F1 Facts - full scale and RC - Aus/NZ

RC at a high level

Lewis Hamilton

Hamilton’s first contact with a form of motor sport came through driving RC cars. His father Anthony bought him one in 1991 and aged six Hamilton was runner-up in a national RC racing championship. “I was racing these remote-controlled cars and winning club championships against adults,” remembered Hamilton. After that Anthony wondered if Lewis’s skills might transfer to full-size motorsport. Lewis's brother Nic runs nitro off road competitively and is sponsored by LRP. You can also see Lewis using a smartphone app to control his full size F1 car here (Video #1).

Pedro de la Rosa

Pedro no longer races RC cars but in 1986 he finished second in a world championship, according to F1 Racing magazine (Feb 2013). Pedro's last year in F1 was racing for HRT in 2013 before the team folded at the end of the 2013 season. Pedro was the second oldest F1 driver on the grid at 41. Since his F1 debut in 1999 he has raced, or been a test driver, for Jordan, Arrows, Prost, Jaguar, McLaren and Sauber. The man gets around!

Australasian World F1 Champions

Australia

Jack Brabham (F1 world champion 1959, 1960, 1966)

Three times world champion. One of the few with that claim to fame which puts him in the esteemed company of Vettel, Senna, Lauda, Piquet and Stewart. The only drivers to win more than three times were Prost (4x), Fangio (5x) and Schumacher (7x). He is the only man to have won the world championship in a car that bears his name (1966). He sold the Brabham team to Bernie Ecclestone in 1971. 126 Grand Prix starts, 14 victories. Sir Jack passed away in 2014.

Alan Jones (F1 world champion 1980)

His first F1 race was in 1975. He started 116 Grand Prix and won 12 times.

New Zealand

Denny Hulme (F1 world champion 1967)

Hulme started in F1 in 1965 with a 9 year career. He died of a heart attack at Bathurst in 1992. Hulme made 112 Grand Prix starts and won 8 times.

Other Drivers of Note

Daniel Ricciardo (Aus)

Daniel's first year at Red Bull in 2014 is an outstanding demonstration of driving and we've been shouting ourselves hoarse. We look forward to yelling Daniel's name at the TV and from the grandstand for many years to come! Daniel is the 14th Australian to race in F1 according to FoxSports which has further interesting info on the subject. Daniel's home page.

Mark Webber (Aus)

Mark is Australia's third most successful F1 driver ever based on his number of podiums. Go webbo!!! Mark's home page. Mark retired from F1 at the end of 2013. Daniel Riccardo replaced him at Red Bull.

Bruce McLaren (NZ)

The man who gave his name to the current McLaren team started 101 Grand Prix and won 4 times. His F1 debut was in 1958 and he held the title of youngest winner for many years. Jack Brabham mentored Bruce. After Bruce McLaren's death testing one of his CanAm cars in 1970, Bruce's business partner Teddy Mayer continued to run Bruce McLaren Motor Racing Ltd laying the groundwork for the team we see on the track today.

Chris Amon (NZ)

Competed at the top level for 14 years from 1963. He started in 96 Grand Prix but some believe he was unlucky never to win one. He was on the podium 11 times and won 2 non-championship F1 races.

Will Power (Aus)

Will is not an F1 driver but is the 2014 IndyCar Series Champion. Read our article Aussie Wins IndyCar Title