Formula 1 drivers travel the world to drive the most sophisticated and state-of-the-art racing cars in front of a large audience.
But what do these people drive when they’re not on track? Do they get free cars?
They make enough money to buy almost every production vehicle.
However, their contracts often state that they must choose a model from the team’s or manufacturer’s range, which they do get for free.
Many drivers openly show their vehicles on their social media accounts. Others are more reluctant to do so.
In this article, we’ll tell you what we discovered regarding F1 drivers and their personal cars and explain how they actually get them for free.
Do F1 Drivers Get Free Cars? Overview
All F1 drivers get “work vehicles” that they use to commute to the track from the hotel in some cases, usually when races are in Europe or even to use in their free time.
However, they are not forced to drive them.
They get a new car every year and have to give it back at the end of the contract unless they buy one at the factory price themselves.
Sometimes, they just buy a different model and different brand, even the competitor’s brand (Hamilton has a Ferrari and a McLaren).
The contract does not restrain them that they must drive their team’s brand (or engine suppliers’ brand in the case of Red Bull, Alpha Tauri, Williams, and Racing Point).
Although they don’t necessarily need to drive the same make personally as they drive on the track, this is the usual arrangement among race car drivers and owners in any racing league that gets factory support for the team.
Suppose, for instance, a driver races a Porsche and owns a couple of daily driver Porsches.
Nobody will say anything to him if he also owns another make, such as a much cheaper Jeep, better suited to off-road use than a shiny new Porsche.
In short, they get free cars but can drive whatever they want.
Lewis Hamilton has quite the collection, and while he does have a few Mercedes cars he also has at least one Mclaren, a Pagani Zonda, a Shelby GT500 and… a LaFerrari.
Valterri Bottas, by the way, owns a Ferrari F40, but he already had that before he drove for Mercedes, while Lewis bought the LaFerrari just recently.
What Cars Do Formula 1 Drivers Drive?
Charles Leclerc
· Team: Scuderia Ferrari
· Age: 25 years
· Vehicle: Ferrari 488 Pista Spider
After finishing eighth in the standings last year, Scuderia Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc has had an excellent start to the season. He has a customized Ferrari 488 Pista Spider. It features a matte black body with a red and white stripe reminiscent of the Monaco flag.
Max Verstappen
· Team: Red Bull Racing
· Age: 25
· Vehicle: Aston Martin DB11
Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen became the world champion last year.
Verstappen has his Aston Martin DB11 in a very dark shade of blue with bright yellow and green brake calipers adding a pop of color to the exterior.
Sergio Perez
· Team: Red Bull Racing
· Age: 33
· Vehicle: Honda Civic Type R
Sergio Pérez has been in Formula One since 2011 when he joined Sauber. He is presently a Red Bull Racing driver.
The information we have is from 2021. During the 2021 season, Red Bull Racing still used Honda engines. It only seemed natural that Pérez would be driving privately in a Honda Civic Type R at the time.
George Russell
· Team: Mercedes-AMG F1 Team
· Age: 25
· Vehicle: Mercedes-AMG C 63 S Coupé
George Russell’s first year with Mercedes will be in 2022. He drove for Williams last year, which uses Mercedes engines.
He is seen exiting a Mercedes-AMG C 63 S Coupé in the 2021 British Grand Prix.
Carlos Sainz Jr.
· Team: Scuderia Ferrari
· Age: 28
· Vehicle: Ferrari 812 Competizione
Carlos Sainz Jr. is the son of rally legend Carlos Sainz. He is now in his second season at Scuderia Ferrari.
This season started with two podiums, but he retired from the last two Grand Prix races. Sainz Jr.’s parents gave him a VW Golf when he was 18 years old.
In December 2021, he presented a major upgrade as he worked with Ferrari’s Tailor Made program to build what appeared to be a custom-built 812 Competizione.
Lando Norris
· Team: McLaren F1 Team
· Age: 23
· Vehicle: McLaren GT
Lando Norris is a McLaren F1 Team driver. He arrives in Miami having finished third on the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix podium.
Norris joined McLaren as a test driver in 2018 and was promoted to a racer in 2019. The 2020 snapshot shows Norris arriving for the British Grand Prix in his McLaren GT.
Lewis Hamilton
· Team: Mercedes-AMG F1 Team
· Age: 38
· Vehicle: Mercedes-Benz GLE-Class
After almost winning his eighth drivers’ world championship title last year, Mercedes-AMG driver Lewis Hamilton is currently in seventh place overall.
Hamilton owns quite a number of cars but judging by his Instagram account; he currently has a fondness for the Mercedes GLE class.
Valtteri Bottas
· Team: Alfa Romeo F1 Team
· Age: 33
· Vehicle: Mercedes-AMG GT Black Series
Valtteri Bottas is in his debut season with the Alfa Romeo F1 Squad, having previously spent five years with the Mercedes-AMG team.
He finished third in the World Drivers’ Championship last year. He purchased a customized Mercedes-AMG GT Black Series in August 2021.
The flanks of the black automobile are adorned with little Mercedes-Benz insignia.
Esteban Ocon
· Team: BWT Alpine F1 Team
· Age: 26
· Vehicle: Mercedes-AMG GT Roadster
Esteban Ocon is in his second year with the BWT Alpine F1 team. Last year he was 11th in the Drivers’ Championship, and so far this season, he’s 8th.
It was surprisingly difficult to track Ocon behind the wheel of a vehicle he doesn’t drive or promote.
We finally found this July 9, 2018, photo of Ocon posing with a Mercedes-AMG GT Roadster. At the time, Ocon was a driver for the Force India F1 team.
Are F1 Drivers Best Drivers?
There’s a reasonable probability they’re the best drivers in the world not because of inherent talent but because they have access to the best vehicles, tracks, and instructors.
Auto racing is not like singing in that it is exceedingly expensive to rehearse, whereas a singer can practice in the shower at home or as part of a church chorus.
Sure, having a great voice teacher helps, but you can easily spot outstanding singers among the crowd and provide them with the best training.
With racing, you never know who has the most natural skill because most of us never have the chance to compete, let alone be taught by the best with the best equipment in the world.
F1 cars have a lot of power and handling abilities. Thus quick reactions, know-how, coaching, and racing instincts are required.
However, F1 cars include numerous driver aids such as ABS, stability control, traction control, and so on, in addition to >1 G of downforce. As a result, they are more predictable and safer than other types of racecars.
Many F1 drivers have migrated to NASCAR, claiming that driving in the oval is far more difficult than driving on F1 courses. NASCAR races are fairly low-tech in comparison to F1. They’re hefty, squirrelly bastards, and many of them are in close formation on the track.
However, race cars are difficult to drive. Period. Nobody will go behind the wheel of an F1 car and immediately know what they’re doing.
Are F1 cars scary? Yes! Are they the hardest cars to drive? No!
