Chi sono i piloti di Formula 1 più ricchi? Nel 2026, secondo le stime pubblicate da RacingNews365, Max Verstappen e Lewis Hamilton occupano le prime posizioni della classifica degli ingaggi in Formula 1, Charles Leclerc, George Russell e Lando Norris si collocano nella fascia alta del mercato. In fondo alla classifica Colapinto e Lidlblad.

Ecco quali sono i guadagni dei piloti di Formula 1 nel 2026, elaborati sulla base di informazioni raccolte nel paddock, indiscrezioni sui contratti e altre fonti del settore.

Chi sono i piloti di Formula 1 più ricchi

Secondo le stime pubblicate da RacingNews365, gli ingaggi annuali dei 22 piloti del mondiale 2026 vanno da circa 500.000 dollari a 70 milioni di dollari. Nella classifica viene considerato lo stipendio base stimato, senza aggiungere i bonus e gli introiti derivanti dagli sponsor personali.

Ecco la classifica:

• Max Verstappen (Red Bull): 62,5 milioni di euro all’anno
• Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari): 53,6 milioni di euro all’anno
• Charles Leclerc (Ferrari): 30,4 milioni di euro all’anno
• George Russell (Mercedes): 30,4 milioni di euro all’anno
• Lando Norris (McLaren): 26,8 milioni di euro all’anno
• Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin): 17,9 milioni di euro all’anno
• Carlos Sainz (Williams): 11,6 milioni di euro all’anno
• Oscar Piastri (McLaren): 11,6 milioni di euro all’anno
• Pierre Gasly (Alpine): 10,7 milioni di euro all’anno
• Alexander Albon (Williams): 10,7 milioni di euro all’anno
• Lance Stroll (Aston Martin): 10,7 milioni di euro all’anno
• Sergio Pérez (Cadillac): 7,1 milioni di euro all’anno
• Nico Hülkenberg (Audi): 6,2 milioni di euro all’anno
• Esteban Ocon (Haas): 6,2 milioni di euro all’anno
• Isack Hadjar (Red Bull): 4,5 milioni di euro all’anno
• Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac): 4,5 milioni di euro all’anno
• Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi): 1,8 milioni di euro all’anno
• Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes): 1,8 milioni di euro all’anno
• Oliver Bearman (Haas): 893.000 euro all’anno
• Franco Colapinto (Alpine): tra 446.000 e 893.000 euro all’anno
• Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls): tra 446.000 e 893.000 euro all’anno

Bonus, sponsor e risultati sportivi: come si compone lo stipendio

Per comprendere le differenze tra i compensi dei piloti è necessario considerare che lo stipendio base rappresenta soltanto una parte della remunerazione. Nei contratti possono essere previsti premi per le vittorie nei Gran Premi, piazzamenti, punti conquistati ed eventuali successi nella classifica costruttori. Inoltre a queste somme possono aggiungersi i contratti pubblicitari personali, le collaborazioni commerciali e le attività legate all’immagine del pilota. Non tutti gli accordi sono però liberamente negoziabili: le scuderie hanno sponsor ufficiali e possono prevedere vincoli per evitare conflitti tra marchi concorrenti.

Il reddito complessivo può quindi essere molto diverso da quello che emerge osservando soltanto l’ingaggio garantito. Anche per questo le classifiche degli stipendi e quelle degli atleti più pagati non coincidono necessariamente.

Formula 1: perché i piloti guadagnano così tanto?

Gli stipendi elevati sono legati al valore economico del campionato, alla competizione tra le scuderie e alla capacità dei piloti più affermati di generare risultati sportivi, visibilità e ricavi commerciali. Per un team, assicurarsi un campione può rappresentare un investimento strategico: le prestazioni in pista contribuiscono ai risultati della squadra, mentre la notorietà del pilota può rafforzare le relazioni con gli sponsor.

