The 2024 F1 season was the very first in the history of the sport when no rookie driver was signed at the start of the campaign. However, in stark contrast to last season, in 2025, the sport is witnessing a surge of young blood with as many as six drivers set to compete in their first full-time F1 season.
Naturally, with such an influx of young drivers on the grid, one would not be blamed for assuming that next season’s line-up would have the youngest average age. But in fact, that isn’t the case as F1 has seen younger grids in the past despite this record-breaking number of rookie drivers for next year.
If the ages of all 20 drivers that are expected to line up in Australia are accounted for, the average age of the 2025 grid comes up to 27 years and two months. In the past, though, the sport has seen a lineup of as young as 27 years (in 2015 and 2017).
’98: 28y, 0m
’99: 29y, 0m
’00: 28y, 6m
’01: 27y, 10m
’02: 28y, 7m
’03: 28y, 6m
’04: 27y, 7m
’05: 28y, 6m
’06: 28y, 10m
’07: 28y, 2m
’08: 27y, 11m
’09: 27y, 10m
’10: 28y, 2m
’11: 28y, 11m
’12: 28y, 10m
’13: 27y, 1m
’14: 26y, 11m
’15: 27y, 0m
’16: 27y, 2m
’17: 27y, 0m— Alex (@AS19_YT) December 29, 2024
But with the oldest rookie at 22 (Liam Lawson) and the youngest at 18 (Kimi Antonelli), what has been pushing up the average age of the 2025 grid? Well, it’s the stalwarts of the sport such as Lewis Hamilton (39) and Fernando Alonso (43).
Is F1 really moving towards a youth revolution?
This statistic really puts things into perspective, given the longevity of the careers of some drivers. That said, it cannot be ignored that drivers like Hamilton and Alonso are now in the twilight phase of their careers.
Alonso has himself admitted that 2026 will probably be his last year in the sport. Moreover, Hamilton might not be motivated enough to continue in the sport if his highly anticipated Ferrari move does not pan out to his liking.
Four-time world champion Max Verstappen, who is only 27 years old, is unsure if he will continue racing in the sport beyond his current Red Bull contract. Hence, it can safely be said that the sport is indeed gradually moving towards a completely different generation of drivers taking over.
