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Although F1 drivers are in the sport because of their great skill and passion, there is no question that they can earn substantial amounts of money from their Formula 1 Contracts.

There are many changes to the driver lineup in 2023, with Sebastian Vettel retiring and Daniel Riccardo, Mick Schumacher, and Nicholas Latifi leaving the paddock. Three “new” drivers join the lineup in the form of Nico Hülkenberg, Oscar Piastri, and the American Logan Hunter Sargeant.

Formula One Contracts                              

The F1 contract commits the driver to drive for the team; from the team’s perspective, it commits to the level of support the team provides the driver.

It also defines the financial arrangement which exists between the two parties.

Most contracts are for specific years and can be extended after negotiation between the two parties.

The contracts also make provision for the early termination of the contract if one party fails to perform as required.

The responsibility of the teams and the driver generally follow the format listed below.

The Responsibility Of The Formula One Team

The teams have to provide a certain level of support to their drivers, including the following.

  1. The car should perform as competitively as each party agreed when the contract was signed.
  2. The F1 regulations need to e complied with.
  3. The driver must be paid the agreed contract value. A few junior drivers are not paid and instead bring sponsorship money to the team.
  4. To ensure that there is the correct infrastructure at each race.
  5. Travel arrangements and accommodation are organized and paid for.
  6. Some contracts include providing free or low-cost cars for the drivers.
  7. Companies supported by car manufacturers will also require the driver to be seen in their car brand throughout the season.
  8. Ensuring that all insurance contracts are paid for and in place.

The Formula One Drivers’ Responsibility

The drivers have many responsibilities.

  1. The driver must have an F1 Super License and ensure that the associated fees are paid timeously.
  2. Drivers must achieve optimum fitness on and outside the season.
  3. The driver must maintain the ideal body weight.
  4. The drivers are required to race at every event unless sickness, injury, or other circumstance prevents them.
  5. The driver generally hands over all trophies to the team
  6. Drivers are not allowed to wear jewelry.
  7. Drivers must participate in all of the team’s public relations activities – as required.
  8. In 2023 The FIA imposed restrictions on the causes that F1 drivers are allowed to talk about in public.
  9. Drivers must maintain their social media accounts following the team’s wishes.
  10. Drivers must operate safely.
  11. In many cases, any sponsorship deals arranged by the driver are shared with the F1 team.
  12. Drivers all agree to have their weight checked before and after each race.
  13. Drivers agree to participate in random drug testing.

In many cases, there is an early termination in the contract, which can be exercised if circumstances change.

Typical instances when these come into play are as follows.

  1. The nationality of a driver becomes an issue. This happened at the beginning of the 2022 season when Nikita Mazepin was prevented from driving after Russia invaded Ukraine.
  2. The driver’s behavior has a damaging effect on the team.
  3. The driver displays a belief (such as racism) that may damage the team’s good name.
  4. The driver fails to perform.
  5. The driver crashes too often and compromises the team’s activities under the cost cap,
  6. The team doesn’t perform.

See the 2023 F2 driver Line-up Link.

What Is The State Of Each Formula One Drivers Contract?

Each driver has an exclusive contract with the respective team.

The terms and conditions will depend on his success (or failure) on track and his historical value.

Each driver’s career points and 2022/2023 formula 1 contracts money earnings are listed in the table below.

DriverTeam Total
Pnts
 2022 2023
Lewis HamiltonMercedes480740m62m
Fernando AlonsoAston Martin292520m22m
Max VerstappenRed Bull203060m60m
Valtteri BottasAlfa Romeo179610m12m
Daniel RicciardoRed Bull132015mNA
Serio PerezRed Bull12028m10m
Charles LeclercFerrari87812m12m
Carlos SainzFerrari78910m10m
Nico HulkenbergHaas513NA10m
Lando NorrisMcLaren4405m5m
Esteban OconAlpine3645 m5m
Pierre GaslyAlpine3335m14.5m
George RusselMercedes2945m5m
Alex AlbonWilliams2012m2m
Lance StrollAston Martin1942m2m
Kevin MagnesonHaas1836m3m
Yuki TsunodaAlpha Romeo441m0.5m
Mick SchumacherMercedes121mn/a
Zhou GuanyuAlfa Romeo60.75m0.5m
Oscar PiastriMcLaren0Na0.5m
Logan SargeantWilliams0n/a0.4m
Nyck de Vries Alpha Romeo0n/a0.3m

Lewis Hamilton – Mercedes AMG F1 – Formula 1 Contracts

Save The Children Fund
Save The Children Fund

Seven times world champion, Sir Lewis Carl Davidson Hamilton, that has not been said before.

