A race win is something all Formula 1 drivers dream of achieving throughout their career, although for many it is not something they are able to claim.
With a record-breaking 24-race season, there are more opportunities than ever for drivers to claim their first victory. On the flip side, there’s plenty of chance to continue to rack up career points, without taking the top prize.
1. Lando Norris – 660 Career points
- Podium finishes: 14
- Race starts: 107
Lando Norris has come incredibly close to a race win on several occasions but is yet to stand at the top of the podium. The Brit took the record for most career points without a race win after the 2023 Japanese Grand Prix, having taken two second-place finishes in a row.
Since making his debut in 2019 he has secured two unwanted records - most career points and most podiums without a victory.
McLaren’s last race win came at the 2021 Italian Grand Prix when Daniel Ricciardo secured his final victory and the team’s first since the 2012 Brazilian Grand Prix.
He came close to taking his first victory at the 2021 Russian Grand Prix, but with just a handful of laps to go and poor weather conditions, a decision to remain on slicks saw him tumble down the order to seventh place. In 2023 Norris was able to take seven podium finishes - the most in one season for the Brit – which included six runner-up finishes.
He has also already claimed one third place podium for 2024 at the Australian Grand Prix, alongside a Ferrari 1-2.
2. Nico Hulkenberg – 533 Career points
- Podium finishes: 0
- Race starts: 206
Alongside being second on the top 10 list of most career points without a win, Nico Hulkenberg also holds the record for most career starts without a podium finish of any kind. The German took the record on his 129th race - the 2017 Singapore Grand Prix - from Adrian Sutil, who had previously held the record with 128 race starts.
In 2023, Hulkenberg said he was not “bitter or frustrated” by his lack of silverware but added: “Obviously when you start thinking about it that's a little bit frustrating. Because every racing driver back then and even now wants to win, ideally. But at the same time, I've never had the car.”
At the 2024 Chinese Grand Prix – assuming he has no issues - Hulkenberg will match the record for most race starts without a win, which is held by Andrea de Cesaris with 208 starts. This means that by the Miami Grand Prix, the Haas driver could break the record.
Hulkenberg has only secured one career pole position, in 2010 when he raced for Williams. During a rain-affected qualifying session for the Brazilian Grand Prix, he beat Sebastian Vettel in second place by 1.049 seconds and took the team’s first pole position since 2005. However, Hulkenberg was unable to convert the pole position into a win as he got wheelspin at the start, immediately seeing Vettel pass him. He went on to finish the race in eighth.
In 2023 he took second place in qualifying at the Canadian Grand Prix - his highest since the 2020 British Grand Prix - however he was demoted to fifth place after receiving a three-place grid penalty for a red flag infringement.
3. Romain Grosjean – 391 Career points
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Podium finishes: 10
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Race starts: 179
The Frenchman took ten podium finishes in 2012 and 2015 when he drove for the Lotus F1 team, with his highest results being a second-place podium at the 2012 Canadian Grand Prix and 2013 United States Grand Prix.
Romain Grosjean’s Formula 1 career ended at the 2020 Bahrain Grand Prix when the Haas driver suffered a serious crash into the barrier, which resulted in the car splitting in half and bursting into flames. The French driver was able to climb from the car and suffered burns to his hands and ankles which required surgery.
After 10 seasons in F1, Haas decided not to renew his contract at the end of 2020 and the following year, Grosjean moved into IndyCar, but he has also not claimed a win in the last four seasons.
4. Lance Stroll– 277 Career points
- Podium finishes: 3
- Race starts: 146
Lance Stroll began his career in 2017 for Williams and despite taking a podium in his rookie season, the Canadian driver is yet to take a race win. Stroll has been a controversial driver in the F1 paddock, with accusations of being a pay driver which weren’t helped by his father, Lawrence Stroll, purchasing the Force India F1 Team in 2018, renaming it to Racing Point before rebranding again to the Aston Martin F1 Team, essentially giving the driver a secure seat for the foreseeable future.
