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Portrait of Formula One

General knowledge · Sport

Formula One

World Championship since 1950

Sport — international single-seater motor racing

The premier class of international single-seater motor racing, whose World Championship began in 1950 with a race at Silverstone won by Giuseppe Farina, who became the first champion. Drivers' and constructors' titles are decided over a season of grands prix, and Ferrari is the only team to have entered every season since the start. Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton share the record of seven drivers' titles; the sport's biggest rule change in its history took effect in 2026, with near-equal petrol and electric power and sustainable fuel.

How to spot them

  • ▸Grands prix over a season, points to the top ten, separate drivers' and constructors' titles
  • ▸The chequered flag, the podium, the parc fermé
  • ▸Ferrari, the only constructor present in every season since 1950
  • ▸A rule set overhauled for 2026: no MGU-H, active aerodynamics, fully sustainable fuel

Key facts

The first world championship race, at Silverstone on 13 May 1950, won by Giuseppe Farina (1950)

Farina, in an Alfa Romeo, went on to be the first champion

Jochen Rindt was crowned champion after his death in practice at Monza (1970)

The only posthumous world champion

Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton each hold seven drivers' titles

Schumacher's five in a row with Ferrari from 2000 to 2004 is a record run

Ferrari is the only constructor to have competed in every season since the championship began

Enzo Ferrari's team has more race wins and constructors' titles than any other

Race distance is set at the fewest complete laps exceeding 305 kilometres, except at Monaco

Monaco is run to 260 km, a legacy of its slow, tight street circuit

Lando Norris took his first drivers' title in 2025, driving for McLaren (2025)

McLaren's first drivers' champion since Lewis Hamilton in 2008

From 2026, roughly a 50-50 split between internal combustion and electrical power, and the MGU-H dropped (2026)

Electrical output roughly tripled, and the cars run on fully sustainable fuel

Active aerodynamics and an override boost replaced the drag reduction system in 2026 (2026)

Wings that flatten on the straights, plus extra energy for a car within a second of the one ahead

Quick-fire facts

  • •The World Championship began in 1950; the first race was the British Grand Prix at Silverstone on 13 May, and Giuseppe Farina was the first champion
  • •A constructors' championship was added in 1958
  • •Ferrari is the only team to have taken part in every season since 1950
  • •Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton each have seven drivers' titles, the record
  • •Jochen Rindt, killed at Monza in 1970, is the only posthumous world champion
  • •Sebastian Vettel, champion in 2010 at 23, was the youngest title winner
  • •Lando Norris won the 2025 drivers' championship for McLaren
  • •The 2026 regulations are the biggest change in the sport's history: no MGU-H, roughly equal petrol and electric power, active aerodynamics and 100 per cent sustainable fuel
  • •Audi, Ford with Red Bull Powertrains, and Honda with Aston Martin all arrived as engine partners for 2026; General Motors follows in 2029
  • •Cars became shorter, narrower and lighter for 2026, with the minimum weight cut by about thirty kilograms

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