Formula One (F1) is the pinnacle of motorsport, attracting millions of fans and viewers from around the world. F1 drivers are among the most skilled, talented and courageous athletes in the world, competing in high-speed races across different continents and circuits.
But which country can claim to have the biggest percentage of the 725 F1 drivers in history? Which country has produced the percentage of the biggest percentage of the 34 champions, race winners and podium finishers? In this article, we will rank the top countries with the most F1 drivers in history.
We base this on the number of drivers who have participated in at least one F1 race since the inception of the world championship in 1950.
We will also look at some of the most notable and successful drivers from each country, and how they have contributed to the history and legacy of F1.
The Top 10 Countries With The Most F1 Drivers In History
In total F1 drivers have come from 41 countries since 1950.
The country that has fielded the most drivers between the first F1 race in 1950 and 2023 is the United Kingdom. The UK has produced 164 drivers, followed by the United States at 159 drivers.
The list below shows the number of driver by country since the sport was formed
| Country | Total drivers |
|---|---|
| United Kingdom | 164 |
| United States | 159 |
| Italy | 99 |
| France | 71 |
| Germany / West Germany | 53 |
| Brazil | 32 |
| Argentina | 25 |
| Belgium | 24 |
| Switzerland | 24 |
| South Africa | 23 |
| Japan | 21 |
| Australia | 18 |
| Netherlands | 17 |
| Austria | 16 |
| Canada | 15 |
| Spain | 15 |
| Sweden | 11 |
| Finland | 9 |
| New Zealand | 9 |
| Mexico | 6 |
| Denmark | 5 |
| Ireland | 5 |
| Monaco | 5 |
| Portugal | 5 |
| Rhodesia | 5 |
| East Germany | 4 |
| Russia | 4 |
| Uruguay | 4 |
| Colombia | 3 |
| Venezuela | 3 |
| India | 2 |
| Thailand | 2 |
| Chile | 1 |
| China | 1 |
| Czech Republic | 1 |
| Hungary | 1 |
| Indonesia | 1 |
| Liechtenstein | 1 |
| Malaysia | 1 |
| Morocco | 1 |
| Poland | 1 |
Which Country Has Produced The Most F1 wins?
The following list shows the number of race wins by country.
This list is interesting because it shows some interesting variances compared to the number of drivers list above.
The UK has the greatest number of wins (which aligns with the fact that they have had the greatest number of drivers. Although the United States has had the second highest number of drivers, it has only produced the 33 wins. This places it in 11th place in terms of race wins.
Germany came in 5th with the number of drivers (53), but produced the 2nd largest number of race wins (179).
Brazil only produced 32 f1 drivers, and yet produced the 3rd largest number of race wins.
The Number Of Race Wins By Country
| Country | Total Drivers | Race Wins |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | 164 | 308 |
| Germany / West Germany | 53 | 179 |
| Brazil | 32 | 101 |
| France | 71 | 81 |
| Finland | 9 | 57 |
| Italy | 99 | 43 |
| Australia | 18 | 43 |
| Austria | 16 | 41 |
| Netherlands | 17 | 40 |
| Argentina | 25 | 38 |
| United States | 159 | 33 |
| Spain | 15 | 33 |
| Canada | 15 | 17 |
| Sweden | 11 | 12 |
| New Zealand | 9 | 12 |
| Belgium | 24 | 11 |
| South Africa | 23 | 10 |
| Mexico | 6 | 8 |
| Switzerland | 24 | 7 |
| Colombia | 3 | 7 |
| Monaco | 5 | 5 |
| Venezuela | 3 | 1 |
| Poland | 1 | 1 |
Which Country Has Produced The Most Champions
Only 5% of F1 drivers have won world championships. Once again the United Kingdom leads the pack withe 10 F1 drivers champions. The list of if F1 championship winners from the UK is listed.
- Hawthorn [1]
- Hill, G [2]
- Clark [2]
- Surtees [1]
- Stewart [3]
- Hunt [1]
- Mansell [1]
- Hill, D [1]
- Hamilton [7]
- Button [1]
Germany, Brazil and Finland come in 2nd place with 3 winners each
- Michael Schumacher [7] – Germany
- Sebastian Vettel [4] – Germany
- Nico Rosberg [1] – Germany
- Emerson Fittipaldi [2] – Brazil
- Nelson Piquet [3] – Brazil
- Ayrton Senna [3] – Brazil
- K. Rosberg [1] Finland
- Mika Häkkinen [2] Finland
- Kimi Räikkönen [1] Finland
The Number Drivers Champions By Country
| Country | Total drivers | Champions | Championships |
|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | 164 | 10 | 20 |
| Germany / West Germany | 53 | 3 | 12 |
| Brazil | 32 | 3 | 8 |
| Finland | 9 | 3 | 4 |
| Italy | 99 | 2 | 3 |
| Australia | 18 | 2 | 4 |
| Austria | 16 | 2 | 4 |
| United States | 159 | 2 | 2 |
| France | 71 | 1 | 4 |
| Netherlands | 17 | 1 | 2 |
| Argentina | 25 | 1 | 5 |
| Spain | 15 | 1 | 2 |
| Canada | 15 | 1 | 1 |
| New Zealand | 9 | 1 | 1 |
| South Africa | 23 | 1 | 1 |
So these stats make for some interesting reading. How does it work out when we look at the different ratios.
