The top 10 youngest race winners in F1 history
![Max Verstappen Spain 2016](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.planetsport.com%2Fimage-library%2Fland%2F700%2Fm%2Fmax-verstappen-spain-2016.webp&w=3840&q=75)
For most, the ages of 18 to 22 are spent studying at university or perhaps earning their first wage out in the real world. But for Formula 1 drivers, it is a different story.
With that in mind, Planet Sport takes a look back in time at the top 10 youngest drivers ever to have won a Formula 1 race.
10. Jacky Ickx - France 1968
Age: 23 years, six months and six days
Two years on from his debut season, Belgian Jacky Ickx became the first from his country to win a race.
The scene was a soaking wet Rouen-Les Essarts, the last time the track was used, and he lined up third on the grid behind Jochen Rindt and Jackie Stewart. But, what should have been a day of jubilation for Ickx…became a day of mourning.
Jo Schlesser was killed at the 1968 French GP when his Honda crashed on the second lap. The 41-year-old Frenchman was in his 3rd GP. John Surtees had refused to drive the car as he considered it unsafe. Dickie Atwood and Denny Hulme pass the crashed car pic.twitter.com/8QBbrQuiq4
— Historic Sports Pictures (@HistoricSports2) April 19, 2022
Ickx took the lead early on but behind him, Jo Schlesser saw the rear end of his Honda rip off and send him hurtling into the bank.
The car landed upside down and instantly set ablaze as the fuel tank began to leak onto the exhaust pipes. There was no chance to save the Frenchman and he died inside the cockpit.
The race would resume but a heavy atmosphere hung over the rest of the proceedings.
A sombre Ickx would go on to win but the day would always be remembered for the tragic death of Schlesser. As a mark of respect, Honda withdrew from the sport, and did not return for 38 years until 2006.
9. Robert Kubica - Canada 2008
Age: 23 years, six months and one day
Hamilton got away well and was building a lead until Adrian Sutil parked his car off the track after a gearbox failure. It caught fire and out came the Safety Car leading to a mad dash into the pits.
Hamilton led both Kubica and Kimi Raikkonen going into the pits but came out before the pair of them.
2008 CANADA
— Motorsports in the 2000s (@CrystalRacing) June 8, 2020
Race leader Lewis Hamilton (McLaren) failed to spot the red light at the end of pit lane & took himself & Raikkonen (Ferrari) out. Nico Rosberg would too hit Hamilton, destroying hopes of points
Felipe Massa needed an additional stop thanks to a faulty fuel rig #F1 pic.twitter.com/sA2GewS5Tx
With the pit-lane exit closed, Raikkonen waited alongside Kubica at the red light but Hamilton did not notice this until too late as he skidded into the back of the Ferrari driver.
Hamilton's future team-mate Nico Rosberg then went into the back of the McLaren as both Raikkonen and Hamilton were forced to retire.
8. Kimi Raikkonen - Malaysia 2003
Age: 23 years, five months and six days
7. Lewis Hamilton - Canada 2007
As the teams headed to Canada for the sixth round of the championship, Hamilton trailed Alonso and it was the two who lined up on the front row with the young Brit taking pole.
Having taken P1 in qualifying for the first time in his career, Hamilton held off the attack of Alonso until the Spaniard went wide and onto the grass.
Hamilton led until lap 26 when Kubica hit the back of Jarno Trulli and he drove into the grass and over a bump which launched him into a concrete wall.
Three of the wheels as well as the nose broke loose from the car and Kubica miraculously came away with just a sprained ankle and a concussion.
Canada 2007 🇨🇦
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) June 18, 2022
Lewis Hamilton gets his first win in F1 👏 pic.twitter.com/J0C4Pp5XVw
The next stage of the race was a series of Safety Cars with the first being deployed after Kubica's crash and then another cleared up debris caused by Christijan Albers.
On lap 55, Vitantonio Liuzzi caused the third Safety Car of the race by crashing into the wall of champions.
6. Bruce McLaren - USA 1959
Age: 22 years, three months and 12 days
He may have been forced to retire but his performance was enough to impress and he was selected as the first recipient of the New Zealand International Grand Prix organisation's 'Driver to Europe' scheme.
He raced in F2 until 1959 when he joined the Cooper F1 team and earned his first win at the United States Grand Prix.
Meanwhile, McLaren qualified in 10th but when Moss retired in lap five with a gearbox failure, it left Brabham in the lead.
However, his luck was not any better as just a few hundred metres before the end, his car gave out. All the while, McLaren had been making his way up the grid until he was behind his team-mate when he rolled to a stop.
5. Troy Ruttman - Indianapolis 1952
Age: 22 years, two months and 19 days
So in 1952 when Ruttman won the Indy 500, he became the youngest driver to ever win a World Championship race, a record he held until 2003 when Fernando Alonso beat him.
One record that he does still hold is the youngest winner ever of the Indy 500, beating Joe Dawson's previous 1912 record.
4. Fernando Alonso - Hungary 2003
Age: 22 years, zero months and 26 days
3. Charles Leclerc - Belgium 2019
Age: 21 years, 10 months and 16 days
2. Sebastian Vettel - Italy 2008
Age: 21 years, two months and 11 days
In treacherous conditions, Vettel put the unfancied Toro Rosso, which was using an engine spec from the previous year, on pole before producing an expert performance of control in wet weather.
With cars crashing into each other behind him, Vettel was able to not only keep the car on track but to keep it at the front of the pack.
His victory not only made him the youngest driver to win a race but also gave Toro Rosso their first win in the sport.
Despite the rain, the achievement was celebrated widely by both the team and the fans who were delighted to see an Italian side win their home race.
1. Max Verstappen - Spain 2016
Age: 18 years, seven months and 15 days
Verstappen's ascension into the Red Bull hot seat was one everyone saw coming but perhaps not even he would have predicted to arrive so soon.
He had already secured the accolades of youngest entrant in an F1 race as well as the youngest points scorer (two records he still holds) but his career took another step on its meteoric rise when he was announced as the replacement for Daniil Kvyat at the Spanish Grand Prix.
With the charging Ferrari of Vettel in his rear view mirror, it became a battle of strategy between the two teams.
Ricciardo came in first, making Verstappen the first Dutchman to ever lead a race, before the 18-year-old pitted a lap later. Vettel pitted in lap 16 but came out behind the two Red Bulls.
FLASHBACK: SPAIN 2016
— Formula 1 (@F1) May 12, 2018
Youngest leader of an F1 race ✅
Youngest driver to score a podium finish ✅
Youngest ever race winner ✅
The #SpanishGP will always be special for @Max33Verstappen 🇪🇸 pic.twitter.com/Urt3yWxmDm
Still, the four-time World Champion charged after the scampering Red Bulls and by lap 28, it was time for another round of pit stop chicken.
Ricciardo came in first and Vettel did two laps later but it soon became clear that both Verstappen and Kimi Raikkonen were running different strategies so opted to stay out longer than their team-mates.