The 38 drivers with enough superlicence points to enter F1 in 2017

2017 F1 season

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Which drivers have scored enough points to qualify for an FIA Formula One superlicence in 2017?

McLaren’s Stoffel Vandoorne is a high scorer
The chequered flag has fallen on the final championship where drivers could score points towards an F1 superlicence. So who has made it up to or past the 40 points needed to be allowed to race in F1?

The FIA has added more championships to the superlicence points system for 2017. For the fist time drivers in Formula E and Australia’s Supercars championship have been collecting superlicence points.

Some of them feature among the 38 drivers who already have enough points to be allowed to race in F1. There are 26 drivers with 40 superlience points or more who have never raced in F1, one of which is Williams rookie Lance Stroll.

F1 Fanatic has analysed all the data from the championships which score superlicence points and compiled the data below based on the FIA’s rules for superlicence points.

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Drivers who have accumulated enough points for a superlicence in 2017

DriverTotalCountryScores counted from
Sebastien Buemi121SwitzerlandP1 in WEC LMP1 2014
P5 in WEC LMP1 2015
P2 in Formula E 2015
P1 in Formula E 2016
P8 in WEC LMP1 2016
Andre Lotterer118GermanyP2 in WEC LMP1 2014
P3 in Super Formula 2014
P2 in WEC LMP1 2015
P3 in Super Formula 2015
P5 in WEC LMP1 2016
P2 in Super Formula 2016
Lucas di Grassi100BrazilP4 in WEC LMP1 2014
P4 in WEC LMP1 2015
P3 in Formula E 2015
P2 in Formula E 2016
P2 in WEC LMP1 2016
Stoffel Vandoorne*90BelgiumP2 in GP2 2014
P1 in GP2 2015
P4 in Super Formula 2016
Will Power90AustraliaP1 in IndyCar 2014
P3 in IndyCar 2015
P2 in IndyCar 2016
Neel Jani80SwitzerlandP3 in WEC LMP1 2014
P3 in WEC LMP1 2015
P1 in WEC LMP1 2016
Marc Lieb80GermanyP3 in WEC LMP1 2014
P3 in WEC LMP1 2015
P1 in WEC LMP1 2016
Romain Dumas80FranceP3 in WEC LMP1 2014
P3 in WEC LMP1 2015
P1 in WEC LMP1 2016
Antonio Giovinazzi76ItalyP6 in Euro F3 2014
P2 in Euro F3 2015
P2 in GP2 2016
Esteban Ocon*70FranceP1 in Euro F3 2014
P1 in GP3 2015
Sergey Sirotkin70RussiaP5 in Formula Renault 3.5 2014
P3 in GP2 2015
P3 in GP2 2016
Pierre Gasly69FranceP2 in Formula Renault 3.5 2014
P8 in GP2 2015
P1 in GP2 2016
Marcel Fassler68SwitzerlandP2 in WEC LMP1 2014
P2 in WEC LMP1 2015
P5 in WEC LMP1 2016
Benoit Treluyer66FranceP2 in WEC LMP1 2014
P2 in WEC LMP1 2015
P6 in WEC LMP1 2016
Scott Dixon66New ZealandP3 in IndyCar 2014
P1 in IndyCar 2015
P6 in IndyCar 2016
Kazuki Nakajima60JapanP8 in WEC LMP1 2014
P1 in Super Formula 2014
P7 in WEC LMP1 2015
P2 in Super Formula 2015
P8 in WEC LMP1 2016
P6 in Super Formula 2016
Lance Stroll*60CanadaP1 in Italian F4 2014
P5 in Euro F3 2015
P1 in Euro F3 2016
Loic Duval59FranceP7 in WEC LMP1 2014
P4 in Super Formula 2014
P4 in WEC LMP1 2015
P9 in Formula E 2015
P8 in Formula E 2016
P2 in WEC LMP1 2016
Helio Castroneves58BrazilP2 in IndyCar 2014
P5 in IndyCar 2015
P3 in IndyCar 2016
Oliver Rowland53Great BritainP4 in Formula Renault 3.5 2014
P1 in Formula Renault 3.5 2015
P9 in GP2 2016
Brendon Hartley52New ZealandP9 in WEC LMP1 2014
P1 in WEC LMP1 2015
P4 in WEC LMP1 2016
Mark Webber52AustraliaP9 in WEC LMP1 2014
P1 in WEC LMP1 2015
P4 in WEC LMP1 2016
Timo Bernhard52GermanyP9 in WEC LMP1 2014
P1 in WEC LMP1 2015
P4 in WEC LMP1 2016
Anthony Davidson51Great BritainP1 in WEC LMP1 2014
P5 in WEC LMP1 2015
P8 in WEC LMP1 2016
Louis Deletraz49SwitzerlandP2 in Formula Renault 2.0 NEC 2014
P2 in Formula Renault 2.0 Eurocup 2015
P1 in Formula Renault 2.0 NEC 2015
P2 in Formula V8 3.5 2016
Simon Pagenaud48FranceP5 in IndyCar 2014
P1 in IndyCar 2016
Charles Leclerc47MonacoP2 in Formula Renault 2.0 ALPS 2014
P4 in Euro F3 2015
P1 in GP3 2016
Alex Lynn46Great BritainP1 in GP3 2014
P6 in GP2 2015
P6 in GP2 2016
Nyck De Vries45NetherlandsP1 in Formula Renault 2.0 Eurocup 2014
P1 in Formula Renault 2.0 ALPS 2014
P3 in Formula Renault 3.5 2015
P6 in GP3 2016
Jose Maria Lopez45ArgentinaP1 in WTCC 2014
P1 in WTCC 2015
P1 in WTCC 2016
Felix Rosenqvist43SwedenP8 in Euro F3 2014
P1 in Euro F3 2015
Juan Pablo Montoya43ColombiaP4 in IndyCar 2014
P2 in IndyCar 2015
P8 in IndyCar 2016
Jolyon Palmer*40Great BritainP1 in GP2 2014
Stephane Sarrazin40FranceP5 in WEC LMP1 2014
P6 in WEC LMP1 2015
P6 in Formula E 2016
P3 in WEC LMP1 2016
Alexander Rossi40USAP2 in GP2 2015
Oliver Jarvis40Great BritainP4 in WEC LMP1 2015
P2 in WEC LMP1 2016
Tom Dillmann40FranceP7 in Formula Renault 3.5 2015
P1 in Formula V8 3.5 2016
Nelson Piquet Jnr40BrazilP1 in Formula E 2015

