Formula One drivers from Australia

Last updated

Formula One drivers from Australia
Flag of Australia.svg
Drivers 18
Grands Prix752
Entries868
Starts839
Best season finish1st (1959, 1960, 1966, 1980)
Wins 43
Podiums 133
Pole positions 35
Fastest laps 63
Points3011.5
First entry 1952 Belgian Grand Prix
First win 1959 Monaco Grand Prix
Latest win 2021 Italian Grand Prix
Latest entry 2024 Monaco Grand Prix
2024 drivers Oscar Piastri
Daniel Ricciardo

There have been 18 Formula One drivers from Australia, 15 of which have taken part in at least one race since the championship began in 1950, and 3 failed to qualify. Two drivers have won the World Drivers' Championship: Jack Brabham, who won it three times, and Alan Jones, the most recent Australian world champion. Two drivers are currently active in the sport.

Contents

World champions and race winners

Jack Brabham, the most successful Australian Formula One driver, won three Drivers' titles BrabhamJack1966B.jpg
Jack Brabham, the most successful Australian Formula One driver, won three Drivers' titles

Two Australian drivers won the World Drivers' Championship, Jack Brabham in 1959, 1960, and 1966, and Alan Jones in 1980. Brabham is the only driver to win the title in one of their own cars, a Brabham in 1966. Twelve other Australian drivers have started a race with Mark Webber and Daniel Ricciardo being the only two to have won at least one grand prix. [1]

Current drivers

Ricciardo driving for Red Bull at the 2018 Spanish Grand Prix 2018 Spanish Grand Prix Ricciardo.jpg
Ricciardo driving for Red Bull at the 2018 Spanish Grand Prix

In 2011 Daniel Ricciardo became the first West Australian to race in Formula One. [2] He had joined Red Bull in 2009 as a test driver and was promoted to reserve driver for the following year. He was loaned to HRT in the second half of the 2011 season and joined Toro Rosso as a full-time driver in 2012. [3] After staying with Toro Rosso for 2013, Ricciardo moved to Red Bull Racing for 2014, where he stayed until the end of 2018, winning 7 races and achieving 29 podiums. He moved to Renault team for the 2019 season, and achieved 2 podiums with them at the 2020 Emilia Romagna and 2020 Eifel Grands Prix. [4] From 2021 to 2022 he drove for McLaren, giving the team their first win in 9 years with his victory at the 2021 Italian Grand Prix. [5] Although he had a contract to drive for the team in 2023, it was terminated during the 2022 championship by mutual agreement. [6] For 2023, he is acting as Red Bull Racing's third driver. He replaced Nyck de Vries at Scuderia AlphaTauri from the Hungarian Grand Prix onwards.

Piastri driving for McLaren at the 2023 Austrian Grand Prix FIA F1 Austria 2023 Nr. 81 (1).jpg
Piastri driving for McLaren at the 2023 Austrian Grand Prix

Oscar Piastri made his Formula One debut for McLaren at the 2023 Bahrain Grand Prix replacing fellow Australian driver Daniel Ricciardo.

Former drivers

Alan Jones in 1980 Alan Jones 1980.jpg
Alan Jones in 1980

Jack Brabham is the most successful Australian driver in history, having won three world titles. [1] He entered one grand prix in each of the 1955 and 1956 seasons, eventually becoming a full-time driver with Cooper. He finished on the podium in five of eight races in 1959, including two victories. That brought him his first title, which he retained the following year by winning five successive races. Regulation changes in 1961 saw a shake-up of teams and Cooper did not adapt; Brabham only finished two races. His knowledge of mechanics gave him the opportunity to set up his own outfit from 1961, and Brabham would become a significant team in F1. History was made in 1966 when Jack Brabham became the first person to win the title in a car bearing their name. [7]

Jack Brabham had three sons, two of whom went into Formula One. [1] David Brabham took part in two seasons – 1990 with Brabham and 1994 with Simtek – but only finished seven races with a best result of 10th. [8] Gary Brabham failed to qualify in two attempts during the 1990 season. [1]