  • His seven world championship wins place him alongside Michael Schumacher as the top-scoring F1 driver of all time.
  • He has won 103 races in his career compared to 66 for the rest of the current driver lineup.
  • He is the only driver in history to have achieved second place in the world championship in his rookie season.
  • In his second year, he won the world championship.
  • He has raced in 310 events and achieved 191 podiums in his career.
  • He has won 103 races from 103 pole starts.
  • He has won seven world championships.
  • He has won 61 fastest-lap awards.
  • He has earned 4807.5 points in his F1 career.

He campaigns for equal opportunities and for racism to end.

To this end, he has formed the charity Mission 44, where he personally committed £20 million to help young people from under-represented backgrounds to achieve in the world.

In 2021 he became one of only four racing drivers to be knighted.

DriverYear
knighted
Sir Jack Brabham1979
Sir Stirling Moss2000
Sir Jackie Stewart2001
Sir Lewis Carl Davidson Hamilton2021

He received the inaugural Laureus Athlete Advocate of the Year Award in 2021.

Despite his success, he remains a quietly spoken person who exhibits a relatively humble lifestyle and has great compassion for the marginalized people in society.

The general view was that Lewis would retire at the end of 2023; however, it has just been announced that he will stay on for at least 2024.

Fernando Alonso – Aston Martin F1 Team – Formula 1 Contracts

Fernando Alonso

The old man of the series has announced his move to Aston Martin F1 Team, where he will drive alongside Lance Stroll.

Alonso is a legend in the F1 paddock and operates according to his own value system remaining an independent voice amongst the rest.

Alonso has a long and distinguished career in Formula One, which he first drove in 2003.

  • His first F1 drive was in 2003 when he drove for Renault.
  • He drove alongside Lewis Hamilton in 2007, and the two experienced a stormy relationship.
  • In 2008 this caused him to return to Renault.
  • His move to Ferrari happened in 2010
  • He returned to Maclaren in 2015, when he endured a nightmarish four years driving the weakest and least reliable car on the track.
  • He took a year off from Formula One in 2020.
  • Alonso returned to Renault in 2021.
  • He has moved to the Aston Martin F1 Team for 2023.
  • In his career, he has won 2925.0 points.

Alonso is considered one of the most enduring and talented drivers in F1.

Max Verstappen – Red Bull Racing – – Formula 1 Contracts

Verstappen Warns Sergio Perez
Max Verstappen

Two times world championship winner Max Verstappen has proven that he is a match for Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes, given the right equipment.

It’s a pity that they have never been able to race against each other in equally competitive cars.

When Mercedes was the dominant car, Lewis was the clear winner, and with Mercedes’s downfall, Max showed his amazing ability.

Hopefully, in the next two years, the two will be able to compete on equal terms.

After he was paid, bonus’s Max went home with a cash pile of $60 million in 2022.

Having signed with Red bull until 2028, Max is in a strong position to stay at the front of the grid and earn record salaries.

In his short career, he has already amassed 2030.5 points.

Valtteri Bottas – Alfa Romeo Racing – – Formula 1 Contracts

 Facts About Lewis Hamilton

After losing out to George Russel, Mercedes Valtteri joined the Alfa Romeo Racing team.

  • His F1 career Began when he raced alongside Pastor Maldonado at Williams-Renault.
  • He joined Mercedes in 2017, where he raced alongside Lewis Hamilton.
  • He joined Alfa Romeo Racing in 2022 and will continue to race for them in 2023.

