When did Formula 1 start?
Formula 1 was formed as a world championship competition back in 1950, with the first-ever race held at the Silverstone Circuit – a former Royal Air Force station – in the United Kingdom on May 13 of that year.
Six more events were staged in a season which saw Alfa Romeo driver Giuseppe ‘Nino’ Farina become the sport’s first world champion – edging out team mates Juan Manuel Fangio and Luigi Fagioli.
While motorsport had been taking place since the late-1800s, with Grand Prix events growing in popularity across the following decades, 1950 marked the start of the official F1 championship that remains to this day.
READ MORE: 10 fascinating facts about the very first F1 Grand Prix
Who are the most successful F1 drivers of all time?
From F1’s all-time list of world champions, Lewis Hamilton shares the overall record of seven drivers’ titles with Michael Schumacher. Hamilton claimed his first title with McLaren in 2008, before adding six more at Mercedes between 2014 and 2020, while Schumacher won the 1994 and 1995 crowns with Benetton, adding another five (in a row) at Ferrari from 2000 to 2004.
As it stands, Hamilton also holds the record for the most race victories, logging 105 to date, along with the most pole positions having taken 104 up to now.
Fellow multiple champions include Juan Manuel Fangio, who racked up five titles in the 1950s, Alain Prost, who won four across the 1980s and 1990s, Sebastian Vettel, who collected a quartet of championships on the bounce from 2010 to 2013, and reigning champion Max Verstappen, who took his fourth consecutive crown in 2024.
