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How long does a Formula 1 driver's career last?

Writer's picture: Andrew ZarbAndrew Zarb


Formula 1, which is undoubtedly (in my opinion at least) a very tough sport and the drivers have to be extremely fit. In the early days of Formula 1, drivers were not so lucky and their careers did not last long due to several fatal accidents for drivers - for a fact, there were 20 drivers between 1950 and 1969 who died due to fatal accidents (we are taking into account only events which contributed towards the FIA Formula 1 World Championship). Nowadays, through the considerable and tangible technological progress that has been made, safety in the sport has advanced considerably too (although there is still room for improvement and safety can never be taken for granted) and drivers have been more fortunate with accidents which in the past would have been more fatal.

As a result of improved safety, drivers have been able to race longer. However, it is very interesting to note that the first ever Formula 1 World Champion (Giuseppe Farina who won the 1950 World Championship) was 44-years old, which is much older than how long a Formula 1 driver goes on racing today. For the study of an average age of how old the drivers are when they retire from Formula 1 (it was hard to select since some arguably would not have continued as they were simply not good enough, or perhaps a lack of funding) - we selected the following drivers: Felipe Massa Nico Rosberg Mark Webber Jenson Button David Coulthard Michael Schumacher Rubens Barrichello Mika Hakkinen Jacques Villeneuve Damon Hill Gerhard Berger Nigel Mansell Nelson Piquet Jean Alesi

Alain Prost Keke Rosberg

Certain things have to be pointed out for this study - Michael Schumacher's comeback from 2010-2012 was not taken into account, nor was Nigel Mansell's return to the sport from 1994-1995 (albeit for a few races), however Prost's full records were taken into account even though he did not take part for one season in Formula 1. Following extensive research, the average age at which a Formula 1 driver retires (albeit few since as I mentioned earlier as some arguably would not have continued as they were simply not good enough, or perhaps a lack of funding) is 36 years old. Also, following extensive research, we managed to extract the average age at which a Formula 1 driver makes his debut (for this, all the drivers who have raced in this decade (and including Charles Leclerc and Sergey Sirotkin who will be making their Formula 1 debuts in 2018) were taken into account, a total of 61 for that matter) - the average age for an F1 driver to make his debut is 22 years old (albeit drivers who had, and this reflects the fact how the greats in the sport last approximately 15 years - the average number of seasons done by the drivers used for the study of retirement was 14, which is clearly reflective of the age difference between when drivers make their debut and retire. Over time, these statistics will change undoubtedly, but the figures reflect the current situation arguably - if we follow these averages, we can say that Kimi Raikkonen would have retired in 2015 or 2016, thus indicating that these statistics may well be different in a few years' time. To continue with "estimations", Hamilton would retire in 2021 - which is more or less the time when he has said he thinks he will retire, Verstappen would retire in 2033 - which shows that he clearly is the future of Formula 1 providing he gets the right car and team, and definitely has the potential to become a multiple World Champion along the next decade. For further data, if we follow these "estimations", Vettel would retire in 2023, whilst Ricciardo and Bottas would retire in 2025, and Ocon would do the same in 2032.


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