Alan Jones entered Formula One in 1975 when Graham Hill's team brought him in to replace the injured Rolf Stommelen. He impressed enough to secure a full-time drive with Surtees but was not retained for a second season. He instead signed to the Shadow team after the death of their driver Tom Pryce and secured his first win at the 1977 Austrian Grand Prix. In 1978 he joined Williams for their first season with a purpose-built chassis, finishing just over half the races and standing on the podium once. His second year with the team brought considerable success and Jones won four races on his way to third in the championship. [9] He won the title in 1980, winning five races and featuring on the podium ten times, [9] thereby becoming the first world champion for Williams. [1] A difficult relationship with teammate Carlos Reutemann caused enough trouble within the team for Nelson Piquet to beat them both to the title in 1981 and Jones subsequently retired from Formula One. He made a one-off appearance for Arrows in 1983 but did not finish the race, then drove four races for Lola in 1985. He stayed with the team for the 1986 season but only finished five of the 16 races before retiring for good. [9]

Webber driving for Red Bull at the 2013 Malaysian Grand Prix Mark Webber 2013 Malaysia FP2.jpg
Webber driving for Red Bull at the 2013 Malaysian Grand Prix

Mark Webber three times finished third in the Drivers' Championship. [1] [10] He began his career with Minardi in 2002 before a two-year stint with Jaguar. Offered the choice of driving for Williams or Renault, Webber opted for the former, a team with many previous successes. Renault, however, produced a championship-winning car for the next two seasons as Fernando Alonso won the 2005 and 2006 Drivers' titles. Webber only managed to finish 10th and 14th in the championship and soon returned to his previous team, now running under the name Red Bull. In his third season with the team (2009) Webber scored his maiden race wins at Nürburgring and Interlagos. The following year he came close to winning the title, losing it after a poor pit stop in the final race pushed him down to eighth place with teammate Sebastian Vettel taking that year's honour. [10] Webber remained with Red Bull for the next three years, finishing 3rd, 6th and 3rd in the championship.

Tim Schenken is one of only six Australian drivers to have stood on a podium step. [1] His Formula One career began in 1970 when Frank Williams gave him a contract. [11] He took part in four races for De Tomaso, [12] leaving at the end of the season to join Brabham alongside Graham Hill. He achieved his only podium finish at the 1971 Austrian Grand Prix and left the team at the end of the year because of his concern about the management ability of new Brabham boss Bernie Ecclestone. [11] However, his new drive with Surtees proved to be a bad move and he only managed to finish half of the twelve races he started. [11] [12] He was then unable to secure a full-time drive and only started eight races over the next two seasons for three teams. [12]

Tim Schenken in 1971 Tim Schenken 1971 Hockenheim.JPG
Tim Schenken in 1971

Tony Gaze was the first Australian driver to compete in Formula One. A former World War II pilot with a dozen aerial victories, Gaze is considered to have been amongst the country's greatest flying aces. [1] [13] He started three races in the 1952 but only finished one, coming in 14th. [13]

Other former drivers

Seven other drivers have competed in at least one race:

Two further drivers took part in at least one qualification session but did not start a race:

Timeline

DriversActive YearsEntriesWinsPodiumsCareer PointsPolesFastest LapsChampionships
Tony Gaze 1952 4 (3 starts)00000-
Jack Brabham 1955–1970 128 (126 starts)1431253 (261) [14] 13123 (1959, 1960, 1966)
Paul England 1957 100000-
Ken Kavanagh 1958 2 (0 starts)00000-
Frank Gardner 1964–1965, 1968 9 (8 starts)00000-
Paul Hawkins 1965 300000-
Tim Schenken 1970–1974 36 (34 starts)01700-
David Walker 1971–1972 1100000-
Vern Schuppan 1972, 1974–1975, 1977 13 (9 starts)00000-
Larry Perkins 1974, 1976–1977 15 (11 starts)00000-
Alan Jones 1975–1981, 1983, 1985–1986 117 (116 starts)1224199 (206) [14] 6131 (1980)
Warwick Brown 1976 100000-
Brian McGuire 1977 1 (0 starts)00000-
Gary Brabham 1990 2 (0 starts)00000-
David Brabham 1990, 1994 30 (24 starts)00000-
Mark Webber 2002–2013 217 (215 starts)9421047.51319-
Daniel Ricciardo 2011–2024 248 (247 starts)8321322316-
Oscar Piastri 2023–2024 30 (30 starts)0316803-
Source: [15]