The Canadian had a difficult season in 2023 after struggling to match the performance of his two-time world champion team-mate Fernando Alonso, although team principal Mike Krack revealed that there were “no doubts” about Stroll’s future with the team.
Stroll came closest to a race win after qualifying pole for the 2020 Turkish Grand Prix after leading 32 out of 58 laps of the race, but fell to ninth due to damage to his front wing. He was the first Canadian to take pole position since Jacques Villeneuve at the 1997 European Grand Prix.
5. Nick Heidfeld - 259 Career points
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Podium finishes: 13
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Race starts: 183
Nick Heidfeld had previously held the most podium finishes without a race win with 13, until this record was beaten by Lando Norris at the 2024 Australian Grand Prix. The German driver has not competed in F1 since 2011, when Lotus Renault brought him in to replace Robert Kubica who had suffered long-term injuries to his arm and hand in a rally crash.
Heidfeld was dropped by the team ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix at the end of August and was replaced by Bruno Senna - the nephew of the three-time world champion Ayrton Senna - due to poor performance. Heidfeld said: "Obviously I'm disappointed to be leaving in the middle of the season. I thought I could still make a big contribution to the team, but I have to see things as they are and I want to turn my attention to the future."
Heidfeld came closest to a race win at the 2008 Canadian Grand Prix when he was one of seven different race leaders during an intense section of the race where most of the drivers came in for a pitstop. He then lost the lead to his BMW Sauber team-mate Kubica, taking the team’s first 1-2.
The German took eight runner-up podiums during his 12-year career and five third place finishes. In 2016, an academic research paper from the Sheffield Methods Institute at the University of Sheffield used mathematical modelling to produce the top 50 F1 drivers of all time, in which Heidfeld placed 23rd.
6. Alex Albon - 228 Career points
- Podium finishes: 2
- Race starts: 84
Alex Albon started his career at Toro Rosso in 2019, before being promoted to the Red Bull team 13 races into the season to replace the demoted Pierre Gasly.
Albon took two third place podiums in 2020 at the Tuscan and Bahrain grands prix but was unable to impress the team. He was dropped down to test driver for the Red Bull team in 2021 but, after a year out, he was signed to Williams for the 2022 season and has impressed many with his driving since.
Albon’s contract expires at the end of 2024, with the Thai-British driver set to be one of the most sought-after drivers at the end of the year.
7. Daniil Kvyat - 202 Career points
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Podium finishes: 3
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Race starts: 110
Daniil Kvyat made his career debut at Toro Rosso in 2013 and spent six seasons with the two Red Bull teams, including moving up to Red Bull in 2015 and beating team-mate Daniel Ricciardo in the drivers’ championship that year. Kvyat took one second place podium at the 2015 Hungarian Grand Prix and one third place at the 2016 Chinese Grand Prix.
However, just eight races into 2016, the Russian was demoted back to the sister team in favour of Max Verstappen. During the driver change an announcement from Chrisitan Horner said: "Dany will be able to continue his development at Toro Rosso, in a team that he is familiar with, giving him the chance to regain his form and show his potential."
Kvyat took one final third place podium at the 2019 German Grand Prix before losing his seat at AlphaTauri when the team chose rookie Yuki Tsunoda to drive the car. In 2021, the Russian driver became the reserve driver for Alpine alongside Zhou Guanyu but was unable to make it back into F1 full-time.
8. Kevin Magnussen – 187 Career points
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Podium finishes: 1
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Race starts: 166
Both 2024 Haas drivers have scored a high number of career points without taking a win. Kevin Magnussen made his return to F1 when he joined Renault in 2016 after being demoted from McLaren’s driver line-up to their reserve driver following the 2014 season. The Dane was put on the sidelines when the team decided to bring back Fernando Alonso.
Magnussen has taken just one second place finish, which came during his debut F1 race for McLaren in 2014. He has not managed to take a second podium during his 10-year career which he has described as “frustrating”, adding: “A lot has happened since. It's a nice thing, I'm proud of having gotten on the podium in my first race, but at the same time, very frustrating to have done 10 years and not got back on the podium.”
Magnussen also holds the record for most race starts without leading a lap.
