Introduction to Formula One

Formula One is the top tier of single-seater motor racing: eleven teams, twenty-two drivers, and the fastest closed-circuit racing cars ever built. The 'formula' in the name is the rulebook — a set of technical specifications every car must follow. Within that formula, teams design and build their own cars, which is what makes F1 as much an engineering championship as a driving one.

An F1 car accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in about 2.6 seconds, corners with forces that would make an untrained neck give up in minutes, and brakes so hard that drivers feel five times their body weight pushing them forward. No other circuit racing category combines this speed with wheel-to-wheel competition.

A season runs from March to December across roughly 24 Grands Prix on five continents — street circuits like Monaco, purpose-built tracks like Silverstone, and night races like Singapore. Each event awards points toward two parallel championships: the Drivers' Championship for individuals and the Constructors' Championship for teams.

Race winners collect 25 points, second place 18, third 15, down to a single point for tenth. Add up the points across the year and you have your champions. The drivers' title carries the glory; the constructors' title decides the prize money.

Each team — also called a constructor — fields two race cars. Some, like Ferrari (racing since 1950) and McLaren, are institutions; others, like Cadillac (new for 2026), are ambitious newcomers. Teams employ hundreds of engineers, aerodynamicists and mechanics; the two drivers are just the most visible one percent of the operation.

Teammates share a garage and data but race the same machinery — which makes your teammate your most dangerous rival. The first person any driver must beat is the one in the identical car.

F1 is a season-long drama with three interleaved contests: driver versus driver on track, engineer versus engineer in the factories, and strategist versus strategist on the pit wall. A championship can swing on a tenth of a second found in a wind tunnel, a gamble on rain tires, or a single lapse of concentration at 300 km/h.

Start with one race. Learn one team, one driver, one rivalry. The rest of this course will fill in everything else.