🏎️ F1 Worth Per Lap and Point: Driver & Team Analysis

You know how punters get lost in too much data or bet blindly? I break down the stats and trends so you can feel confident you’re betting with more than just gut instinct.

Since the arrival of Drive to Survive, Formula 1 has boomed in popularity, with more and more fans taking an interest in the pinnacle of motorsport. Their hope of attracting more US viewers appears to have worked, with more betting sites offering odds on Grands Prix. In 2025, there will be three US races on the calendar: Austin, Miami, and Las Vegas.

The 20 drivers on the grid work tirelessly week in and week out. However, it’s what happens in the race that counts. We wanted to determine which drivers earned the most per completed lap. We’ve looked at the salaries of drivers and teams and the laps completed to determine how much each driver earned per lap during the 2024 season (including drivers who were installed mid-season)

Max Verstappen earned almost $40,000 per lap raced last season, more than any other driver.

We’ve looked at the salaries of every driver and the laps raced during the 2024 season to find out how much each driver earned per lap.

1. Max Verstappen - $39,597 per lap raced in 2024

Max Verstappen takes top spot, earning just short of $40,000 per lap in 2024- a year where the Dutchman would win his fourth consecutive titles. The Dutchman completed 1,389 laps in 2024 and although this was not the highest figure, it was enough when it came to consistency and it is consistency which leads to being the champion of the world.

2. Lewis Hamilton - $33,432 per lap raced in 2024

Lewis Hamilton was second on the list in his last season with Mercedes, earning an estimated $33,432 per lap in 2022. Hamilton’s 2024 season was another one to forget and with a move to Ferrari now complete, the seven-time World Champion will hope a change of teams will thrust him back to the front of the grid in 2025.

3. Charles Leclerc - $24,062 per lap raced in 2024

Completing our top three is Chales Leclerc, whose estimated earnings per lap are just over $24,000. Leclerc's 2024 season was relatively succesful as the Ferrari driver finished third in the standings and in doing so, was just on the fringes of the title race. However, with Lewis Hamilton moving across to Ferrari as teammate in 2025, it will be interesting to see if Leclerc can replicate his performances of 2024.

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It takes less than 25 laps for Max Verstappen to earn $1 million

It takes less than 34 laps for Lewis Hamilton to earn $1 million

Looking at the driver's salaries, and laps completed, we’ve worked out the number of laps it takes each driver to earn $1 million.

1. Max Verstappen - 25 laps taken to earn $1m

Max Verstappen takes the top spot, taking just 25 laps to earn $1 million. The fewest number of laps of any F1 Grand Prix is the iconic Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium, where the drivers race just 44 laps. This means that at every Belgian Grand Prix, he will earn at least $1 million. While at every other race on the 2024 calendar, that figure would be in at least $2m.

2. Lewis Hamilton - 30 laps taken to earn $1m

Lewis Hamilton narrowly takes second place, racing just five more laps than Verstappen to earn $1 million. With the Belgian Grand Prix being worth $1.467m for a completed race and top step on the podium in 2024, the Monaco Grand Prix would be worth $2.6m by comparison and with a move to Ferrari now made, those values may only further increase in 2025.

3. Charles Leclerc - 42 laps taken to earn $1m

Charles Leclerc completes our top three, racing just 42 laps before earning $1 million. Leclerc failed to finish in just one race in 2024, that being the Canadian Grand Prix but in every other race of last season, the Monegasgue would have been able to pocket at least $1m per completed race.

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Daniel Ricciardo earned $583k per point last season, more than any other driver

Lance Stroll earned $500k per point last season

We’ve looked at the final 2022 driver standings, as well as each driver’s estimated salary to work out how much each driver earned per point.

1. Daniel Ricciardo - $583,333 earned per point

Daniel Ricciardo takes top spot, earning an estimated $583,333 per point earned during the 2024 season. Ricciardo achieved just 12 points across the season and such were his string of disappointing performances that the Australian would not see out 2024 at the RB team. Instead his seat would be taken by Liam Lawson by the end of the season and the New Zealander must have impressed his bosses, as he will be partnering Max Verstappen at Red Bull in 2025.

