Mercedes
Nation Germany Race entries 125 Engine Mercedes Constructor World Titles 2 Driver World Titles 4 Race wins 43 2014 position 1st, 701 points
Mercedes drivers
44 Lewis Hamilton - GBR
Race starts 165 Driver World Titles 3 Wins 43 Poles 49 Podiums 85 Fastest laps 26
Lewis Hamilton’s rise to Formula 1 was well-documented thanks to his partnership with McLaren. He burst onto the scene in 2007, winning his first race and narrowly missing on the drivers’ title by a single point. He won the 2008 title in dramatic fashion. He joined Mercedes for 2013, winning two further titles in 2014 and 2015.
6 Nico Rosberg - GER
Race starts 183 Driver World Titles 0 Wins 12 Poles 20 Podiums 39 Fastest laps 14
Nico Rosberg is the son of 1982 Formula 1 World Champion, Keke Rosberg. Rosberg proved he was worthy of a place in F1 in his early years with Williams, although uncompetitive cars meant results weren’t always easy. He joined Mercedes for 2010 to partner Michael Schumacher, and took his first win in 2012 at the Chinese Grand Prix. Since the start of the 2014 season, he has been a consistent front-runner and title contender, narrowly missing out on the 2014 title.
Ferrari
Nation Italy Race entries 906 Engine Ferrari Constructor World Titles 16 Driver World Titles 15 Race wins 224 2014 position 4th, 216 points
Ferrari drivers
5 Sebastian Vettel - GER
Race starts156 Driver World Titles 4 Wins 42 Poles 46 Podiums 78 Fastest laps 25
Sebastian Vettel made history when he became the sports’ youngest ever winner with Toro Rosso in 2008. It remains the teams’ best result to this day. After graduating the main Red Bull team in 2009, it was clear that Vettel would be future champion. He won the 2010 title in Abu Dhabi in a dramatic race which saw himself, Hamilton, Fernando Alonso, and Mark Webber all contenders. Vettel dominated 2011 to win his second crown, and narrowly beat Alonso to win his third in 2012, before dominating again in 2013.
7 Kimi Raikkonen – FIN
Race starts230 Driver World Titles 1 Wins 20 Poles 16 Podiums 79 Fastest laps 42
Kimi Raikkonen is an unemotional driver who, when he does talk, tells it as it is. A fans’ favourite, the Finn broke into F1 with Sauber in 2001 after having competed in only 23 car races previously. He joined McLaren in 2002, replacing Mika Hakkinen, but left the team for Ferrari in 2007 where he would take his – to date – only world title. He left F1 to try his hand at rallying in 2010 before returning with Lotus for 2012. He rejoined Ferrari in 2014.
Red Bull
Nation Austria Race entries 201 Engine Renault Constructor World Titles 4 Driver World Titles 4 Race wins 50 2014 position 2nd, 405 points
Red Bull drivers
3 Daniel Ricciardo - AUS
Race starts 86 Driver World Titles 0 Wins 3 Poles 0 Podiums 10 Fastest laps 4
Daniel Ricciardo was part of the Red Bull training programme and graduated to F1 with the hapless Hispania Racing Team in 2011, before being placed in a Toro Rosso seat the following year. Ricciardo’s speed and skill was obvious and he was signed up for the main Red Bull team for 2014, scoring three impressive wins.
26 Daniil Kyvat – RUS
Race starts 35 Driver World Titles 0 Wins 0 Poles 0 Podiums 1 Fastest laps 0
Daniil Kyvat made a big impression with Toro Rosso in his debut year in 2014 and was rewarded with promotion to the Red Bull senior team for 2015. While he has made a few errors, on balance he has demonstrated that he has the skill and deserves his place in F1. He has out-scored his more experienced teammate so far in 2015.
