Formula One drivers from Russia

Formula One drivers from Russia
Drivers3
Grands Prix191
Entries191
Starts188
Best season finish7th (2015)
Wins0
Podiums4
Pole positions0
Fastest laps2
Points267
First entry2010 Bahrain Grand Prix
Latest entry2020 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
2024 driversNone
2025 driversNone

There have been three Formula One drivers who raced as Russians,1 two of whom have scored podium positions in Grands Prix.[1][2][3]

Kvyat driving for Red Bull at the 2015 Canadian Grand Prix

Former drivers

Petrov driving for Renault at the 2010 Canadian Grand Prix.

When Vitaly Petrov made his Grand Prix debut for Renault at the 2010 Bahrain Grand Prix he became the first driver from Russia or the former Soviet Union to compete in Formula One.[2] His debut season yielded 13th place in the championship and a best result of 5th in Hungary – however he gained notoriety for blocking Fernando Alonso in Abu Dhabi and costing Alonso a chance at the title win.[4][5][6] His 2011 season with the newly re-branded Lotus-Renault team began strongly with 3rd place at the season-opener in Australia but the car failed to maintain consistent competitiveness and he ended the season 10th in the standings.[4][5] For 2012 he was dropped by Lotus and picked up by Caterham.[4] With an inferior car he failed to score a point all season, but did finish a strong 11th in his final race in Brazil.[5][7] He was not retained for the 2013 season.[8]

Sirotkin testing for Williams at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya

Sergey Sirotkin made his debut for Williams at the 2018 Australian Grand Prix.[9] He would score a solitary point at the 2018 Italian Grand Prix in the uncompetitive Williams FW41.[10][11] He was replaced by Robert Kubica for 2019.[12]

Daniil Kvyat became the second Russian to compete in Formula One when he debuted with Toro Rosso at the 2014 Australian Grand Prix.[2][13] He finished his first race in 9th place – an equal best result for the season matched in Britain and Belgium.[13] He finished 15th in the championship.[14] He was hired by Red Bull Racing for the 2015 season, finishing 7th in the championship with a career-best 2nd in Hungary.[13][14][15][16] Despite finishing 3rd in China the following year, after his home race he was demoted back to Toro Rosso and was subsequently replaced by Max Verstappen.[17] After having scored only 5 points in the 2017 season by the 2017 United States Grand Prix, he was dropped from Toro Rosso and replaced with Pierre Gasly.[18][19] He raced again for Toro Rosso in the 2019 season and scored a podium for Toro Rosso at the 2019 German Grand Prix, held at the Hockenheimring, after a strong strategy in changing conditions and a move on Lance Stroll in the closing stages to secure 3rd place, scoring the third podium of his career. He was retained by Toro Rosso as the team changed its name to AlphaTauri for 2020.[20][21]

Timeline

Drivers Active Years Entries Wins Podiums Career Points Poles Fastest Laps Championships
Vitaly Petrov 2010–2012 58 (57 starts) 0 1 64 0 1 -
Daniil Kvyat 2014–2017, 2019–2020 112 (110 starts) 0 3 202 0 1 -
Sergey Sirotkin 2018 21 0 0 1 0 0 -
Source:[2]
  • ^1 Note: Nikita Mazepin raced representing the Russian Automobile Federation due to sporting regulations in effect through 2021.[22]

References

  1. ^ "Russia – Drivers". StatsF1.com. Retrieved 6 February 2019.
  2. ^ a b c d "Russia – Grands Prix started". StatsF1.com. Retrieved 5 February 2019.
  3. ^ "Russia – Podiums". StatsF1.com. Retrieved 6 February 2019.
  4. ^ a b c "Vitaly Petrov". StatsF1.com. Retrieved 18 February 2019.
  5. ^ a b c "Vitaly Petrov – Grands Prix started". StatsF1.com. Retrieved 18 February 2019.
  6. ^ "Vitaly Petrov feels no guilt over Fernando Alonso's F1 title failure". The Guardian. Press Association. 15 November 2010. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 18 February 2019.
  7. ^ "2012". StatsF1.com. Retrieved 19 February 2019.
  8. ^ "F1 : Russian Formula 1 ace Petrov resigns to sabbatical year with foray into rallying". F1sa.com. 8 March 2013. Archived from the original on 29 October 2013. Retrieved 21 March 2017.
  9. ^ "Sergey Sirotkin – Grands Prix started". StatsF1.com. Retrieved 19 February 2019.
  10. ^ "Sergey Sirotkin – Points". StatsF1.com. Retrieved 19 February 2019.
  11. ^ "Technical analysis: The problems of the FW41 explained". GPToday.net. Retrieved 19 February 2019.
  12. ^ Benson, James (8 February 2019). "F1 news: What Sergey Sirotkin wants to happen to Williams after Robert Kubica replaced him". Express.co.uk. Retrieved 19 February 2019.
  13. ^ a b c "Daniil Kvyat – Grands Prix started". StatsF1.com. Retrieved 6 February 2019.
  14. ^ a b "Daniil Kvyat". StatsF1.com (in French). Retrieved 6 February 2019.
  15. ^ "Daniil Kvyat – Seasons". StatsF1.com. Retrieved 6 February 2019.
  16. ^ Harden, Oliver. "Is Daniil Kvyat Ready to Drive for Red Bull in 2015 Formula 1 Season?". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 6 February 2019.
  17. ^ "Red Bull replace Kvyat with Verstappen". Formula1.com. Retrieved 6 February 2019.
  18. ^ "Hartley stays at Toro Rosso for Mexico, Kvyat dropped". Motorsport.com. Retrieved 23 October 2017.
  19. ^ "2016". StatsF1.com. Retrieved 6 February 2019.
  20. ^ "Daniil Kvyat to return to Toro Rosso for 2019 season". Formula1.com. Retrieved 6 February 2019.
  21. ^ "Driver Market: Toro Rosso to stick with Kvyat and Gasly in 2020 driver line-up". formula1.com. 12 November 2019. Retrieved 10 December 2019.
  22. ^ Wood, Ida (25 March 2021). "Official F1 entry list describes Mazepin's nationality as 'RAF'". Race Fans. Archived from the original on 5 December 2021. Retrieved 12 March 2022.