The Drivers With The Most Eye-Watering Salaries
Since its inception, Formula One has been the sport with the most prestige, glam, and glitz surrounding it. It's not uncommon for even a rookie driver to earn a million-dollar salary, but that's nothing compared to the big guns. Just in case you didn't already feel poor, here are the 20 highest-paid Formula One drivers of all time.
1. Michael Schumacher
Considered by many the greatest F1 driver of all time, Michael Schumacher competed in Formula One from 1991 to 2012, winning a record-breaking seven championships and 91 Grand Prix. His yearly salary was estimated at a whopping 80 to 100 million at the peak of his career.
Michael Cooper / ALLSPORT on Wikimedia
2. Lewis Hamilton
The only driver to match Schumacher's seven championship record, Lewis Hamilton has been a Formula One driver since 2007. During his peak years, Mercedes paid him an impressive $65 million, a figure that's since been reduced to $55 million.
3. Max Verstappen
The current superstar of the sport, Max Verstappen has won the last three championships for Red Bull. The powerhouse driver earns a salary of $55 million.
4. Sebastian Vettel
Sebastian Vettel was a Formula One driver between 2007 and 2022 who took four consecutive championships between 2010 and 2014, raking in 53 Grand Prix wins for Red Bull. His impressive performance ranked him among the greatest and earned him an average salary of $50 million at his peak.
5. Fernando Alonso
Fernando Alonso is a two-time world champion and the F1 driver with the longest career. His peak salary around the time of his championship wins form 2005 to 2007 was reported to be around $40 million a year. He now earns around $18 million with his current team, Aston Martin.
United Autosports on Wikimedia
6. Ayrton Senna
Considered by many as one of the greatest F1 drivers of all time, Ayrton Senna tragically perished on the track in 1994 at the age of 34. Before his passing however, he signed a $20 million contract, the equivalent of $40 million in today's currency.
Instituto Ayrton Senna on Wikimedia
7. Kimi Räikkönen
Kimi Räikkönen was a Finnish F1 driver active between 2001 and 2021. He won the 2007 championship when driving for Ferrari who reportedly paid him $30 million.
Antigorky, cropped and improved by RanZag on Wikimedia
8. Jenson Button
Jenson Button was a British F1 driver active from 2000 to 2017. He won the 2009 championship for Brawn and won a total of 15 grand prix. He was reportedly paid around $23 million at his peak.
9. Nico Rosberg
Nico Rosberg was a German Formula One driver between 2006 and 2016 who won 23 Grand Prix in his career and took one championship in 2016. He was reportedly paid $21 million by Mercedes, but walked away from a much higher contract shortly after taking the title to pursue a different career path.
10. Charles Leclerc
The Monegasque driver, Charles Leclerc has been driving for Ferrari since 2019.
He's largely considered the best qualifier on the grid and earns around $34 million per year.
11. Alain Prost
The French F1 champion, Alain Prost, took four championship titles in his career as a Formula One Driver from 1980 to 1993, raking in 51 Grand Prix wins, the record until Schumacher beat it only decades later. Although it's unknown how much his yearly salary was, his net worth is estimated at a healthy $150 million.
12. Mario Andretti
Mario Andretti competed in Formula One from 1968 to 1982, taking one championship title in 1978. He's the only driver to win races across Formula One, IndyCar, Daytona 500, Nascar and the World Sportscar Championship. His peak salary was $12 million, or around $40 million in today's money.
United Autosports on Wikimedia
13. Ralf Schumacher
Ralf Schumacher, Michael's younger brother, was a German F1 driver active between 1997 and 2007. When racing for Toyota, he reportedly earned around $22 million a year.
en:own work of Jürgen Weidanz de:eigenes Foto von Jürgen Weidanz on Wikimedia
14. Lando Norris
The British McLaren Driver has been competing in Formula One since 2019 but only started winning Grand Prix this season. His yearly salary is estimated at around $25 million.
15. George Russell
Mercedes' second driver, George Russell, started out-performing his teammate this season; not a small feat when your teammate is seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton! Russell's yearly salary is reportedly $18 million.
16. Mika Hakkinen
Mika Hakkinen was a two-time F1 champion driver active between 1991 to 2001. The Finnish driver earned a respectable $15 million yearly salary during his peak years.
17. Jacques Villeneuve
Jacques Villeneuve was the son of famed Canadian F1 driver Gilles Villeneuve who tragically passed away on the track. Jacques won the 1997 championship and was paid around $16 million a year at the peak of his career.
Legends Of Motorsports on Wikimedia
18. Sergio Perez
Red Bull's second driver may not be taking titles like his teammate Max Verstappen, but has earned a respectable 39 podiums and six wins. He's paid a healthy $14 million by Red Bull Racing.
19. Carlos Sainz
Ferrari's second driver, Spaniard Carlos Sainz has won four Grand Prix so far in his eight year career. Ferrari reportedly pays him a yearly salary of $12 million.
20. Niki Lauda
Niki Lauda was an Austrian Formula One driver active between 1971 and 1985. He won three championships two of which came after a remarkable recovery following a life-threatening crash that permanently scarred his face. Despite his impressive career, he was only paid a salary of $12 million by today's money as F1 wasn't the lucrative sport it is today.