Williams
Nation Great Britain Race entries 647 Engine Mercedes Constructor World Titles 9 Driver World Titles 7 Race wins 114 2014 position 3rd, 320 points
Williams drivers
19 Felipe Massa – BRA
Race starts 227 Driver World Titles 0 Wins 11 Poles 16 Podiums 41 Fastest laps 15
Brazilian Felipe Massa began his F1 career with Sauber before teaming up with Michael Schumacher in Ferrari for 2006. Massa took his first win in Turkey that year, before winning his home race in Brazil the following month. He lost the 2008 world title to Lewis Hamilton by a single point; despite winning the race and thinking he had won the title. The following year he was hit on the helmet by a spring while driving at 200kp/h. The impact knocked him out and he crashed. He needed major surgery to save his life, and missed the rest of the season. He returned for 2009 and joined Williams in 2014.
77 Valterri Bottas – FIN
Race starts 54 Driver World Titles 0 Wins 0 Poles 0 Podiums 8 Fastest laps 1
There was a lot of subtle confidence from Williams about Bottas before he was awarded a race seat in 2013. Despite inconsistent cars, he has proved himself as a future winner and probable title contender. Fearless and cunning, Bottas is on the radar of some of the bigger F1 teams, despite the strong performance of Williams this year.
McLaren
Nation Great Britain Race entries 784 Engine Honda Constructor World Titles 8 Driver World Titles 12 Race wins 182 2014 position 5th, 181 points
McLaren drivers
14 Fernando Alonso – ESP
Race starts 251 Driver World Titles 2 Wins 32 Poles 22 Podiums 97 Fastest laps 21
Fernando Alonso has the ability to have been a multiple World Champion, but a circumstances have not been on his side. After joining Renault in 2002 after a debut year with Minardi, he won his first race at Hungary in 2003 before beating Michael Schumacher to win back-to-back titles in 2005 and 2006. He moved to McLaren for 2007 but fell out with the team before returning to Renault for 2008. He moved to Ferrari in 2010 in search of glory and narrowly missed out on the 2010 and 2012 titles. He joined McLaren again for 2015.
22 Jenson Button – GBR
Race starts 282 Driver World Titles 1 Wins 15 Poles 8 Podiums 50 Fastest laps 8
Jenson Button got to the Formula 1 the “old-fashioned way”, without massive sponsorship deals and fancy management teams. He was the youngest driver in F1 when he joined Williams in 2000 at the age of 20. However he wouldn’t win his first race until the 113th attempt in 2006 with BAR-Honda. After two woeful years with Honda in 2007 and 2008, the Japanese giant pulled out of the sport, and the team became Brawn. Button won seven of the opening eight races and went on to win the title before leaving to join McLaren where he would win further races. He is the most-experienced F1 driver racing in F1 today.
Force India
Nation India Race entries 148 Engine Mercedes Constructor World Titles 0 Driver World Titles 0 Race wins 0 2014 position 5th, 155 points
Force India drivers
11 Sergio Perez – MEX
Race starts 94 Driver World Titles 0 Wins 0 Poles 0 Podiums 5 Fastest laps 3
Mexican Sergio Perez started his F1 career with Sauber in 2011. A strong set of results saw him retained for 2012 where, at the Malaysian Grand Prix, he challenged Fernando Alonso for the race win in changeable weather – he ultimately finished second. He was signed up to partner Jenson Button at McLaren for 2013 but the relationship didn’t last long and he was released at the end of the year. He joined Force India where he continues to perform well.
27 Nico Hulkenberg – GER
Race starts 92 Driver World Titles 0 Wins 0 Poles 1 Podiums 0 Fastest laps 1
There are some in the paddock who are surprised that Nico Hulkenberg has not been signed-up by a big team, given his obvious talents. He made his debut with Williams in 2010, and despite qualifying in pole and nearly winning the Brazilian Grand Prix, he was dropped by the team. He joined Force India as reserve driver in 2011 before bagging a race seat for 2012. He remains a solid performer.
Lotus
Nation Great Britain Race entries 75 Engine Mercedes Constructor World Titles 0 Driver World Titles 0 Race wins 2 2014 position 8th, 10 points
Lotus drivers
8 Romain Grosjean – FRA
Race starts 81 Driver World Titles 0 Wins 0 Poles 0 Podiums 10 Fastest laps 1
Romain Grosjean was drafted in to replace the disgraced Nelson Piquet Jr. in 2009 in the wake of the infamous “Crashgate” scandal. His performances were lukewarm at best and he wasn’t retained. However, after gaining more experience in GP2, he was re-signed for 2012 to partner Kimi Raikkonen. A string of strong results and several podium finishes cemented him as a midfield runner.