See also

Related Research Articles

McLaren Racing Limited is a British motor racing team based at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking, Surrey, England. McLaren is best known as a Formula One chassis constructor, the second-oldest active team and the second-most successful Formula One team after Ferrari, having won 184 races, 12 Drivers' Championships, and eight Constructors' Championships. McLaren also has a history in American open wheel racing as both an entrant and a chassis constructor, and has won the Canadian-American Challenge Cup (Can-Am) sports car racing championship. McLaren is also one of only three constructors to complete the Triple Crown of Motorsport, a feat that McLaren achieved by winning the 1995 24 Hours of Le Mans. The team is a subsidiary of the McLaren Group, which owns a majority of the team.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Renault in Formula One</span> Formula One activities of Renault

Renault, a French automobile manufacturer, has been associated with Formula One as both team owner and engine manufacturer for various periods since 1977. In 1977, the company entered Formula One as a constructor, introducing the turbo engine to Formula One with its EF1 engine. In 1983, Renault began supplying engines to other teams. Although the Renault team had won races, it withdrew at the end of 1985. Renault engines continued to be raced until 1986.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Denny Hulme</span> New Zealand racing driver (1936–1992)

Denis Clive Hulme was a New Zealand racing driver who won the 1967 Formula One World Drivers' Championship for the Brabham team. Between his debut at Monaco in 1965 and his final race in the 1974 US Grand Prix, he started 112 Grands Prix, resulting in eight victories and 33 podium finishes. He also finished third in the overall standing in 1968 and 1972.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1983 Formula One World Championship</span> 37th season of FIA Formula One motor racing

The 1983 FIA Formula One World Championship was the 37th season of FIA Formula One motor racing. It featured the 1983 Formula One World Championship for Drivers and the 1983 Formula One World Championship for Manufacturers, which were contested concurrently over a fifteen-race series that commenced on 13 March and ended on 15 October.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Red Bull Racing</span> Austrian-owned Formula One racing team

Red Bull Racing, currently competing as Oracle Red Bull Racing and also known simply as Red Bull or RBR, is a Formula One racing team, racing under an Austrian licence and based in the United Kingdom. It is one of two Formula One teams owned by conglomerate Red Bull GmbH, the other being RB Formula One Team. The Red Bull Racing team has been managed by Christian Horner since its formation in 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nico Hülkenberg</span> German racing driver (born 1987)

Nicolas Hülkenberg is a German racing driver who drives for the Haas F1 Team in Formula One. He was the 2009 GP2 Series champion, and is a previous champion of both the Formula 3 Euro Series and A1 Grand Prix, as part of A1 Team Germany. He is one of six drivers since 2005 to win the GP2 Series/Formula 2 championship in his debut season. Outside of Formula One, he won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2015 on his first attempt and also contested two rounds of the 2015 FIA World Endurance Championship season for Porsche.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Daniel Ricciardo</span> Australian and Italian racing driver (born 1989)

Daniel Joseph Ricciardo is an Australian and Italian racing driver currently competing in Formula One for RB Formula One Team under the Australian flag. He has achieved eight Grand Prix victories and 32 podiums in Formula One.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kevin Magnussen</span> Danish racing driver (born 1992)

Kevin Jan Magnussen is a Danish racing driver currently competing in Formula One for Haas F1 Team.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nyck de Vries</span> Dutch racing driver (born 1995)