2. Zhou Guanyu - $500,000 earned per point

Second on the list in Sauber driver Zhou Guanyu, earning exactly $500,000 per point. Whereas Ricciardo was not given the opportunity to finish the season, Guanyu was and although he commanded a $2m salary in 2024, his performance in one of the slowest cars on the grid was only good for four points across the whole of the season. Performance that is not good enough to see him kept on by Sauber in 2025.

3. Kevin Magnussen - $312,500 earned per point

Completing our top three is Kevin Magnussen, who earned an estimated $312,500 per point. The Dane achieved just 16 points across the calendar with a seventh place finish at the Mexican Grand Prix serving as the high point of the campaign. However, that campaign would have cost Haas a total of $5m in 2024 and with not much in the way of value for money, Magnussen is another man who says goodbye to the grid in 2025.

It cost Red Bull $26,000 per lap, more than any other team on the grid

It cost Red Bull $18,000 per lap

We’ve looked at the combined salaries of each F1 team, and the number of laps their drivers completed, to find out how much teams were paying per Lap.

1. Red Bull - $26,008 cost per lap

They may have been pipped to the Constructor's Championship by McLaren but Red Bull top this chart having spent just over $26,000 per completed lap in 2024. Once again, there was no doubting the standard set by Max Verstappen but it was not a standard met by now former teammate Sergio Perez. With the Mexican registering plenty of DNF's, team boss Christian Horner's patience has finally worn thin with Perez exiting the Red Bull camp at the end of 2024.

2. Mercedes - $22,752 cost per lap

Mercedes takes second place, costing an estimated $22,752 per completed lap by drivers Lewis Hamilton and George Russell. Despite persistent issues surrounding genuine race pace, the Silver Arrow was at least consistent. Compared to Red Bull, Mercedes completed 116 more laps than their energy drink-backed counterparts and with Kimi Antonelli arriving in 2025, it will be interesting to see what he and Russeill can do in terms of being title challengers.

3. Ferrari - $16,063 cost per lap

Ferrari complete our top three, costing an estimated $16,063 per completed lap. Another team that will be undergoing fundamental change in 2025 as Carlos Sainz moves down the grid to Williams and he does so because of the much anticipated arrival of Lewis Hamilton. The Italian outfit completed the most total laps in 2024 with 2926 but now it needs to turn reliability into race winning performance on a more regular basis.

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Sauber’s cost per point of $3m was more than any other F1 team

Sauber - $3,000,000 cost per point Sauber during Formula One Singapore Grand Prix // Jay Hirano/shutterstock

1. Sauber - $3,000,000 cost per point

Sauber takes the top spot with a cost per point of $3m. The team that will transfer over to Audi in 2026 earned just earned 4 points in 2024 which was more than four times lower than ninth-placed Williams, and with $12m spent on driving salary, there was very little when it comes to return on investment - something that automotive giants Audi will soon look to change

2. Williams - $294,118 cost per point

Williams takes second place, costing almost $295k per point in 2024. They may be looking forward to the arrival of Carlos Sainz in 2025 but once again 2024 was a year to forget - especially for Logan Sargeant who was sacked before the end of the year and although the team picked up 17 total points, they are still an outfit that is considered a backmarker.

3. Aston Martin - $223,404 cost per point

Completing our top three is Aston Martin, who paid an estimated $223k per point achieved in 2024. Aston Martin's total of 94 points was only enough to finish in 5th place in the Constructors’ standings and with Lance Stroll having a lifetime rolling contract with the team (thanks to his father's ownership of the team), this may be the one aspect that is truly holding them back from any real success.

Methodology and Contributor Information

Andy Powell manages all of our Motor Racing content as a huge F1 and Speedway fan, giving up much of his weekend to watching the action unfold in qualifying and betting on the various potential outcomes as well as managing the Motor Racing Tips and Tipsters in the competition.

Andy Powell

Expert Guide

🏎️🏁 Outside of horse racing and football, Andy also enjoys spending his weekends following Formula 1. His dedication is such that he doesn't mind setting alarms for odd hours to catch both qualifying sessions and the races.

We used Mostly F1 to find out the number of laps completed by each driver in 2024.

We then used Total Motorsport for the salaries of each driver. Figures were converted from Euros (€) to USD ($) and GBP (£) on the 23rd of February 2023.

Drivers not on Total Motorsport would have been installed during the season due to driver changes - an assumption of annual salary of $1m has been made for these

Reserve Drivers were not included in the data.

What is F1 Worth Per Lap and Point for Drivers and Teams?