Bottas’s sense of sportsmanship and fair play has always impressed me,

Unfortunately, this virtuous characteristic is also his weakness in that he seems to lack the “killer instinct” to do whatever it takes to win a championship. He has won 1796 points in his F1 career.

He appears very happy at Alfa Romeo Racing.

His contract at Alfa Romeo Racing runs until 2025, and he earns $10 million annually.

Daniel Ricciardo – McLaren Racing – – Formula 1 Contracts

Formula One Contracts - Verstappen Warns Sergio Perez
Image courtesy of www.xpbimages.com

Daniel has had a disappointing 2022 season and does not have a full-time drive in 2023.

He has been signed on as the Red Bull reserve river for 2023, and his hope is to return to a driving seat in 2024.

Daniel has scored 1320.0 points in his F1 career.

Sergio Perez – Red Bull Racing – – Formula 1 Contracts

Formula One Contracts - Verstappen Warns Sergio Perez

Checo rives in the number 2 spot at Red bull alongside Max Verstappen.

Perez had a positive but very difficult season in 2022. He lost out to second place in the F1 championship when Max Verstappen refused to assist him in the last two races.

In his Formula One career, he has won 1202.0 points.

Charles Leclerc – Scuderia Ferrari – Formula 1 Contracts

Formula One Contracts - Charles Leclerc

Charles Leclerc

Charles Marc Hervé Perceval Leclerc drives in the number one slot at Scuderia Ferrari.

In 2019 he transferred to Ferrari from Sauber.

He has shown great promise but, in 2022, was let down by the car (and also some self-induced mistakes)

The 2022 season started well; however, a series of car failures, bad team decisions, and his own mistakes allowed Max Verstappen to quickly pass him and assume a dominating lead.

He is contracted until 2024, and if the car supports him will be seen at or near the front of the leaderboard.

He has won 878.0 points in his F1 career.

Carlos Sainz – Scuderia Ferrari – Formula 1 Contracts

Formula One Contracts - Carlos Sainz
Carlos Sainz

Carlos drives in the number two position at Scuderia Ferrari.

  • He first drove Scuderia Toro Rosso in 2015 alongside Max Verstappen.
  • He moved to the underperforming Renault team alongside Nico Hülkenberg.
  • He moved to Maclaren in 2019 and, in 2020, achieved the sixth position in the driver s championship.
  • He joined Scuderia Ferrari in 2021 and achieved 5th place in the 2022 drivers’ championship.

He has won 789.5 in his F1 career.

Nico Hulkenberg – Haas-Ferrari F1 – Formula 1 Contracts

Formula One Contracts - Nico Hulkenberg
Nico Hulkenberg

It’s all going to be new for Nico in 2023.

Nico is another veteran F1 driver. Since 2010 he has raced with the following teams.

  1. Williams
  2. Sauber
  3. Force India
  4. Renault.

After a break of a few years in 2023, he is driving for Haas-Ferrari.

Lando Norris – McLaren Racing – Formula 1 Contracts

Formula One Contracts - Lando Norris
Lando Norris

Norris is the number one driver at the McLaren racing team.

If Lando is given a competitive car, he can race with the front of the pack.

Norris’s original contract was renegotiated for 2022 and now runs to “at least” 2025, at a salary of $5 million per annum.

This is a driver that should be watched because he has the potential to achieve great things in F1.

He has won 440.0 points in his career.

Esteban Ocon – Alpine F1 – Formula 1 Contracts

esteban ocon

After being the number 2 driver at Alpine F1, with Fernando Alonso leaving, he has the potential to become the number one driver.

The only difficulty for Esteban is that longtime adversary Pierre Gasly has replaced Fernando, and the two will be dueling it out for 2023.

He is signed until the end of 2024 and earns $5 million.

Esteban has earned 364.0 in his F1 career.

Pierre Gasly – Alpine F1 – Formula 1 Contracts

pierre gasly
pierre gasly

Pierre Gasly has moved over to Alpine F1 for 2023.

He is a very talented driver who displays the necessary aggregation and determination to achieve great things.

The only hesitation is watching how he and Esteban Ocon work together.

He has won 333.0 points in his F1 career.