*Already on the F1 grid for 2017.

Each country’s highest-scoring driver who has never started an F1 race

Where is the next generation of F1 drivers going to come from? Here’s each country’s leading scorer who hasn’t started a grand prix – yet:

DriverTotalCountryScoresScores counted from
Will Power90Australia3P1 in IndyCar 2014
P3 in IndyCar 2015
P2 in IndyCar 2016
Neel Jani80Switzerland3P3 in WEC LMP1 2014
P3 in WEC LMP1 2015
P1 in WEC LMP1 2016
Marc Lieb80Germany3P3 in WEC LMP1 2014
P3 in WEC LMP1 2015
P1 in WEC LMP1 2016
Romain Dumas80France3P3 in WEC LMP1 2014
P3 in WEC LMP1 2015
P1 in WEC LMP1 2016
Antonio Giovinazzi76Italy3P6 in Euro F3 2014
P2 in Euro F3 2015
P2 in GP2 2016
Sergey Sirotkin70Russia3P5 in Formula Renault 3.5 2014
P3 in GP2 2015
P3 in GP2 2016
Scott Dixon66New Zealand3P3 in IndyCar 2014
P1 in IndyCar 2015
P6 in IndyCar 2016
Lance Stroll60Canada3P1 in Italian F4 2014
P5 in Euro F3 2015
P1 in Euro F3 2016
Helio Castroneves58Brazil3P2 in IndyCar 2014
P5 in IndyCar 2015
P3 in IndyCar 2016
Oliver Rowland53Great Britain3P4 in Formula Renault 3.5 2014
P1 in Formula Renault 3.5 2015
P9 in GP2 2016
Charles Leclerc47Monaco3P2 in Formula Renault 2.0 ALPS 2014
P4 in Euro F3 2015
P1 in GP3 2016
Nyck De Vries45Netherlands4P1 in Formula Renault 2.0 Eurocup 2014
P1 in Formula Renault 2.0 ALPS 2014
P3 in Formula Renault 3.5 2015
P6 in GP3 2016
Jose Maria Lopez45Argentina3P1 in WTCC 2014
P1 in WTCC 2015
P1 in WTCC 2016
Felix Rosenqvist43Sweden2P8 in Euro F3 2014
P1 in Euro F3 2015
Hiroaki Ishiura39Japan3P5 in Super Formula 2014
P1 in Super Formula 2015
P5 in Super Formula 2016
Alexander Albon29Thailand3P3 in Formula Renault 2.0 Eurocup 2014
P7 in Euro F3 2015
P2 in GP3 2016
Ed Jones25UAE2P3 in Indy Lights 2015
P1 in Indy Lights 2016
Graham Rahal18USA2P4 in IndyCar 2015
P5 in IndyCar 2016
Norbert Michelisz17Hungary3P4 in WTCC 2014
P6 in WTCC 2015
P4 in WTCC 2016
Ralf Aron16Estonia2P1 in Italian F4 2015
P7 in Euro F3 2016
Gabby Chaves15Colombia1P1 in Indy Lights 2014
Tio Ellinas15Cyprus1P4 in Formula Renault 3.5 2015
Max Defourny15Belgium3P4 in Formula Renault 2.0 NEC 2015
P3 in Formula Renault 2.0 Eurocup 2016
P2 in Formula Renault 2.0 NEC 2016
Roy Nissany15Israel1P4 in Formula V8 3.5 2016
Niko Kari13Finland2P1 in F4 Northern European Zone 2015
P10 in Euro F3 2016
Santiago Urrutia12Uruguay1P2 in Indy Lights 2016
Yifei Ye12China1P1 in French F4 2016
Johnny Cecotto Jnr10Venezuela1P5 in GP2 2014
Lucas Auer10Austria1P4 in Euro F3 2014
Tom Kristensen10Denmark1P4 in WEC LMP1 2014
Karol Basz8Poland2P1 in CIK-FIA KF 2015
P2 in CIK-FIA 2016
Nabil Jeffri7Malaysia1P2 in German F3 2014
Dennis Olsen7Norway1P2 in Formula Renault 2.0 Eurocup 2014
Raul Guzman7Mexico1P3 in Italian F4 2016
Jehan Daruvala6India3P3 in CIK-FIA KF 2014
P5 in Formula Renault 2.0 NEC 2015
P4 in Formula Renault 2.0 NEC 2016
Mehdi Bennani6Morocco2P8 in WTCC 2015
P5 in WTCC 2016
Pedro Hiltbrand5Spain1P1 in CIK-FIA 2016
Antonio Felix da Costa3Portugal1P8 in Formula E 2015
Felix Serrales3Puerto Rico1P6 in Indy Lights 2016
Marlon Stockinger2Philippines1P9 in Formula Renault 3.5 2014
Petru Gabriel Florescu2Romania1P6 in British F4 2016

