F1 Driver Salaries

One of those high profile sports that seems to splash a seemingly inexhaustible supply of cash, regardless of the economy, F1 is forever in search of the best drivers in the world.

Understandably, in such a high pressure, dangerous and unforgiving sport, participants tend to have quite a short career, but it’s one that has its upside one of which is a stonking salary, that can go through the roof if you go on to prove yourself at the top end. Obviously, this wage can also be augmented substantially with additional sponsorship deals.

So, here’s a list of the top ten best-paid drivers in the F1 world.

Romain Grosjean –Lotus- €1.5m

Driving for the Lotus team, Grosjean is reported to be taking down €1.5million. The other drivers will be hoping he’s not planning to take them down too.

Both Lotus cars failed to finish in their first outing.

Sergio Perez -Force India- €2.0m

Earning a fair bit more than his Force India teammate, Nico Hulkenberg, Mexican Perez has been named the Wunderkind, one of the few younger drivers in the 2014 season. He’s won a podium, but yet to really make his mark on the grid.

Daniel Ricciardo -Red Bull- €2.5m

Relative newcomers to the fray, Red Bull have an inordinate amount of spare cash, but a huge impact on the sport nonetheless, backed up by the last four years on the top podium by the end of the season. It’s not surprising therefore that even in his debut season, the promising young Ricciardo is commanding a sizeable chunk of change, backed up by his (albeit disqualified) 2^nd place finish at the Australian Grand Prix 

Felipe Massa -Williams- €4.0m

Another driver who has shown great promise and came second, after a close run battle with Hamilton in the 2008 season. He’s also driven for team Ferrari twice and is consistently in the mix, come the last race. Some might say that Williams got a bargain 

Kimi Raikkonen –Ferrari- €10.0m

The last driver to win the laurels for Ferrari back in 2007, for his return to the Ferrari stable, Kimi is banking €10million- not bad, you may think, but only half the salary of his teammate…

Nico Rosberg –Mercedes- €11.0m

Demonstrating a huge improvement in his stats recently and partnering his old buddy Hamilton, Rosberg has merited an impressive salary. Already landing his fourth Grand Prix win overall, both he and Mercedes will be feeling vindicated, although Hamilton had to retire due to a cylinder failure. He will have been anxious not to play second fiddle to Lewis too much in 2014.

Sebastian Vettel –Red Bull- €16.0m

Although a four-time Championship winner, surprisingly, Vettel isn’t the highest paid driver in F1. One of the reasons for this is his loyalty to the Red Bull team. If he were to choose to leave, his new fee would likely be a fair bit higher. The complete car change is already proving interesting this season, where he failed to finish due to boost issues.

Jensen Button –McLaren- €16.0m

One time championship winner Button has consistently been there or thereabouts, vindicating his substantial pay-packet. With the new season leveller of new cars throughout the grid, it will be interesting to see if he can repeat his triumph, coming in third in Melbourne certainly isn’t too shoddy.

Fernando Alonso –Ferrari- €20.0m

Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton are purported to be the highest earning drivers this year, both banking a sweet €20million. Alonso starting his fifth year at Ferrari a marque that like to swagger and demonstrating the deepest wallets in a testosterone filled sport is one way of doing so.

Lewis Hamilton –Mercedes- €20.0m

Hamilton with his second year at Mercedes has proved he’s a clear title contender, if only Mercedes can produce a competitive car.  One of the reasons Hamilton is doing so well financially is due to the fact that he changed teams, allowing for a pay renegotiation to take place, unlike his four-time Championship winning adversary, Sebastian Vettel.