9. Kamui Kobayashi – 125 Career points
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Podium finishes: 1
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Race starts: 75
Kamui Kobayashi spent four full seasons in Formula 1 and impressed many at his debut race - the 2009 Brazilian Grand Prix - when Toyota brought in the Japanese driver to replace Timo Glock who was injured at the Japanese Grand Prix. During his debut, Kobayashi was able to hold off Jenson Button in the Brawn GP car for several laps, during the Brit’s race for the championship.
The Japanese driver quickly developed a reputation for being highly skilled at overtaking and his ability for late-braking. He was described by the late TV commentator Murray Walker as: "without a doubt Japan's best [F1 driver] yet", with Martin Brundle adding: "He gets to the normal braking point and then goes, 'Now, which one is the brake again? That's right, it's on the left,' and he just sails past people!"
Kobayashi spent three seasons with Sauber, where he finished 12th in the drivers’ championship in each season. He took his sole podium at his home grand prix in 2012, after successfully fighting off Button to take third place. Kobayashi became the third Japanese driver to take an F1 podium - after Aguri Suzuki at the 1990 Japanese Grand Prix and Takuma Sato at the 2004 United States Grand Prix - and was the first Japanese driver to finish on his home podium in 22 years, after Suzuki’s 1990 podium.
He has since gone on to be a successful endurance racer, taking two victories at the 24 Hours of Daytona in 2019 and 2020 and the 2021 24 Hours of Le Mans.
10. Adrian Sutil – 124 Career points
- Podium finishes: 0
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Race starts: 128
Adrian Sutil’s career began in 2007, when he joined Spyker and remained with the team through its rebrand to Force India in 2008. The German driver’s highest result was fourth at the 2009 Italian Grand Prix before being released by the team in 2011 due to assault convictions.
Sutil was charged with attacking Lotus owner Eric Lux with a champagne glass in a Shanghai nightclub following the 2011 Chinese Grand Prix. He was handed a suspended prison sentence in 2012, as well as being fined €200,000.
The German returned to Force India in 2013 following his sentence, before moving to Sauber in 2014. Due to poor performance, he was then dropped by the team the following year. He subsequently joined Williams in 2015 as a reserve driver.
Drivers with the most race starts without a win
Although career points are a key part of defining the success of an F1 driver, the number of race starts can be an indicator of a driver’s time and experience in the series. Here are the drivers with the most race starts without a win:
| Driver | Race Starts | Years Active | Teams |
| Andrea de Cesaris |
208 |
14 (1980 - 1994) |
Alfa Romeo, McLaren, Ligier, Minardi, Brabham, Rial, Dallara, Jordan, Tyrrell & Sauber |
| Nico Hulkenberg | 206 | 13 (2010, 2012-2020 & 2022-2024) | Williams, Force India, Sauber, Renault, Racing Point, Aston Martin & Haas) |
| Nick Heidfeld | 183 | 12 (2000-2011) | Prost, Sauber, Jordan, Williams, Sauber & Renault |
| Romain Grosjean | 179 |
10 (2009, 2012-2020) |
Renault, Lotus & Haas |
|
Kevin Magnussen |
166 |
10 (2014-2020, 2022-2024) | McLaren, Renault & Haas |
| Martin Brundle |
158 |
12 (1984-1989 & 1991-1996) | Tyrrell, Zakspeed, Williams, Brabham, Benetton, Ligier, McLaren & Jordan |
| Derek Warwick |
147 |
11 (1981-1990 & 1993) | Toleman, Renault, Brabham, Arrows, Lotus & Footwork |
| Lance Stroll | 146 | 8 (2017-2024) |
Williams, Racing Point & Aston Martin |
| Jean-Pierre Jarier | 135 | 12 (1971 & 1973-1983) | March, Shadow, Ligier, ATS, Lotus, Tyrrell & Osella |
| Eddie Cheever | 132 | 11 (1978 & 1980-1989) | Theodore, Hesketh, Osella, Tyrrell, Ligier, Alfa Romeo, Haas & Arrows |
