Famous 20th Century F1 Drivers

With seven Formula One championship under his belt, Michael Schumacher is the most successful racer of Formula 1 and one of the greatest motor sports driver in the world. The retired German racer was the face of Ferrari for a decade and with his tremendous on track success also became one of best paid athletes in the sport’s history.

Austrian Formula One driver and aviation entrepreneur Niki Lauda was a three-time F1 World Drivers' Champion. Considered to be one of the greatest F1 drivers of all time, he was once involved in a near-fatal accident. He founded and ran three airlines as an aviation entrepreneur and also served as the team manager of the Jaguar Formula One racing team.

James Hunt was a British racing driver who earned the nickname 'Hunt the Shunt' for his action-packed and often reckless exploits on the track. In 1976, he won the Formula One World Championship in his first year with McLaren, which inspired several teenagers to take up motor racing. James Hunt has inspired racers, such as Kimi Räikkönen.

Ayrton Senna was a Brazilian racing driver. Widely considered one of the greatest F1 drivers of all time, Ayrton had won the prestigious F1 World Drivers' Championship thrice. Following his fatal accident in 1994, several safety improvements were introduced to the sports' set-up; higher crash safety standards, redesigned tracks, and improved crash barriers became part of the sport.

Bruce McLaren was a New Zealand engineer, inventor, racing car designer, and driver. He is credited with founding McLaren Automotive in 1963. Formula One's successful team, McLaren, is named after him. McLaren has been inducted into various halls of fame, including the New Zealand Sports Hall of Fame, Motorsports Hall of Fame of America, and International Motorsports Hall of Fame.

Jackie Stewart is a British retired racecar driver who competed in Formula One. He won three World Drivers' Championships between 1965 and 1973. He is best known for playing a key role as a campaigner for better safety measures at motor racing circuits. After retiring from racing, Jackie Stewart appeared as a sports commentator for ABC network.

Mika Häkkinen was 5 when his parents got him a go-kart for racing near their home. He later grew up to be one of the 3 Finnish F-1 drivers to earn a World Championship. Noted for his speed, he earned the nickname The Flying Finn.

Canadian race-car driver Jacques Villeneuve is known for his association with the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series. Son of F1 driver Gilles Villeneuve, he has won 11 Grands Prix and is the only Canadian to win the Indianapolis 500 and the F1 Drivers' title. He has also released a music album.

 Italian-born American former racing driver, Mario Andrett,i is the only driver ever to win the Indianapolis 500, Daytona 500, and the Formula One World Championship. He is considered one of the most successful Americans in the history of the sport.  Over the course of his long career, he has is the only person to be named United States Driver of the Year in three decades (1967, 1978, and 1984). 

British Formula One racing-driver James Clark Jr. is counted among the greatest Formula One drivers of all time. He won his first World Driver’s Championships in 1963 making a record of winning seven out of ten races in a season. He again won the championship in 1965. His 1965 Indianapolis 500 win marked the first win for a rear-engined car.

Damon Hill is a British retired racing driver best known for winning the Formula One World Championship title in 1996. He is currently a part of the broadcasting team of Sky Sports F1, providing expert analysis. Damon Hill is also known as the son of former Formula One World Champion, Graham Hill.

British former racing-driver Nigel Mansell, CBE, presently ranks as #2 in the list of most-successful British Formula One drivers of all-time with regards to number of race wins. Winner of Formula One World Championship and CART Indy Car World Series, Mansell became the only racing-driver to concurrently hold the titles of World Drivers' Championship and the American open-wheel National Championship.   

Keke Rosberg is a Finnish retired racing driver best known for winning the Formula One World Championship in 1982. Rosberg was the first Finnish champion in the history of the Formula One World Championship. Keke Rosberg has also achieved popularity as the father of the 2016 F1 World Champion Nico Rosberg.

Emerson Fittipaldi is a Brazilian retired racing driver best known for winning both the Indianapolis 500 and the Formula One World Championship twice each. In 1972, he won the World Drivers' Championship at the age of 25, becoming the youngest F1 world champion. In 2001, Emerson Fittipaldi was made an inductee of the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America.

Graham Hill was a British racing driver remembered for winning the Formula One World Championship title in 1962 and 1968. Counted among the greatest drivers of his era, Hill is the only driver to win the prestigious Triple Crown of Motorsport. Hill is also credited with inspiring his son Damon, who won the Formula One World Championship title in 1996. 

Rubens Barrichello is a Brazilian racing driver best known for competing in Formula One and scoring 11 Grand Prix wins between 1993 and 2011. From 2000 to 2005, he drove for Ferrari as Michael Schumacher's teammate and contributed to five constructors' titles for Ferrari.

British Formula One race-car driver Stirling Moss won several contests such as the British Grand Prix and the New Zealand Grand Prix. He was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame, too. He later had a broadcasting career with Wide World of Sports and narrated Roary the Racing Car.

While he initially excelled in tennis, Nelson Piquet later made a name for himself as one of Brazil’s top racers. A 3-time world champion, the Formula One star later also ventured into business. He owned a GPS-tracking company and also launched the racing team Piquet Sports.

Martin Brundle is a British retired racing driver who competed in Formula One. After his retirement, Brundle started working as a commentator. Over the years, he has worked for television networks like BBC, ITV Sport, and Sky Sports.

