ARRIVING AT FORMULA 1

It is known by everyone that becoming a Formula 1 driver is very difficult, since you have to drive the car without making a single mistake so that your team can score the maximum possible points weekend after weekend . But currently, this quality is being replaced by another, that is coming from a wealthy family. Today on the grid, there are more than one and two drivers who are racing thanks to the money their parents invest in the Formula 1 teams. In fact, up to three teams, Aston Martin, Williams and Haas, part of their income comes from the money of the parents of one of its pilots. That does not mean that they are bad pilots, those three pilots (Stroll, Latifi and Mazpein) defend themselves quite well, maybe with the exception of Mazepin, but the presence of these pilots thanks to the money, prevents the arrival of new talent, probably better than them. And of course, this is not good for the Formula 1.

A study calculates the approximate money that you have to have to do all the steps until you have the possibility that a Formula 1 team will choose you to drive one of its two cars.

• Karting from 8-9 years old to 15: € 40,000 / year = € 240,000

 

• Formula Renault or F3 Euro Open, aged 16 and 17: € 250,000 / year = € 500,000

 

• GP3, 18 years old € 700,000 = € 700,000

 

• GP2, 19 and 20 years old € 2,200,000 / year = € 4,400,000

 

• F1 test driver: between € 1,000,000 and € 2,000,000




In total, it comes out to more than 5 million in total. An outrage that not all current drivers on the grid have been able to afford, many others have. But other drivers, like Lewis Hamilton, started with kart racing and were quickly hired by big Formula 1 teams. Then they start at their pilot school, where they don't have to pay. To do a simulation, it’s similar if one young football player is sign by Barça and going to “la Masia”. Thanks on this, Lewis Hamilton has been a pilot of Formula 1, since in his case he would not have been able to pay this outrage of money to reach the top of Formula 1.

Comments

  1. Leroy8 November 2021 at 07:09

    Very interesting topic! It’s well written and describes the situation in F1 well. I’m as well confused that more and more drivers come from the same family as their team. Especially Stroll showed that he is a very good driver, but the others couldn’t compete in the front due to their “slower” cars. Is it true that you need to pay for being a F1 test driver? I always thought the team pays for that. As well for F2 and F3.
    I agree that it cost much money to get through all stages and therefore I’m always happy to see new drivers who doesn’t come from the richest families.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The Pit stop News9 November 2021 at 08:37

      Hello Leroy thank you very much for writing to us.
      We personally don't like bought driver seats in formula 1 as it is good for business but not for the sport because it doesn't allow better people to come through, but it also helps some teams to stay in the competition. Do you think it would be better if these teams looked for good drivers rather than money?

      Delete
    2. Javier Vaquer10 November 2021 at 03:39

      That would be great, but you know how the world works, if you have money you can get anywhere. Teams need money so if you have money, you have a higher chance of driving with them, rather than someone else who doesn't.

      Delete
    3. The Pit stop News20 November 2021 at 10:49

      Thats a good point, but with the new F1 regulations for the next seasons, where teams will have to spend less money, do you think there will be an end to drivers buying their seats?

      Joaquim Lozano

      Delete
  2. BeNeLiga9 November 2021 at 10:25

    I'm a big fan of Formula 1 myself and watch every practice, qualifying and of course the races on Sunday. I believe that Mazpein, Stroll and Latifi did indeed get their seats because of the money. But the question arises for me, how can F1 ensure that there are better drivers in Formula 1 and still keep making money. Perhaps you have thought about how an organization like Formula 1 can work on this.

    Finally, this season attracts more viewers than previous seasons, probably because the emerging talent now also joins the front. If the rivalry between racers increases, could this attract more viewers, so that Formula 1 could earn more? I'd love to hear what you guys think about this.

    (Roger Onkenhout)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Joan Montoriol20 November 2021 at 14:22


      Well, yes, I think that the interest of formula1 can increase a lot in the following years, because as you said, there are already young drivers who seeing them driving is a show, such as Verstappen, Leclerc or Norris. In addition, the new rules for next year will make the formula more interesting, as in recent years there has been much decreased interest in this sport due to the huge dominance of the Mercedes team.

      Delete
  3. The Paparazzi21 November 2021 at 05:39

    Very interesting article, I was not at all aware of how the fomule 1 system works within the arrivals. Although it's not surprising that having money makes it easier to get in, I find it disappointing that it blocks the arrival of new talent. The money spent on it is impressive!

    Morgane DOUCET

    ReplyDelete
  4. Sami21 November 2021 at 10:56

    This is great topic to shed the light on the financial difficulty of being a professional driver or even a professional athlete. It is quite unfortunate that there aren't many means to climb the laders of motorsport without large sponsors and from poorer/third world countries.

    ReplyDelete

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