*Undated
Just a few days ago, Lewis Hamilton was chasing his eighth world championship.
The Brit was neck and neck with the youngest F1 driver of all time, and now world champion Max Verstappen.
The career of Hamilton is undoubtedly legendary and he has created a long-lasting legacy for himself within the sport. At Teamkenya.co.ke, we have decided to look back and see where Hamilton ranks in terms of the top 10 richest F1 drivers in history.
10) Sebastian Vettel
Sebastian Vettel has collected an incredible £76.5m (Ksh 9.8B) during his career. The German is still the youngest world champion ever, even in the light of the youngest overall driver in F1 history Verstappen winning his first title last Sunday in Abu Dhabi. Vettel achieved this feat at the age of 23 years and 133 days and has four world titles to his name between 2010 and 2013. This figure is all the more impressive when you realise it’s only 10th on this list!
9) Jody Scheckter
Scheckter is the only ever African-born driver to win the F1 world title, having won it in 1979. This alone would be enough to cement his place in Formula One history, but his riches excelled both on and off the track. He was a savvy businessman who founded, and later sold, a high-tech security firm as well as setting up a farming enterprise. Overall, he ended up with a collective wealth of $100m (Ksh 11B).
8) Martin Brundle
Similar to the previous entry, Martin Brundle made the majority of his wealth off the track itself. He had a relatively good career, finishing on the podium nine times in his 10 seasons, although it was plagued with injuries. The now 62-year-old regularly provides his services and knowledge in a co-commentary role for Sky Sports and writes a column for them after each race. He also collated a reported wealth of $100m (Ksh 11B).
7) Mario Andretti
His record speaks for itself as Andretti is one of two Americans to win the F1, IndyCar, NASCAR and the World Sportsman Championship. He generated a wealth of $120 million (Ksh 13.5B), which comfortably puts him on this list.
6) Eddie Irvine
Irvine won four F1 Grands Prix and recorded 26 podium finishes during his F1 career. He never won a championship, though, as the closest he came was in 1999, coming second behind Mika Hakkinen, who managed to win due to the absence of the injured Michael Schumacher. The Northern Irishman ended up with a great wealth of $120m (Ksh 13.5B)
5) Jenson Button
He is one of the greatest drivers ever produced by the United Kingdom and this was reflected by his rivalry with Lewis Hamilton at McLaren. Button recorded his only world title win in 2009 and retired from F1 in 2016, taking home an insane $150 million (Ksh 17B).
4) Kimi Raikkonen
Raikkonen has spent 17 years in Formula One and became known as the ‘Iceman’ due to his extreme skill behind the wheel... and frosty nature when dealing with the media. He completed a ‘cool’ 349 races in F1, finishing in Abu Dhabi at the weekend. He managed to beat Hamilton by one point in 2007 to claim his first and only championship and amassed around $150m (Ksh 17B) in the race car.
3) Fernando Alonso
Fitting for Alonso to be in the top three as many see him as one of the greats of all time and still going strong now. At the age of 40, he even secured a podium finish at the Qatar Grand Prix. He managed to end Schumacher’s incredible reign of dominance with back-to-back titles in 2005 and 2006. Although he’s had disappointing spells with both McLaren and Ferrari, he now represents Alpine and has $240m (Ksh 27B) to show for his career.
2) Lewis Hamilton
Here he is, the seven-time champion. The Brit, who narrowly missed out on his eighth title, is one of the highest regarded sportsmen in the UK’s history. He has 103 race wins under his belt and is tied with Schumacher for most titles of all time. He has acquired a stunning $285 (Ksh 32B)million during his legendary career, yet is a long way off top spot.
1) Michael Schumacher
It had to be. The Schumacher family is infamous within the sport and it should come as absolutely no surprise to see Michael top of the all-time earners list. He won five consecutive titles between 2000 and 2004, which has never been levelled since, despite a stellar effort by Hamilton, who would’ve achieved said feat had he beaten Verstappen in Abu Dhabi. Schumacher has gained a remarkable $800 million (Ksh 90B)during his world class career.