For a full breakdown of every driver who has scored superlicence points at the beginning of 2017, see the table here:

NB. Points from the following championships were not included as they failed to meet the minimum requirement of at least ten drivers starting every race: 2014-16 Formula 4 Sudamericana, 2014-16 Australian F3, 2014-16 Brazilian F3, 2015-16 Australian F4, 2015-16 Chinese F4, 2016 Spanish F4, 2016 F4 South East Asia.

2017 F1 season

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Author information

Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

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30 comments on “The 38 drivers with enough superlicence points to enter F1 in 2017”

  1. Walter van den Houten
    23rd January 2017, 12:45

    Mark Webber will be on the F1 2017 grid? You heard it here first.

    1. And probably last.

      1. Tommy Scragend
        23rd January 2017, 14:02

        Doing interviews for Channel 4?

      2. Apologies – a bit of asterisk confusion there!

        1. Walter van den Houten
          24th January 2017, 11:25

          No problem Keith. Keep up the good work regardless. Your site is by far still one of the better and most convenient sources.

    2. I know. News to me.

    3. Nelson Piquet Jr too.

  2. I had a mini heart attack when I saw Piquet Jr marked as “on the grid for 2017”!

  3. I always wondered how Ed Jones managed to get JA Resorts & Hotels (a Dubai based hotel chain) to sponsor him in Indy Lights, never new he was born in the UAE and raced under a UAE licence.

  4. So Giovanazzi and Leclerc are the only two that strike me as potential future front runners, maybe (but slightly less probable) Gasly. Sirotkin could maybe enter F1 for 2018 provided he secures some sponsorship, Rosenquist has a minor chance of making the grid someday. Rossi was/is reasonably good but is more likely to get an US-career that makes paying for a backmarker-drive unattractive while he probably won’t get a paid-drive in upper midfield, so rather unprobable to see him in F1 again. Other than that, not much to see here.

  5. As a dutch person, i really hope Nyck De Vries will continue in the McLaren young driver program and get in F1 at some point.

    1. Glad someone mentioned Nyck de Vries, he seems to have been part of the McLaren setup for ages and yet he is still at least one step away from making the F1 grid. He is also going to lose his FR 2.0 points at the end of this season, so he needs to have a good year this year to stay on the F1 track.

    2. spafrancorchamps
      23rd January 2017, 17:43

      Nyck is just not good enough. He takes way too much time and makes too many mistakes. He is one of many who do great in go-karts, but can’t prove themselves on a higher level. I hope McLaren will ditch him and go for another talent.

