What Is F1 Driver of the Day?
Team radio is full of engineers telling their driver they're up for it, but the actual Driver of the Day award is decided somewhere else entirely: a global fan vote. Here's exactly how that vote works, who's dominated it since 2016, and every driver who's won it in 2026 so far.
Driver of the Day by the Numbers
- 2016: the season Driver of the Day was introduced, debuting at the Australian GP season opener.
- Romain Grosjean: the first-ever winner, taking the inaugural award for Haas at that 2016 opener.
- 50+: Max Verstappen's all-time Driver of the Day win total — the outright record, and still growing through the 2026 season.
- 23: Sebastian Vettel's career total, the second-most all-time, earned entirely between 2016 and his retirement at the end of 2022.
- ~30 minutes: how long fan voting stays open after the checkered flag before it closes and a winner is announced.
How the Vote Actually Works
Driver of the Day is decided entirely by fans, not by stewards, teams or the FIA. Voting opens through F1's official app and website once the race is underway, and stays open for roughly 30 minutes after the checkered flag falls — giving fans time to watch the closing laps before casting a ballot. Each person gets one vote per race, for a single driver, and the candidate with the largest share of the global vote wins. There's no shortlist or nomination stage narrowing the field first — every driver who started the race is eligible, from the race winner to the driver who limped home last.
That open field is exactly why the award regularly goes to a driver nowhere near the podium. A gritty recovery drive from the back of the grid, a defensive masterclass that keeps a faster car behind for 50 laps, or simply a driver's first standout weekend in a struggling car can all out-poll the driver who actually won. It's a popularity-of-performance measure, closer to a "most entertaining drive" award than a results-based one.
Who Holds the Record
Max Verstappen is the runaway all-time leader, with more than 50 Driver of the Day wins since the award began — a total no other driver is within touching distance of. Sebastian Vettel sits second all-time with 23 wins, every one of them earned between the award's 2016 debut and Vettel's retirement at the end of the 2022 season, meaning his tally is effectively locked in place while Verstappen's keeps climbing. The gap between first and second on the all-time list is now wider than Vettel's entire career total.
Driver of the Day in the 2026 Season So Far
Verstappen picked up right where his record-breaking pace left off. He won the very first Driver of the Day award of 2026 at the season-opening Australian GP, then added it again at the Miami GP with 26.3% of the fan vote despite a race containing several of his own mistakes — proof the award rewards an entertaining drive, not a clean one. He won it a third time at his team's home race, the Austrian GP, with 39.6% of the vote after recovering from a qualifying crash to finish second, his best result of the season at that point, and a fourth time at the Hungarian GP after overcoming an unstable car and a difficult tire strategy to finish behind championship leader Lando Norris.
Verstappen hasn't had it all his own way, though. At the Monaco GP, Mercedes rookie Kimi Antonelli took the honor with 22.4% of the vote, beating out a field that included Charles Leclerc, Lewis Hamilton, Isack Hadjar and Pierre Gasly — a reminder that a strong enough one-off drive from a less prominent name can still out-poll the record-holder on any given Sunday.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is F1 Driver of the Day?
Driver of the Day is an official Formula 1 award, introduced in 2016, given to the driver fans vote as having delivered the most impressive performance in a race. It is decided entirely by a global fan vote, not by stewards, teams or finishing position.
How does F1 Driver of the Day voting work?
Fans vote for one driver via F1's official app or website. Voting opens once the race is underway and closes roughly 30 minutes after the checkered flag, with one vote allowed per person. The driver with the highest share of the global vote wins.
Who has won F1 Driver of the Day the most times?
Max Verstappen holds the all-time record with more than 50 Driver of the Day wins. Sebastian Vettel is second all-time with 23 wins, all earned between the award's 2016 introduction and his retirement at the end of 2022.
Is Driver of the Day based on race finishing position?
No. A driver can win it after finishing well outside the points if fans judge their drive impressive enough, and a race winner does not automatically receive it. It rewards the performance fans found most compelling to watch, not the final classification.
The Bottom Line
Driver of the Day is the one official F1 award decided purely by how a drive felt to watch, which is why the record books are dominated by Verstappen's relentless consistency for it rather than by whoever has the most race wins overall — a distinction similar to how our F1 points system explainer breaks down the difference between the vote fans control and the scoring system that decides the championship. If a Sunday recovery drive like Verstappen's in Austria is the kind of racing that gets you reaching for the wheel yourself, our best direct-drive wheels guide is the place to start.
Curious how the current championship leaders stack up off track too? See what Verstappen's own gear range looks like now that he's racing under a new number, or browse Lando Norris merchandise from the reigning 2025 champion, before heading to the team radio archive to hear how these performances actually sounded live.