Formula 1 drivers usually take home big paychecks year after year.
Formula One is definitely among the most lucrative sports in the world as the biggest car brands in the world competes with each other on the track. Some of the most expensive sports contracts can be found in F1. While veterans such as Fernando Alonso and Sebastian Vettel are still included in the list, today’s generation dominated as the young racers secured their spots. The multimillion sport has produced some of the richest drivers in the world.
The contract of the F1 drivers is a little more complicated than a normal contract for athletes, as they have additional performance-based bonuses that will determine their final pay at the end of each year. This year, the list consisted of a different listing as someone has finally broken Lewis Hamilton’s streak of being the series’ top-earning driver since 2013. According to Forbes, Hamilton sank to the second place with approximately $55 million. Take a peek at the list of this year’s top ten highest paid drivers in the world.
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10 George Russell
George Russell impressed the crowd as soon as he debuted in Mercedes after he claimed his maiden pole position last July. He finally achieved his first win just last month in Sao Paulo. His win helped him achieve an impressive finish besting his legendary teammate Lewis Hamilton. The 24 years old British racing driver Formula One driver for Mercedes currently has a salary of $3 million with an additional $7 million in bonuses.
9 Lando Norris
Lando Norris took a huge leap in his career in 2021 after claiming his first pole and four podium finishes. The 23 year old Belgian-British racing driver for the McLaren was rewarded a contract extension until 2025 for his achievements in 2021.
The British supercar maker McLaren pays Norris $5 million in salary apart from the $6 million bonus he received from the British motor racing team.
8th Carlos Sainz Jr.
Carlos Sainz Jr fell to the fifth place in the driver standings; however he’s had a pretty strong start this season that helped him close a two year contract extension last April. This resulted with Ferrari keeping the racing driver until 2024.
The 28 years old Spanish motorsports racing driver took him his first ever career win last July at the British Grand Prix. Ferrari pays him about $8 million in salary in addition to the $7 million bonuses he received.
7 Daniel Ricciardo
Daniel Ricciardo initially signed up for McLaren until 2023 however it was announced last August that his contract was terminated. This left him without a team upon heading into the offseason. Rumor has it that the 33 years old Italian-Australian racing driver would end up signing with either Red Bull or Mercedes.
The breakthrough star of the Netflix documentary series Drive to Survive is currently working yet another series with Hulu as they develop a Formula One centric series. The racing driver was paid generously of $15 million in salary in addition to the $2 million bonus he received.
6 Sebastian Vettel
Sebastian Vettel is ultimately among the veterans who are running the track with his 16 years of experience in Formula One. The four time series champion is said to be retiring very soon. Although he has not won any race since 2019, his decades long career has already proven his worth in the track.
With about 53 career victories, he’s the third best driver at the moment following Lewis Hamilton with 103 and Michael Schumacher with 91. The 35 years old German racing driver received a total of $15 million salary with an additional amount of $2 million in bonuses.
5 Charles Leclerc
Charles Leclerc has won the two out of three races this season and ended up in the second place in the standings after a competitive fight with Sergio Perez of Red Bull. The 25 years old Monégasque racing driver has signed for Ferrari until 2026.
The Scuderia Ferrari Formula One driver who’s living a lavish life at the moment has received a total of $12 million in salary with an additional amount of $11 million bonus.
4 Sergio Perez
Sergio Pérez has a pretty strong season however he was overshadowed by his Red Bull teammate Max Verstappen during the penultimate race at last month’s São Paulo Grand Prix. Versappen refused to let Perez pass him, and Perez just commented that the incident just showed the kind of person Versappen is.
It was only Perez’s second season with Red Bull and he just signed a two year extension with Red Bull earlier this May. Despite the upsetting lack of teamwork in Red Bull, he’s going home with a massive salary of $10 million with an additional $16 million bonus .
3 Fernando Alonso
Fernando Alonso is still shining in the race track despite his age of 41 years old. The Spanish racing driver who’s competing for Alpine at the moment ended the season with a ninth place at the driver standings. This is Alonso’s second season with Alpine following a two year hiatus. It was reported that he will be transferring to the Aston Martin team for the coming 2023 season replacing the retiring Sebastian Vettel.
The 41 year old Spanish racing driver is still highly valued today as he was able to secure a contract with a $30 million salary.
2 Lewis Hamilton
Lewis Hamilton has had his fun in the Formula One race track for 16 years now and at the pace he is going, he’s not slowing down anytime soon. He’s endured a rough 2022 season after dropping to the sixth place in the driver standings. He also finished this year’s race without a win which is a first in his 16 years long career.
Although his contract will be expiring next season, he is expected to sign a new deal with Mercedes this fall. The 37 year old British racing driver received a $55 million salary with zero bonuses. Despite falling behind Max Verstappen, his wealth isn’t really affected as he has secured some of the brand endorsement deals with globally renowned brands.
1 Max Verstappen
2022 is probably Max Verstappen’s year as he finished the year with 15 race wins that included a win at the Sunday’s finale in Abu Dhabi. He has piled up winning records in Formula One with a 146-point lead in the driver’s standings. His claimed his first constructors’ championship since that ended Mercedes’ eight year win streak.
The 25 year old Belgian-Dutch racing driver is the highest paid racer for 2022 with a salary of $40 million with an additional $20 million bonus.
Sources: Forbes, Motor Sports Tickets, Crash
