Who are the oldest and youngest drivers on the F1 grid?

With the F1 2026 grid confirmed, here are all the drivers listed in order from eldest to youngest. Who are the oldest and youngest drivers in 2026?

There is only one new arrival on the grid in the 2026 season, who will become the youngest driver on the grid, while the two drivers to return will be among the eldest in Formula 1.

F1 drivers by age: From the oldest to the youngest
Who are the youngest drivers on the grid for F1 2026?

Arvid Lindblad joins the grid as one of the youngest ever Formula 1 drivers in 2026, stepping up to the grid with Racing Bulls having been born on 8th August 2007.

The next youngest driver is Mercedes’ Andrea Kimi Antonelli, who was born on 25th August 2006 – which made him just 18 years old for a good portion of his first season on the grid in 2025, and one of the youngest ever Formula 1 drivers.

Next youngest will be Oliver Bearman, born on 8th May 2005, before two 2004-born drivers in Isack Hadjar and Gabriel Bortoleto, and Franco Colapinto on 27th May 2003.

Who are the oldest drivers on the grid for F1 2026?

Fernando Alonso is the eldest driver on the grid in 2026, born on July 29th 1981 – though he shows no signs of slowing down just yet.

With Kimi Raikkonen having retired at the conclusion of 2021, Alonso becomes the only driver left to have driven in the old V10 era that ended at the conclusion of 2005.

While Alonso made his debut with Minardi in 2001, Lewis Hamilton entered the sport in 2007 as a fresh-faced upstart alongside Alonso at McLaren. Hamilton was born on January 7th 1985 and joins Alonso as the two storied World Champions in their 40s in Formula 1.

For the next earliest debutant, Nico Hulkenberg joined the sport with Williams in 2010. The Sauber driver was born on the August 19th 1987, and only he, Hamilton, Alonso and Formula 1’s two returning drivers in Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas, will have driven in Formula 1 prior to the turbo hybrid era introduced in 2014.

Bottas and Perez join Cadillac and will be the fourth and fifth eldest drivers on the grid respectively, pushing Carlos Sainz down to sixth in this particular ranking.

What is the gap between the oldest and the youngest F1 driver in 2026?

The gulf between the oldest and youngest driver’s ages in 2026 is particularly eye-opening, at 26 years and 10 days between Fernando Alonso and Arvid Lindblad.

Lindblad is the first driver to join the grid having been born after Alonso’s second title victory at Renault, and midway through Lewis Hamilton’s debut season in Formula 1.

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What age is the reigning F1 World Champion?

Lando Norris enters 2026 as the reigning F1 World Champion. The McLaren driver is 26 years old, and will turn 27 on November 13th, most of the way through the 2026 campaign.

Norris is the only driver on the F1 2026 grid to have been born in 1999, with his McLaren teammate, Oscar Piastri, the next-youngest on the grid.

F1 2026 drivers: From eldest to youngest

Fernando Alonso – 29/07/1981
Lewis Hamilton – 07/01/1985
Nico Hulkenberg – 19/08/1987
Valtteri Bottas – 28/08/1989
Sergio Perez – 26/01/1990
Carlos Sainz – 01/09/1994
Pierre Gasly – 07/02/1996
Alex Albon – 23/03/1996
Esteban Ocon – 17/09/1996
Max Verstappen – 30/09/1997
Charles Leclerc – 16/10/1997
George Russell – 15/02/1998
Lance Stroll – 29/10/1998
Lando Norris – 13/11/1999
Oscar Piastri – 06/04/2001
Liam Lawson – 11/02/2002
Franco Colapinto – 27/05/2003
Isack Hadjar – 28/09/2004
Gabriel Bortoleto – 14/10/2004
Oliver Bearman – 08/05/2005
Kimi Antonelli – 25/08/2006
Arvid Lindblad – 08/08/2007

Who are the oldest and youngest drivers on the F1 grid?

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