A collage featuring Daniel Ricciardo holding a trophy, Mark Webber, and a Formula 1 car with the Australian flag in the background.

From UGGs to Vegemite, Australia is known for producing wonderful things. With that said, one of the nation’s lesser discussed — but equally remarkable — exports is its racecar drivers. Several Australians have made incredible strides in the motorsports world, namely in Formula 1 (F1).

With the help of this guide, you’ll learn more about these unforgettable legends and how they’ve helped shape F1 into the league we know today.

7. David Brabham

For David Brabham, racecar driving isn’t just a hobby or career — it’s a birthright. Son of the iconic F1 driver Jack Brabham, David first dabbled in racing at the age of 17 when he got behind the wheel of a go-kart.

While his professional career began in 1983, it really picked up in 1986 when he reached Australian Formula 2 (F2). The following year, he won the 1987 Australian Drivers’ Championship in the F2 category, a major milestone in his career.

Brabham went on to appear in both the 1990 and 1994 F1 seasons, with a total of 24 starts under his belt. Despite his efforts, the Brabham team experienced little success during these years.

However, Brabham didn’t let this deter him from pursuing a racing career. Instead, he focused his efforts on sports car racing, specifically the American 24 Hours of Le Mans (also known as the Grand Prix of Endurance). In 2009, Brabham won the day-long race, making him one of the four Aussies to ever do so.

6. Tim Schenken

Born in 1943 in Sydney, Tim Schenken is one of the few Australian drivers to score points in F1. After having some success in both the F3 and F2 leagues, Schenken joined Brabham’s F1 team in 1971. During this season, he claimed the first and only podium finish of his career, placing third at the Austrian Grand Prix.

In the years that followed, Schenken moved around to multiple different teams. While he secured eight more top-ten finishes in his F1 career, he never managed to get on the podium before his final F1 season in 1974.

Three photos of iconic Australian F1 drivers: David Brabham, Time Schenken, Oscar Piastri, and Daniel Ricciardo.

5. Oscar Piastri

Only debuting in 2023, Oscar Piastri has made a massive impact in a short period of time. After making his way up the ranks of F4, F3, and F2, Piastri was recruited by Renault/Alpine, where he served as a test driver from 2020 to 2022.

By 2023, he joined McLaren as a rookie, making his first F1 on-track appearance as a second driver to Lando Norris. For the Melbourne native, his first F1 points were particularly special as he earned them at his home race, finishing eighth at the Australian Grand Prix. Piastri saw a great deal of success throughout the remainder of the 2023 season. He scored a total of 97 points, with 11 top-ten finishes and two podium placements.

When the 2024 season rolled around, Piastri was labelled one to watch. He proved himself worthy of the label when he placed in the top 10 of the season’s first five races. However, the high of his career would come at the Hungarian Grand Prix where Piastri scored his first-ever Grand Prix win at just 23 years old.

“[It’s] very, very special,” said Piastri of the victory. “This is really the day I dreamed of as a kid, standing on the top step of an F1 podium.”

He later went on to experience that feeling again at the 2024 Azerbaijan Grand Prix, claiming the top spot. Piastri finished the season in fourth place overall (ahead of seasoned veterans like Lewis Hamilton), with a spectacular 292 points.

4. Daniel Ricciardo

Known for his charming grin and friendly demeanour, Daniel Ricciardo is one of the most adored Australian F1 drivers in history. With that said, he’s also one of the most accomplished, with a total of eight race wins and over 1,300 F1 points under his belt.

Spanning more than 13 years, Ricciardo’s career has been nothing short of interesting. While he has raced with various teams, most of Ricciardo’s success has been with Red Bull, his team from 2014 to 2018.

In his first season with Red Bull, Ricciardo stood atop the podium for the first time after winning the 2014 Canadian Grand Prix. That same year, he went on to win two more Grand Prix races (in Hungary and Belgium), before placing third in the competition overall.

Ricciardo departed Red Bull in 2018, driving for Renault from 2019 to 2020 and McLaren from 2021 to 2022. In 2023, he returned to his roots, serving as a third driver for AlphaTauri (owned by Red Bull). Though he was promoted to second driver in 2024, Ricciardo was later released mid-season after a string of tough races.

At the time of writing, Ricciardo has not been recruited for the 2025 F1 season. He has yet to confirm if he’ll return to F1 or if he plans to retire. Regardless of what the future may hold, Ricciardo’s resilience and dedication to the sport make him a legend in Australian motorsports.

Three photos of iconic Australian F1 drivers: Jack Brabham in his racing car, Alan Jones smiling, and Mark Webber sitting by the track.

3. Mark Webber

Another Red Bull veteran, Mark Webber is undoubtedly one of the most successful racecar drivers Australia has ever seen.

During his F1 career — which spanned from 2002 to 2013 — Webber accumulated an impressive nine race wins and more than 1,000 points. He holds the most podium finishes of any Australian driver in F1 history: a remarkable 42.

Although he began his F1 career with the likes of Minardi, Jaguar, BMW, and Williams, Webber’s career highs came when he joined Red Bull. It was with this team that he achieved all of his first-place finishes and his best overall standings (third place in 2010, 2011, and 2013).

2. Alan Jones

Melbourne native Alan Jones is the second and most recent Australian to win an F1 World Drivers’ Championship. Throughout his 11-year career (which ran from 1975 to 1986), Jones showed his technical prowess time and time again. However, it wasn’t until 1980 that his skill paid off in the form of a championship title, which he claimed driving for Williams. During the season, Jones secured a total of five first-place finishes, making him virtually untouchable to his competitors.

1. Jack Brabham

Topping the list is none other than Jack Brabham. From 1955 to 1970, he claimed 14 race wins and three World Drivers’ Championship titles, making him the most accomplished Australian racecar driver in history.

Brabham’s first two victories came in 1959 and 1960; on both occasions, he was driving for the Cooper Car Company team. However, Brabham’s third and final championship victory in 1966 was his most significant. Not only did he claim a third victory, but he did it driving for his own team, the Brabham Racing Organisation, which he founded in 1960.

Even after retiring in 1970, Brabham remained heavily involved in the motorsports world and received numerous awards, including an Australian Sports Medal and a Centenary Medal. Although he passed away in 2014, Brabham’s legacy as one of Australia’s greatest sportsmen lives on.