984
10	Michael Schumacher	35 years, 239 days	2004

Bold text indicates driver has competed in the 2016 World Championship.

Consecutive Drivers' Championships

Ten drivers have achieved consecutive wins in the Formula One Drivers' Championship. Of those, Michael Schumacher is the only driver to have won two sets of consecutive Formula One Drivers' Championships.

Championships	Driver	Seasons
5	Michael Schumacher	2000–2004
4	Juan Manuel Fangio	1954–1957
	Sebastian Vettel	2010–2013
2	Alberto Ascari	1952–1953
	Jack Brabham	1959–1960
	Alain Prost	1985–1986
	Ayrton Senna	1990–1991
	Michael Schumacher	1994–1995
	Mika Häkkinen	1998–1999
	Fernando Alonso	2005–2006
	Lewis Hamilton	2014–2015

Bold text indicates driver has competed in the 2016 World Championship.

See also

• List of Formula One driver records
• List of Formula One World Drivers' Championship runners-up
• List of Formula One World Constructors' Champions
• List of Formula One World Constructors' Championship runners-up
• List of Formula One World Championship points scoring systems
• List of Formula One drivers
• History of Formula One

References

1. "Nino Farina". formula1.com. Retrieved 2014-04-27.
2. "Alberto Ascari". formula1.com. Retrieved 2014-04-27.
3. "Alberto Ascari". formula1.com. Retrieved 2014-04-27.
4. "Mike Hawthorn". formula1.com. Retrieved 2014-04-27.
5. "Jack Brabham". formula1.com. Retrieved 2014-04-27.
6. "Phil Hill". formula1.com. Retrieved 2014-04-27.
7. "Graham Hill". formula1.com. Retrieved 2014-04-27.
8. "Jim Clark". formula1.com. Retrieved 2014-04-27.
9. "John Surtees". formula1.com. Retrieved 2014-04-27.
10. "Denny Hulme". formula1.com. Retrieved 2014-04-27.
11. "Jackie Stewart". formula1.com. Retrieved 2014-04-27.
12. "Jochen Rindt". formula1.com. Retrieved 2014-04-27.
13. "Emerson Fittipaldi". formula1.com. Retrieved 2014-04-27.
14. "Niki Lauda". formula1.com. Retrieved 2014-04-27.
15. "James Hunt". formula1.com. Retrieved 2014-04-27.
16. "Mario Andretti". formula1.com. Retrieved 2014-04-27.
17. "Jody Scheckter". formula1.com. Retrieved 2014-04-27.
18. "Alan Jones". formula1.com. Retrieved 2014-04-27.
19. "Nelson Piquet". formula1.com. Retrieved 2014-04-27.
20. "Keke Rosberg". formula1.com. Retrieved 2014-04-27.
21. "Alain Prost". formula1.com. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
22. "Ayrton Senna". formula1.com. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
23. "Nigel Mansell". formula1.com. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
24. "Michael Schumacher". formula1.com. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
25. "Damon Hill". formula1.com. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
26. "Jacques Villeneuve". formula1.com. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
27. "Mika Häkkinen". formula1.com. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
28. "Fernando Alonso". formula1.com. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
29. "Kimi Räikkönen". formula1.com. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
30. "Lewis Hamilton". formula1.com. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
31. "Jenson Button". formula1.com. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
32. "Sebastian Vettel". formula1.com. Retrieved 4 February 2015.

• GrandPrix.com – Grand Prix Encyclopedia
• Formula1.com – Hall of Fame
• ChicaneF1 – Drivers' Championships
• Formula 1 Championships
• Amara, Solange; Davillerd, Cyril; et al. (2004). Formula One Yearbook 2004–05. Chronosports S.A. ISBN 2-84707-072-9.