13 Pastor Maldonado – VEZ
Race starts 93 Driver World Titles 0 Wins 1 Poles 1 Podiums 1 Fastest laps 0
Pastor Maldonado has been a divisive figure in F1 since he started his career with Williams in 2011. Invariably he was involved in several collisions and became unpopular with other drivers. Remarkably, though, at the Spanish Grand Prix in 2012 he qualified on pole position and went on to win the race on outright merit, holding off aggressive charges from the likes of Fernando Alonso. He left Williams to join Lotus in 2014.
Sauber
Nation Switzerland Race entries 401 Engine Ferrari Constructor World Titles 0 Driver World Titles 0 Race wins 1 2014 position 10th, 0 points
Sauber drivers
12 Felipe Nasr – BRA
Race starts 16 Driver World Titles 0 Wins 0 Poles 0 Podiums 0 Fastest laps 0
Felipe Nasr joined Williams as reserve driver in 2014 before being confirmed as a full-time Sauber driver in November of that year. His first year has been acceptable, with some strong displays of talent. His season got off to a good start when he finished fifth in Australia.
9 Marcus Ericsson – SWE
Race starts 33 Driver World Titles 0 Wins 0 Poles 0 Podiums 0 Fastest laps 0
Marcus Ericsson began his F1 career with the ailing Caterham team in 2014, but lost his drive when the team folded at the end of the season. However he had been convincing enough to earn a race-seat drive with Sauber. In 2015 he has scored points in five races, including an eighth place finish in Australia at the start of the year.
Toro Rosso
Nation Italy Race entries 183 Engine Renault Constructor World Titles 0 Driver World Titles 0 Race wins 1 2014 position 7th, 30 points
Toro Rosso drivers
33 Max Verstappen – NED
Race starts 17 Driver World Titles 0 Wins 0 Poles 0 Podiums 0 Fastest laps 0
The son of ex-Formula 1 driver Jos, Max Verstappen has sent ripples through Formula 1 in his debut season. At the age of 17, he has become the youngest driver in F1 history, and when he started didn’t even have a driving license. He has scored nine points-paying positions including two fourth places in Hungary and the US.
55 Carlos Sainz Jr – ESP
Race starts 17 Driver World Titles 0 Wins 0 Poles 0 Podiums 0 Fastest laps 0
Son of World Rally Championship legend Carlos Sainz, Carlos Sainz Jr has enjoyed a strong first year in F1. He has taken the fight to his quicker teammate Verstappen on several occasions and has scored points in seven races, including a career-best seventh in the US.
Manor Marussia
Nation Great Britain Race entries 71 Engine Ferrari Constructor World Titles 0 Driver World Titles 0 Race wins 0 2014 position 9th, 2 points
Manor Marussia drivers
28 Will Stevens – GBR
Race starts16 Driver World Titles 0 Wins 0 Poles 0 Podiums 0 Fastest laps 0
Will Stevens entered Formula 1 in 2015 off the back of an extremely successful junior racing career. Faced with an uncompetitive car, results have been difficult but the young Briton has done well and outdriven his machinery on several occasions. His best result came at Silverstone where he finished 13th.
53 Alex Rossi – USA
Race starts 4 Driver World Titles 0 Wins 0 Poles 0 Podiums 0 Fastest laps 0
Alex Rossi has been on the periphery of Formula 1 for a while and is widely touted as a future star. He has only raced five times this year and has not disgraced himself. He scored Manor Marussia’s joint-best result of the season at his home race in the US when he finished 12th. He has shared the race seat with Roberto Merhi.
98 Roberto Merhi – ESP
Race starts 12 Driver World Titles 0 Wins 0 Poles 0 Podiums 0 Fastest laps 0
Roberto Merhi was able to match his teammate Will Stevens during his run in the car in 2015. He put in some strong drives and only suffered one retirement in Canada. He scored the team’s joint-best result of 12th at Silverstone. He has shared the race seat with Alex Rossi.
Driver numbers at a glance