F1 Race Wins As A Ratio Of The Number Of Drivers
The clear winner in this category is the Fins. Although they have only fielded 9 drivers they have won an incredible 57 races. This means that . Race Wins As Ratio Of Finish Drivers is 6.33 per driver.
Germany comes in a strong second with 3.38 wins per driver and Brazil 3rd with 3.16 wins per driver.
The United Kingdom only has 1.88 wins per driver.
| Country | Total Drivers | Race Wins | Race Wins As Ratio Of Drivers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Finland | 9 | 57 | 6.33 |
| Germany / West Germany | 53 | 179 | 3.38 |
| Brazil | 32 | 101 | 3.16 |
| Austria | 16 | 41 | 2.56 |
| Australia | 18 | 43 | 2.39 |
| Netherlands | 17 | 40 | 2.35 |
| Colombia | 3 | 7 | 2.33 |
| Spain | 15 | 33 | 2.20 |
| United Kingdom | 164 | 308 | 1.88 |
| Argentina | 25 | 38 | 1.52 |
| New Zealand | 9 | 12 | 1.33 |
| Mexico | 6 | 8 | 1.33 |
| France | 71 | 81 | 1.14 |
| Canada | 15 | 17 | 1.13 |
| Sweden | 11 | 12 | 1.09 |
| Monaco | 5 | 5 | 1.00 |
| Poland | 1 | 1 | 1.00 |
Percentage of Champion Per Driver
Once again Finland leads the statistics. 1/3rd of Finish F1 drivers have become F1 champions.
13% of the 16 Austrian drivers became champions and 11% of Australian and News Zealand drivers became champions.
Despite (or maybe because of) the United Kingdom fielding the most drivers, only 6% of them became champions.
| Country | Total Drivers | Champions | % Champions To Drivers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Finland | 9 | 3 | 33% |
| Austria | 16 | 2 | 13% |
| Australia | 18 | 2 | 11% |
| New Zealand | 9 | 1 | 11% |
| Brazil | 32 | 3 | 9% |
| Spain | 15 | 1 | 7% |
| Canada | 15 | 1 | 7% |
| United Kingdom | 164 | 10 | 6% |
| Netherlands | 17 | 1 | 6% |
| Germany / West Germany | 53 | 3 | 6% |
| South Africa | 23 | 1 | 4% |
| Argentina | 25 | 1 | 4% |
| Italy | 99 | 2 | 2% |
| France | 71 | 1 | 1% |
| United States | 159 | 2 | 1% |
Ratio of F1 Championships Per F1 Champion
Here we have the Argentinian’s and the legendary Juan Manuel Fangio leading the pack. Having only one F1 champion – who won 5 championships – means that the ratio of Argentinian Championships
Per Champion is 5.
Germany (Michael Schumacher, Sebastian Vettel, Nico Rosberg) and France (Alain Prost) comes in 2nd place with 4 each.
The United Kingdom finds itself in company with Austria, Australia, Spain and the Netherlands.
Championships Per Champion
| Country | Champions | Championships | Ratio Of Championships Per Champion |
|---|---|---|---|
| Argentina | 1 | 5 | 5.00 |
| Germany / West Germany | 3 | 12 | 4.00 |
| France | 1 | 4 | 4.00 |
| Brazil | 3 | 8 | 2.67 |
| Austria | 2 | 4 | 2.00 |
| Australia | 2 | 4 | 2.00 |
| Spain | 1 | 2 | 2.00 |
| United Kingdom | 10 | 20 | 2.00 |
| Netherlands | 1 | 2 | 2.00 |
| Italy | 2 | 3 | 1.50 |
| Finland | 3 | 4 | 1.33 |
| New Zealand | 1 | 1 | 1.00 |
| Canada | 1 | 1 | 1.00 |
| South Africa | 1 | 1 | 1.00 |
| United States | 2 | 2 | 1.00 |
The Number Of Countries With F1 drivers In The 2023 Season
So what does that mean in 2023. The stats are fairly similar to the historical picture. See the table below
| Country | Active in 2023 season | No in 2023 season | |
|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom |  | Lewis Hamilton Lando Norris George Russell | 3 |
| France |  | Pierre Gasly Esteban Ocon | 2 |
| Netherlands |  | Max Verstappen Nyck de Vries | 2 |
| Spain |  | Fernando Alonso Carlos Sainz Jr. | 2 |
| Australia |  | Oscar Piastri | 1 |
| Canada |  | Lance Stroll | 1 |
| China |  | Zhou Guanyu | 1 |
| Denmark |  | Kevin Magnussen | 1 |
| Finland |  | Valtteri Bottas | 1 |
| Germany / West Germany |  | Nico Hülkenberg | 1 |
| Japan |  | Yuki Tsunoda | 1 |
| Mexico |  | Sergio Pérez | 1 |
| Monaco |  | Charles Leclerc | 1 |
| Thailand |  | Alexander Albon | 1 |
| United States |  | Logan Sargeant | 1 |
Conclusion
The statement that there are lies, than damn lies and than statistics is well proven here. Whichever way you look at it there is a case to be made for the winners of the different statistic tables to be called teh best.
The reality is that to race in an F1 car automatically puts you in a tiny minority of 725 drivers between 1950 and 2023. That is a feat in itself.
