Greatest Formula One Drivers
This topic always generates a lot of discussion and debate. Obviously, it is very difficult to compare drivers whose careers were decades apart, but I think that some statistical comparisons can be made which give insight into how good each driver was. I'm not a big fan of absolute statistics such as number of wins, number of podiums, .etc because Formula 1 has many more races each year now that it did earlier on. Instead, I believe that a driver's win percentage (wins divided by races), for example, is a better indicator. I have compiled the top ten driver's percentages for championships, wins, podiums, poles, fastest laps, and points per race using the 1967 scoring system (9 for first, 6 for second, 4 for third, 3 for fourth , 2 for fifth, 1 for sixth,) plus 1 point for pole and 1 point for fastest lap. There have been approximately 1,000 drivers who competed in Formula 1 so to be in the top ten of any category is a great achievement.
As a reminder to those who think Formula 1 began in the 1980s when Senna was active, the sport actually began in 1950.
Here are the results through the end of the 2021 season:
A. Championship Percentage:
Fangio
62.5
Hamilton
46.6
Schumacher
36.8
Ascari
33.3
Stewart
33.3
Prost
30.8
Senna
27.3
Vettel
26.7
Lauda
23.1
Clark
22.2
Note: There have been 34 different champions in 72 years through 2021.
B. Win Percentage:
Fangio
47.1
Ascari
40.6
Hamilton
35.8
Clark
34.7
Schumacher
29.6
Stewart
27.3
Prost
25.6
Senna
25.5
Moss
24.2
D. Hill
19.1
C. Podium Percentage:
Fangio
68.6
Hamilton
63.2
Farina
60.6
Gonzalez
57.7
Prost
53.3
Ascari
53.1
Schumacher
50.5
Senna
49.7
Clark
44.4
Vettel
43.7
Note: Luigi Fagioli was on the podium in 6 of his 7 Formula 1 races for a 85.7% podium percentage. However, I didn't include him in the list as he drove in so few races.
D. Pole Percentage:
Fangio
56.9
Clark
45.8
Ascari
43.8
Senna
40.4
Hamilton
35.8
Moss
24.2
Schumacher
22.2
Vettel
20.4
Hill, D.
17.4
Stewart
17.2
E. Fastest Lap Percentage:
Fangio
45.1
Clark
38.9
Ascari
37.5
Moss
28.8
Schumacher
25.1
Gonzalez
23.1
Prost
20.6
Hamilton
20.5
Hill, D.
16.5
Mansell
16.0
Note: Until 2019, points for fastest lap were only awarded in the 1950s so there was no incentive for later year drivers to achieve fastest lap unless they were attempting to overtake or defend their position.
F. Points Per Race:
Fangio
6.86
Hamilton
5.60
Ascari
5.50
Clark
4.65
Schumacher
4.52
Farina
4.45
Prost
4.37
Senna
4.29
Stewart
3.96
Gonzalez
3.88
Subjective Rankings Based On Data Above:
1. Fangio
2. Hamilton
3. Schumacher
4. Clark
5. Ascari
6. Prost/Senna (Tie)
8. Stewart
9. Vettel
10. Moss
Conclusion:
Clearly, Fangio was the greatest Formula 1 driver ever. He ranks first in every statistical category and no one else is even close.