    3. He might have more chance now that Ron has left McLaren and he’ll no longer get called Nick Heidfeld in the press!
      (I’m afraid that I can’t find the clip of the interview)

  6. I have a doubt. Pascal Wehrlein has only 16 points but he is on the grid. Someone explain that to me.

    1. And. I SPELLED WEHRLEIN CORRECTLY.

    2. You don’t get points for driving in F1, and you don’t need points if you already have a superlicence.

    3. Max Verstappen only has 20 points, and his youthful start in F1 was the reason the points system was introduced. If this rule had been in place a season earlier we would not have had him, nor Carlos Sainz Jr. Where will Toro Rosso get exciting new drivers in future?

  7. It’s amazing how almost every LMP1 driver is eligible for a F1 seat, yet either none seem to have any interest in joining the grid or aren’t considered for a seat. I’m just thinking what some of them could actually do with a Mercedes alongside Hamilton if given a chance.

    1. @toiago Hamilton would destroy them, if they were really good trust me a team would know and they would go for it. Lotterer got a job with Caterham no one else considerd him to my knowledge. I love both so not criticising but F1 is the pinnacle. Just like Hamilton would not dominate LMP1 they are both different.

    2. OmarRoncal - Go Seb!!! (@)
      23rd January 2017, 21:40

      @toiago maybe it’s the other way around? If Hulkenberg (the one without a podium in F1 even when he has driven competitive cars) could win LeMans at the first attempt, and Webber (who couldn’t win a single time in the powerful Red Bull RB9 that smashed everyone in 2013 in the hands of Seb) has already won the WEC championship, well… It doesn’t speak too well about the WEC pack.

      1. I’ll have to take you up on two points there. Hulkenberg wasn’t the fastest man in the Porsche team over the Le Mans weekend, and more importantly, wasn’t the fastest in the #19 car during the race itself, that went to Nick Tandy. As for Webber, it took him a year and a half to get used to racing in the WEC, and he was never really the fastest man in his crew until maybe at times towards mid-2016 (he was the fastest Porsche driver at Le Mans in 2016, but again, that was in his third season with the team), the usual fastest person in that crew was Brendon Hartley.

        All the WEC races have their full timing info published. So if you want to scour through the data and check, http://fiawec.alkamelsystems.com/ is where you can find it.

    3. @toiago, mind you, a number of those drivers are ex-F1 drivers who left the sport either because they retired or were unable to find a competitive seat – I don’t recall there being many teams who showed any interest in hiring Davidson, di Grassi or Nakajima, just as a few examples.

      As an aside, Keith, I do find it a bit odd that Ocon is on that list when he would qualify for 2017 by virtue of having already been awarded a superlicence in 2016: Vandoorne and Palmer would also fall into the same category.

      Technically, I believe that there are several drivers in your list who would also be eligible irrespective of points scored – I think that Lotterer, for example, would be automatically eligible because he was awarded a superlicence in 2014 (the FIA waives the points requirement if the person has held a superlicence within the previous three years – they can even remain eligible if the superlicence was issued over three years ago if the FIA are satisfied that they have still demonstrated an adequate level of performance).

  8. OmarRoncal - Go Seb!!! (@)
    23rd January 2017, 21:45

    If I were Manor, I would try to collect my money for at least the first race… and ask FIA for an exception to the superlicense points rule, to hire Gabby Chaves. Already a champion (Indy Lights I know, but at least). and I imagine that (and I swear I’m not being sexist) sponsorship would be more than eager to support the first woman to race a whole season in Formula 1.
    Budget ensured for a couple of years.

    1. Sorry to burst your bubble, @omarr-pepper, but Gabby (Gabriel) Chaves is a man!

      1. OmarRoncal - Go Seb!!! (@)
        24th January 2017, 1:17

        @tom-l hahahhaa fail of the year already!!! a Colombian who uses Gaby for short, I assumed so much. Just checked the stats and saw that Gabriel got the IndyLights championship. I didn’t bother to double check with a photo!

  9. I wouldn’t mind seeing the odds of each driver getting into F1. Just to see who the next drivers maybe.

  10. Bring Will Power to F1. He has an impressive resume and a great name. Ricciardo surely wouldn’t mind.

  11. Buemi has proven he is the real deal. WED WDC, Formual E WDC given a shot at a decent F1 car we could be witnessing something something special if he pulled off a third Driver Championship in his 3rd top tier category

  12. I have question – why is not Sebastien Ogier in this table? As I understand then Ogier should have 45 superlicence points over three year period (WRC champion 2014-2016) according to the points system available on https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FIA_Super_Licence

Comments are closed.