Juan Manuel Fangio was an Argentine race car driver who dominated the first 10 years of Formula One racing. He won the World Drivers' Championship on five occasions, a record which was broken by Michael Schumacher after 46 years. Juan Manuel Fangio is also the only Argentine racer to have won the prestigious Argentine Grand Prix.

The only Formula One World Champion from Africa, Jody David Scheckter made his debut at the US Grand Prix in 1972, shortly after moving from South Africa to Britain. Two years later he registered his first win with the Swedish Grand Prix. His last win was at the 1979 Italian Grand Prix. In 1980, he retired from motor racing.

Ronnie Peterson was a Swedish racing driver best remembered for his performance in the F1 World Drivers' Championship, where he was a two-time runner-up. Nicknamed SuperSwede, Peterson is widely regarded as one of the best F1 drivers to have not won a championship. Ronnie Peterson is also regarded as the greatest racing driver from Sweden. 

Giancarlo Fisichella, also known as Giano, has three Formula One World Championship wins in his kitty. The popular racing driver also captains the Nazionale Piloti football team. Throughout his career, he has raced for teams such as Renault, Force India, and Ferrari. He is related to a Sicilian noble family.

An amateur drag racer in his youth, American racing driver Dan Gurney began his professional career in 1959, quickly becoming one of the most popular international racing stars of his era. Also a prominent race car constructor and the founder of All American Racers, he is known as much for his engineering acumen as for his quest for innovative solutions.

Jack Brabham was an Australian professional racing driver best remembered for winning the Formula One World Championship thrice during his illustrious career that lasted 15 years. He is credited with founding the eponymous Formula One racing team and racing car manufacturer. Early in his career, Brabham contributed immensely to the design of racing cars introduced by the Cooper Car Company.

Jacky Ickx is a Belgian retired racing driver best known for winning the 24 Hours of Le Mans on six occasions. He also achieved 25 podium finishes and eight wins in F1. Jacky Ickx is also known for his association with Scuderia Ferrari as he was the leading driver for the team for several seasons in the 1960s and 1970s.

Gerhard Berger is an Austrian retired Formula One racing driver who competed in 14 Formula One seasons, finishing twice as the third overall in the championship. Berger won ten Grands Prix during his illustrious career that spanned more than a decade. With 210 starts under his belt, Gerhard Berger is counted among the most experienced F1 drivers of all time.

Johnny Herbert is a British retired racing driver who competed in Formula One between 1989 and 2000, during which he represented seven different teams. After retiring from competitive racing, Johnny Herbert became a TV personality and is currently working for Sky Sports F1.

Former German racing driver Heinz-Harald Frentzen is best known for ending up as the 1997 Formula One World Drivers' Championship runner-up. He is part of the elite club of 7 German drivers who have ever won the country a Grand Prix. He also had a 3-year racing stint at DTM.

A multitalented racing driver and twice Formula One World Champion, Alberto Ascari began his racing career with motorcycles, eventually shifting to automobiles, making his debut at Mille Miglia. Later, he started participating in other events, winning a total of thirteen races, including 1951 German Grand Prix and 1953 Swiss Grand Prix before passing away at the age of 36 while testing a car.  

Alan Stanley Jones is an Australian retired professional motor racing driver best known for winning the first Formula One World Championship in 1980 and only the second Australian to achieve the feat after three-time world champion Jack Brabham. In 1989, Alan Stanley Jones was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame.

Eddie Irvine is a retired racing driver who participated in F1 races between 1993 and 2002, finishing second in the World Drivers' Championship in 1999. Apart from F1, Eddie Irvine has also competed in Jaguar Racing, Formula 3000 Championships, and Formula Three. Since his retirement, Irvine has established himself as a media personality.

Mike Hawthorn was a British racing driver best remembered as the first Formula One World Champion from the United Kingdom; he achieved the feat when he won the world championship in 1958. Having been affected by the demise of his friend Peter Collins in the 1958 German Grand Prix, Mike Hawthorn announced his retirement after winning the F1 title.  

Giuseppe Farina, or Nino Farina, was not just a Formula One racer but also boasted of a doctorate degree in engineering. He became the first winner of the world driving championship as per the modern point system. He died in a car accident while on his way to watch a race.

Retired Austrian Formula One racer Helmut Marko most notably won the 1971 24 Hours of Le Mans. He lost his left eye during the 1972 French Grand Prix. He now serves as the advisor of the Red Bull GmbH Formula One teams and heads the driver development program of Red Bull.

John Surtees was a British motorcycle road racer and racecar driver. He won the Grand Prix motorcycle World Championship title on seven occasions and the 1964 F1 World Championship title, becoming the first person to win World Championships on both four and two wheels.

Born into an affluent Roman family, Elio de Angelis joined the Formula One scene with the Shadow team. He was also a talented pianist. Unfortunately, he lost his life in a fiery accident at the Paul Ricard Circuit in 1986, sparking debates about race car safety standards.

Iconic Swiss Ferrari F-1 racing driver Clay Regazzoni first gained prominence with his Italian Grand Prix in 1970. In spite of being partially paralyzed after an accident in 1980, he continued to compete in races. In late 2006, his car hit a lorry on an Italian highway, causing his death.