Hendrik Johannes Nicasius "Nyck" de Vries is a Dutch racing driver currently competing for Toyota Gazoo Racing in the FIA World Endurance Championship and Mahindra Racing in Formula E. He won the 2020–21 Formula E World Championship and the 2019 FIA Formula 2 Championship as well as the 2010 and 2011 Karting World Championships. He was signed to the McLaren Young Driver Programme from January 2010 until May 2019. De Vries made his Formula One debut in September 2022 as a substitute for Williams at the 2022 Italian Grand Prix. He joined Scuderia AlphaTauri for the 2023 season but was released after the 2023 British Grand Prix – the 10th race of that 22-race season.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Formula One drivers from Finland</span> List of Formula One drivers who competed as Finnish

There have been nine Formula One drivers from Finland who have taken part in races since the championship began in 1950. Three drivers have won the World Drivers' Championship, with Keke Rosberg being the first in 1982. Mika Häkkinen won it in 1998 and retained it in 1999, becoming the first - and so far only - Finnish double world champion. Kimi Räikkönen is the most recent Finnish champion having won the title in 2007. Finland is considered to have an unusually high amount of successful Formula One drivers for a country of its relatively small size.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Formula One drivers from Austria</span> List of Formula One drivers who competed as Austrian

There have been sixteen Formula One drivers from Austria including two winners of the World Drivers' Championship. Three Austrian drivers were killed while competing in the sport; only the United Kingdom has lost more racers' lives in the sport. Several others were seriously injured in competition, with some having career ending accidents.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Formula One drivers from France</span> List of Formula One drivers who competed as French

There have been 74 Formula One drivers from France, the most successful of them being Alain Prost, who won the World Drivers' Championship four times.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Formula One drivers from Spain</span> Group of Formula One drivers who competed as Spanish

There have been fifteen Formula One drivers from Spain, the most successful of them being Fernando Alonso who won the World Drivers' Championship twice. Alonso is the only Spanish champion and one of only two Spanish drivers to win a Grand Prix, the other being Carlos Sainz Jr. Two other Spanish drivers have achieved a podium with Pedro de la Rosa and Alfonso de Portago having taken one a piece.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Formula One drivers from Canada</span> List of Formula One drivers who competed as Canadian

There have been 15 Formula One drivers from Canada, four of whom have scored points. Gilles Villeneuve, rated amongst the greatest drivers of all time, died while qualifying for his 68th race. His son, Jacques Villeneuve won the World Drivers' Championship in 1997. Canadian drivers were absent from Formula One since his departure in 2006, until the arrival of Lance Stroll in 2017.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Formula One drivers from New Zealand</span> List of Formula One drivers who competed as New Zealanders

There have been ten Formula One drivers from New Zealand, with four of them having started two or fewer races. The late 1950s to mid-1970s is viewed as the "golden age" for New Zealand in the sport and saw Denny Hulme crowned as World Drivers' Championship in 1967. New Zealand drivers were absent from Formula One events from 1984 to 2017.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Formula One drivers from Italy</span> List of Formula One drivers who competed as Italian

There have been 98 Formula One drivers from Italy including two World Drivers' Champions. Giuseppe "Nino" Farina was the first ever World Champion and Alberto Ascari was the first double World Champion. All three championships came in the early 1950s and very few Italian drivers have come close since Ascari's 1953 victory. In 1989 and again for the following two years there were 13 drivers from Italy. Antonio Giovinazzi was the last Italian driver, having competed in F1 from 2019 to 2021. Prior to Giovinazzi, there were five consecutive seasons without an Italian driver, with 2012 marking the first season an Italian driver did not enter a Formula One race weekend and the first season since 1969 that an Italian driver did not start a race.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Formula One drivers from South Africa</span> List of Formula One drivers who competed as South Africans

