Which F1 driver has the most world championships? Full list of winners

Lewis Hamilton missed his opportunity to overtake Michael Schumacher as Formula One’s most successful ever driver after Max Verstappen won the 2021 world title in the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on Sunday, although Mercedes have protested the win.

Verstappen snatches F1 title in thrilling finale in Abu Dhabi

In a dramatic finish to the final race of the season, Red Bull’s Verstappen overtook the Mercedes driver on the last lap to claim victory at the Yas Marina Circuit and secure the first world championship of his career.

Hamilton and Verstappen had both gone into the Abu Dhabi GP on 369.5 points, the first time the F1 world championship contenders had been level heading into the final round since Emerson Fittipaldi and Clay Regazzoni in 1974.

See also:

Seven world championships each for Hamilton and Schumacher

Hamilton, 36, remains tied with Schumacher on seven F1 Drivers’ Championships, having drawn level with the German in 2020.

Schumacher, who spent an illustrious 18 seasons in F1 before retiring for a second time in 2012, won two world titles with Benetton in 1994 and 1995, before joining Ferrari and adding five straight championships between 2000 and 2004.

Full screen

His 2003 triumph saw him surpass Argentine Juan Manuel Fangio’s long-standing record of five Drivers’ Championships, won in 1951, 1954, 1955, 1956 and 1957.

Hamilton secured his maiden F1 title with McLaren in 2008, before switching to Mercedes in 2013 and winning the drivers’ crown in six out of seven seasons between 2014 and 2020.

The F1 Drivers' Championship's multiple winners