With the roar of the engines, the buzz of the crowd, and the electric energy surging from some of the best drivers in the world, it’s no wonder Formula 1 is the hub of international racing.
Latin American motorsport racers have left behind a rich legacy in Formula 1 (F1), while Hispanic racers have dominated the scene in recent years. However, while F1 is known for its international status, there has been a smaller number of Latino racers at the top in recent years.
Today, there are two Spaniards in F1, Fernando Alonso and Carlos Sainz Jr., who are representing Spain strongly. Alonso has racked up thirty-two Grand Prix wins since he started in 2001 and two F1 World Drivers’ Championships. Sainz Jr. has three Grand Prix wins.
However, there is only one Latin American driver in F1 at the moment—Sergio “Checo” Pérez. The Mexican driver made his F1 debut in 2011, becoming the fifth F1 driver from Mexico. He claimed his first podium position in 2012 at the Malaysian Grand Prix, coming in second.
However, Pérez did not land on the top podium until 2020, when he claimed his first Grand Prix win at the Sakhir Grand Prix. He has increased his number of wins to six in the past four years with wins at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in 2021 and 2023, the 2022 Monaco Grand Prix, the 2022 Singapore Grand Prix, and the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in 2023.
Today, he is the most successful Mexican driver in F1 history.
Pérez has helped grow the popularity of F1 throughout the Latino community through different monumental occasions, such as becoming the first Mexican to win the Monaco Grand Prix. Hispanics and Latinos come out in droves to watch Pérez race, and the support for him throughout Mexico is constant, as reported by El País.
What’s more? Every milestone by Pérez is adding to a long legacy created by iconic Latino and Hispanic drivers who came before him.
One of the most notable Latin American F1 drivers was Ayrton Senna. The Brazilian won three Championships, which a driver wins by having the most points based off Grand Prix results. In the ten years that he raced, he won forty-one Grand Prix races, ranking him sixth of all time in F1 history. He eventually passed away in a racing accident in 1994.
At 12th and 13th in all-time Grand Prix winners are drivers Juan Manuel Fangio and Nelson Piquet, who finished their careers with twenty-four and twenty-three Grand Prix wins, respectively. Fangio, a dominating driver from Argentina, raced in the first F1 season in 1950 and is ranked second all-time across F1 drivers with five Championship wins. Brazilian driver Piquet raced for thirteen years, winning three Championships.
Brazilians have dominated the circuit for decades, with Senna and Piquet leading the race along with Emerson Fittipaldi, who racked up fourteen Grand Prix wins. In the last fifteen years, two recent Brazilian racers, Felipe Massa and Rubens Barrichello, reached eleven Grand Prix wins each. However, Massa, who finished his career in 2017, last won a Grand Prix in 2008, while Barrichello, who retired from F1 in 2011, last won in 2009.
Despite F1 being a year away from their quarter-century mark, the racing league continues to grow internationally, with growing fanbases and new drivers while leaning on the legacies of past racers. The success of Latinos in the sports racing industry provides a rich history, while the current Hispanic and Latino drivers bring in new fans with every race.
The upcoming F1 race in Miami adds to this history by bringing F1 to a city full of Hispanic and Latin American culture and fanbases.