There have been 25 Formula One drivers from South Africa, with 17 of them having started at least one Grand Prix, and only 4 of them having started more than four races. Jody Scheckter is by far the most prolific and successful South African driver, being the only one to have won a race. During his nine-year career Scheckter won 10 races and the 1979 World Drivers' Championship. There has not been a driver from South Africa in Formula One since 1980.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Formula One drivers from the United States</span> List of Formula One drivers who competed as Americans

There have been 58 Formula One drivers from the United States including two World Drivers' Championship winners, Mario Andretti and Phil Hill. Andretti is the most successful American Formula One driver having won 12 races, and only Eddie Cheever has started more Grands Prix. Logan Sargeant is the only current American, having competed in 2023 and 2024.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Esteban Ocon</span> French racing driver (born 1996)

Esteban José Jean-Pierre Ocon-Khelfane is a French racing driver currently competing in Formula One for Alpine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">McLaren MCL34</span> Formula One racing car

The McLaren MCL34 was a Formula One racing car designed by Pat Fry and constructed by McLaren to compete in the 2019 Formula One World Championship. The car was driven by Carlos Sainz Jr., who joined the team from the Renault Sport F1 Team; and 2018 Formula 2 Championship runner-up Lando Norris. Sainz Jr. and Norris replaced Fernando Alonso and Stoffel Vandoorne, both of whom left the team at the end of the 2018 championship. The MCL34 was powered by a Renault engine, the Renault E-Tech 19, and made its début at the 2019 Australian Grand Prix. The car was considered to be a big improvement compared to its disappointing predecessor, the MCL33, often being the best of the rest in qualifying and race trim behind the three leading teams: Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Black, Jacob (15 March 2012). "SPEED looks at Australia's Formula One history, after Daniel Ricciardo becomes the 14th Aussie driver in F1". FOX SPORTS Australia Pty Limited. Retrieved 22 September 2012.
  2. ↑ Harris, Geoffrey (1 July 2011). "Ricciardo Australia's latest F1 driver". BackPageLead. Archived from the original on 28 November 2011. Retrieved 22 September 2012.
  3. ↑ "Daniel Ricciardo". Formula One World Championship Limited. Retrieved 22 September 2012.
  4. ↑ "Formula 1 - Press release - Daniel Ricciardo joins Renault Sport Formula One Team from 2019 - renaultsport.com". Renault Sport. Archived from the original on 3 August 2018. Retrieved 3 January 2020.
  5. ↑ "McLaren swoop for Daniel Ricciardo as Carlos Sainz replacement for 2021". formula1.com. 14 May 2020. Retrieved 14 May 2020.
  6. ↑ "Daniel Ricciardo to leave McLaren Racing at the end of 2022". McLaren. Archived from the original on 24 August 2022. Retrieved 24 August 2022.
  7. ↑ "Jack Brabham". ESPN F1. ESPN EMEA Ltd. Retrieved 23 September 2012.
  8. ↑ "David Brabham". ESPN F1. ESPN EMEA Ltd. Retrieved 23 September 2012.
  9. 1 2 3 "Alan Jones". ESPN F1. ESPN EMEA Ltd. Retrieved 23 September 2012.
  10. 1 2 "Mark Webber". ESPN F1. ESPN EMEA Ltd. Retrieved 22 September 2012.
  11. 1 2 3 "Drivers: Tim Shenken". GrandPrix.com. Inside F1, Inc. Retrieved 23 September 2012.
  12. 1 2 3 "Tim Schenken". ESPN F1. ESPN EMEA Ltd. Retrieved 23 September 2012.
  13. 1 2 "Tony Gaze". ESPN F1. ESPN EMEA Ltd. Retrieved 22 September 2012.
  14. 1 2 Up until 1990, not all points scored by a driver contributed to their final World Championship tally (see list of points scoring systems for more information). Numbers without parentheses are Championship points; numbers in parentheses are total points scored.
  15. ↑ "Australia - Grands Prix started • STATS F1". www.statsf1.com. Retrieved 6 February 2019.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.