List of Formula One World Drivers' Champions
Driver Titles Season ( s )
Michael Schumacher 7 1994 , 1995 , 2000 , 2001 , 2002 , 2003 , 2004
Lewis Hamilton 6 2008 , 2014 , 2015 , 2017 , 2018 , 2019
Juan Manuel Fangio 5 1951 , 1954 , 1955 , 1956 , 1957
Alain Prost 4 1985 , 1986 , 1989 , 1993
Sebastian Vettel 4 2010 , 2011 , 2012 , 2013
Jack Brabham 3 1959 , 1960 , 1966
Jackie Stewart 3 1969 , 1971 , 1973
Niki Lauda 3 1975 , 1977 , 1984
Nelson Piquet 3 1981 , 1983 , 1987
Ayrton Senna 3 1988 , 1990 , 1991
Alberto Ascari 2 1952 , 1953
Graham Hill 2 1962 , 1968
Jim Clark 2 1963 , 1965
Emerson Fittipaldi 2 1972 , 1974
Mika Häkkinen 2 1998 , 1999
Fernando Alonso 2 2005 , 2006
Giuseppe Farina 1 1950
Mike Hawthorn 1 1958
Phil Hill 1 1961
John Surtees 1 1964
By driver
Michael Schumacher has won the World Drivers ' Championship a record seven times – twice with Benetton and five times with Ferrari . Five titles with a single team is also a record , which is shared with Lewis Hamilton . Lewis Hamilton currently has six titles to his name , winning one with McLaren and five with Mercedes . Juan Manuel Fangio won the World Drivers ' Championship five times with Alfa Romeo , Maserati , Mercedes and Ferrari . He held the record from 1955 until 2003 . Alain Prost has four titles , three for McLaren and one for Williams . He also came close to winning the title for Renault and for Ferrari . Sebastian Vettel currently has four titles to his name , all of which he won consecutively with Red Bull Racing .
The Formula One World Drivers' Championship (WDC) is awarded by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) to the most successful Formula One racing car driver over a season, as determined by a points system based on individual Grand Prix results. The Drivers' Championship was first awarded in 1950, to Giuseppe Farina. The first driver to win multiple Championships was Alberto Ascari, in 1952 and 1953. The current Drivers' Champion is Lewis Hamilton who won his sixth title in 2019. A driver secures the World Championship each season when it is no longer mathematically possible for another driver to beat them no matter the outcome of the remaining races, although it is not officially awarded until the end of the season. The Drivers' Championship has been won in the final race of the season 29 times in the 69 seasons it has been awarded. The earliest in a season that the Drivers' Championship has been clinched was in 2002, when Michael Schumacher secured the title with six races remaining. Overall, thirty-three different drivers have won the Championship, with German Michael Schumacher holding the record for most titles, at seven. He also holds the record for most consecutive Drivers' Championships, winning five from 2000 to 2004. The United Kingdom has produced the most Champions with ten; Brazil, Germany and Finland are next with three each. Of the 33 drivers to win the World Championship, nineteen are still alive. The most recently deceased is Niki Lauda (1949-2019).