George Russell – Mercedes AMG F1 – Formula 1 Contracts

Formula One Contracts - George Russell
George Russell

George Russell will assume the mantle of the lead driver at Mercedes when Lewis finally retires.

His skill level is exceptional, and he achieves incredible results irrespective of the car he is given to drive.

After driving at Williams for three years, he moved to Mercedes (replacing Valtteri Bottas ) for the 2022 season.

Despite the problems with the Mercedes car, he finished fourth in the log.

We can expect great things for this young man, who is poised to become one of the sport’s greats.

He has won 294.0 points in his career.

Alexander Albon – Williams Racing – Formula 1 Contracts

Formula One Contracts - Alex Albon
Alex_albon

Albon deserves better than his achievements seem to demonstrate.

This talented driver has suffered many disappointments; however, replacing George Russel as the number 1 driver at Williams has saved his career.

We hope that he will be able to demonstrate real speed in the slowest car on the track and ultimately find his way to a more competitive team.

He has won 201.0 points in his career.

Lance Stroll – Aston Martin F1 Team – Formula 1 Contracts

Formula 1 Contracts - lance stroll
lance stroll

Lance Stroll is the son of the Aston Martin F1 team owner, which means his contract is always secure.

His performance ebbs and flows in each race and sometimes shows great promise.

He has earned 194.0 points in his F1 career.

Kevin Magnussen – Haas F1

Formula One Contracts - Kevin Magnussen
Kevin Magnussen

Kevin is one of two drivers at Haas F1.

He has had a disjointed career, and his achievements do not represent his skill level.

Hopefully, driving alongside Hulkenberg, he will be able to move up the rankings.

He is signed with Haas until 2025 on a multi-year agreement.

Kevin has won 183.0 points in his career.

Yuki Tsunoda – Scuderia Alpha Tauri

Formula One Contracts - Yuki Tsunoda
Yuki Tsunoda

Yuki drove with Pierre Gasly when he joined AlphaTauri.

If Yuki cannot lift his game in 2023, it will be his last season in F1.

He has achieved 44 points in F1.

Guanyu Zhou – Alfa Romeo Racing

 Formula One Contracts - Guanyu Zhou
Guanyu Zhou

Guanyu is the first Chinese driver on the F1 circuit.

He has been given a one-year extension on his contract to the end of 2023.

Mick Schumacher – Mercedes F1 Reserve Driver – Formula 1 Contracts

Formula One Contracts - Mick Schumacher
Mick Schumacher

Mick lost his place in Haas for 2023 and has been signed on as the Mercedes reserve driver for 2023.

Oscar Piastri –  McLaren-Mercedes

Formula One Contracts -  Oscar Piastri
Oscar Piastri

The first of two rookie drivers for 2023 is Oscar Piastri, previously a member of the Alpine young driver program.

The general impression is that he is very talented and has lots of potentials.

Logan Hunter Sargeant – Williams Racing – Formula 1 Contracts

Formula One Contracts - Logan-sargeant-williams

Logan is the first American driver to join the F1 grid in eleven years.

He joins Williams for 2023.

Conclusion

The contracts that drivers negotiate with the teams depend on how competitively they have raced in the past.

Those who have achieved great things earn substantial amounts of money.

References

https://f1worldwide.com/2023-f1-driver-line-up/https://f1worldwide.com/formula-1-drivers-standings/https://f1worldwide.com/f1-drivers-height-and-weight/The F1 Points System (f1worldwide.com)https://www.golegal.co.za/fixed-term-contracts-employment/

https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/sport/formula-1/f1-salaries-explained/

By Jonny Noble

ABOUT THE AUTHOR - Jonny Noble I’m a dedicated F1 Writer – and I’ve Been One for Over Four Decades, I’ve been intimately immersed in the world of Formula One for more than 44 years. That’s longer than most professional commentators can boast! As an independent writer, I offer a unique perspective on the entire F1 landscape, free from biases that might cloud the discussion. We dive deep into the exhilarating, frustrating, and captivating facets of the F1 universe. So, regardless of my amateur status, one thing is undeniable: four decades of dedicated F1 fandom have forged strong opinions worth exploring!