Is Formula 1 really the Billionaire Boys Club? Today we’re taking a look at how rich every driver’s family was before they got to F1, and sticking them all onto a tier list.

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50 Comments

  1. Let's make one thing clear: in junior formulas, EVERYBODY is a paying driver. You need to pay a lot of money to drive for PREMA or Hightech, or Carlin/Rodin…

  2. Didn’t Lando’s dad pay around $40mil over a few years for Lando to be the sim driver and then reserve driver for McLaren? How is that not a pay driver?

  3. about Franco – his family is definitely well off-ish in argentina, but obviously that's no the same as being well off in europe, you know what i mean? his father used to race too, tho i'm not sure exactly in what series and i think he had an important role in a local stock car team. Most likely they own some land and have some form of agricultural bussiness, comfortably middle class (and a bit above, in the context of argentinian economy) is where i would put him for sure, rich enough to fund his karting career locally but not enough to actually be able to pay for it outside of the country without it making a huge dent in the family's networth.

  4. Word on the local karting scene is, Mick Doohan was spending approximately 200kAUD a year in the domestic junior go karting in the day. He would fly in a week early for each round and privately rent out the track for the whole week before each race.

  5. Checo’s story really is the one of fight and struggle to achieve a dream. His family was low class, Alonso has said that for him and Checo nobody has gave them away anything. Checo’s dad always tells the story that he never had brand new tires like the other kids, always used ones and had to use them until the tires were garbage, that’s the reason he’s a tires whisperer, he knows how to make them last. LATER and for his very well earned talent was funded by Telmex Team a program that helps kids in the Motorsport. His family didn’t even had money to send him to Europe for for the first time for the F4, there was only enough money for one way ticket, so he traveled alone.

  6. Leclerc is waaaaaay higher … his father wasn't the richest, but his grandfather, Charles Manni, had the same caliber as Norris' father.
    He found Mecaplast, which became Novares Group, 600 millions $ in revenue before his death.

    And for Gasly, his father owns 4 car garages around the city of Rouen, and he owns dozens of real estate all around the city.

  7. one of liam lawson backers

    David Dicker Rodin

    Founder David Dicker is a Sydney-born tech entrepreneur who has been valued at $1 billion thanks to his successful business, Dicker Data.

  8. looks like Mick Doohan Net Worth from motogp

    He has an estimated net worth of $5 million that he gained after winning five consecutive 500 cc World Championships.

    Doohan is now the go-to man if you want to buy a corporate jet in Australia, New Zealand, the Pacific and, perhaps soon, China. He also runs successful businesses providing aviation services, and has broad property and business investments. Yet if you'd seen him on a race weekend, way back when, you might not have chosen him as an ideal luncheon companion, let alone believed he could charm you into a $60 million Gulfstream G650. He would have said almost nothing, and given you a cold stare if you were an opponent or, perhaps worse, a journalist.

  9. Great video! I would be interested in such a list from a historical perspective….like maybe the champions of the past 30 or so years.

  10. I think you're bang on with most of these. Sainz Sr could definitely afford the best British GP tickets (im guessing 20-50m net worth with career earnings, investments, and whatnot). Riccardo's family is definitely in the very comfortable tier, and I guess despite Albon's mom's financial crimes was still comfortably middle-class. And if Sargeant was still in F1, he'd also be Stroll tier

  11. Adam Norris' early retirement and the ways he made his money are incredibly sus to me. I simply can't fathom how you could make hundreds of millions of personal wealth in such a ludicrously short amount of time from fucking PENSIONS and be operating in good faith, not that pension funds cant make tonnes of money, just the optics of this guy becoming stinking rich when clearly people using their pensions weren't getting similarly endowed, just smells wrong.

  12. Watching these kinds of videos makes you think about how different lifestyles are around the world. For example, a young driver from the middle class in Argentina can easily have to sacrifice a kart race because the refrigerator at home broke and his father needs to buy a new one. I can assure you that Colapinto would hardly be on the list next to Fernando.

  13. I know the Leclerc family didn't have a sold the house story but his career cost his older brother's karting career and halted his younger brother's karting career.

  14. Didn't K-Mag have to quit racing and work in a factory for a while because he lacked funding? And Checo's father became a politician only after Checo became a successful F1 driver. And I agree with you about when F1 drivers say 'We had to sell our home.', 'We went through many struggles.' etc. while really just exaggerating, but yeah, they did struggle a lot to get where they are, even Lance and you cannot convince me otherwise. I enjoy this type of chill, kind of long content.

  15. If your parent is rich enough to get their assets frozen you deserve to be in very comfortable. You're completely overlooking the level of connections you'll make growing up like that

  16. Saying Lando isn't a pay driver when its common knowledge that Daddy Norris paid 40+million for that McLaren seat is wild. He's talented, he deserves to be there but he definitely bought his seat.

  17. A quick look at Jan’s wiki show and a peak at my Corvette Racing history book. He seems to have spent the majority of his time in IMSA with GM products. With a few excursions to Europe for a handful of WEC appearances.

  18. BTW, saying that Alonso had backing and Lewis comes from middle class.. Lewis was backed since he was 13 by McLaren, his dad did not have to pay a penny after that… So, Lewis had a TON of backing, if we want to go down that route…

    I don't think that is relevant, even the poorest in the last two decades, Räikkönen had backing. He also had to live in a camper van while his parents were building a home, but also had to use outdoor toilet when he was a kid. They lived in the country side and it wasn't that uncommon back then. But he also had backing from very early on, and so did all of them… That is the one thing that is mandatory, you need sponsors from your first seasons onwards, someone to back you. You need to shine on your second season to get a career in F1, you need to attract a local backer who sees the potential.

    Lots of those local companies never see return from their investment.. but companies are willing to sponsor a lot of things, i work in event organizing and getting sponsors is routine. They want to be seen in another context so while it rarely is worth it monetarily in the short run, they are not going to get a huge boost in sales but it can build enough reputation for being there for the community. And that can help in other things… like, people not raisin complaints when they want to build a new shop/factory etc.

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