Un elemento importante riguarda il budget cap, il tetto alle spese introdotto per contenere i costi della competizione. Gli stipendi dei piloti sono esclusi dal calcolo del limite di spesa applicabile alle scuderie. Questo consente ai team di negoziare ingaggi anche molto elevati senza imputarli alla stessa voce di costo soggetta al tetto regolamentare.  La differenza tra i compensi dei campioni e quelli dei debuttanti riflette infine il valore dell’esperienza, i risultati ottenuti e il potere contrattuale. Arrivare in Formula 1 non significa automaticamente guadagnare decine di milioni: gli stipendi più alti sono riservati a una cerchia ristretta di piloti, mentre per i giovani la crescita dei compensi dipende anche dalla capacità di dimostrare il proprio valore in pista.

The newly introduced Motion Picture, Television, and Entertainment Revitalization Act seeks to implement a federal tax incentive to combat the trend of film and television production moving overseas.

• Brian Rooney, 60, filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in 2024.
• During his late wife's illness, he built up medical and credit-card debt.
• After she died, the grief made it difficult for him to sustain his business.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Brian Rooney, the 60-year-old founder of Chapter7Reset.com, who lives in Conroe, Texas. He lost his wife in 2013. The essay has been edited for length and clarity, and the details verified.

When you're grieving, you're not thinking about how to move a business forward, capture new market share, or adapt to new technologies. You're not thinking straight because you're overwhelmed by a cloud of loss, pain, and sorrow. Some days, you're just trying to get through morning to night.

In 2013, I lost my wife, my partner, and my life. I still had to deal with the financial reality. I had underestimated what grief would do to my ability to run a business.

Tina was the yin to my yang

My wife, Tina, and I had 24 great years together. She was the yin to my yang. We met through a mutual friend, got to know each other, and fell in love. She was a strong, independent thinker. She was loving, kept me in check, and was an outstanding mother.

Our five kids were all born close together, and I was very involved in their lives. One of the reasons I started a business was because I wanted to be the dad who could be at home, coach my sons in basketball, and play in recitals with my daughter.

We'd tried both working early on, but Tina stopped early on in our relationship. I was the breadwinner, and she managed the kids.

I launched my email-marketing business in 2000. For a time, it did very, very well.

My wife was diagnosed with cancer

In 2011, things felt almost too good to be true. Then Tina noticed a little bump in the roof of her mouth. She went to the dentist; they did a biopsy, and we didn't think too much about it. Weeks later, I was sitting in my home office when she came over with the phone. With a very disturbed look, she said, "I have cancer."

Our lives turned upside down.

At first, because the cancer wasn't very aggressive, we tried homeopathic remedies. Then came chemotherapy, radiation, and major surgeries. The treatments were costly, and while the Affordable Care Act covered quite a bit, we still had high deductibles. Some hospitals wouldn't admit her until the deductible had been paid.

I would sit at the table with spreadsheets, trying to work out the finances. I was trying to be strong for my wife, but sometimes I'd go to the corner of the room and cry. The unspeakable thing to consider was that I might lose my wife because I couldn't afford to pay for it all.

A lot of the medical bills were paid with credit cards, and we ran up a lot of credit-card debt. I had six mouths to feed, for which I relied mostly on credit cards. I sold my music gear, like my guitars and amps. We moved from a beautiful rental house in a nice area of Texas to a much less expensive apartment. We weren't going to shows, basketball games, or on trips. None of that bothered me. The focus was on getting Mama healthy.

Friends and family stepped in here and there to help out. My kids were approaching adulthood, so they didn't need much looking after, but working from home let me adjust my schedule as needed.

I couldn't keep the business moving forward

There were days when I couldn't touch the business. It was mostly automated, but there were things I needed to step in and manage. If a server went down, I'd need to stay up all night to fix it while checking on my wife in the other room.

I wasn't resting or sleeping. I wasn't able to drive the business forward.

During that time, the industry was changing. New technology became available, and we weren't able to keep up. I was so focused on Tina's care that we missed opportunities. We had contractors and a business partner, and I wish I'd outsourced a lot faster. I didn't realize how fast I was losing.

I became a widower at 47

Tina died in November 2013. She was 49, and I was a 47-year-old widower.

Those first few weeks, I'd wake up, roll over, realize she wasn't there, and know that she never would be again. I would talk myself out of bed, one body part at a time.

The business was still there. My business partner was focused on the technical side, but I had the marketing and entrepreneurial mindset. A lot of things that needed to get done didn't get done. Honestly, at that point, I didn't care. It was a dark time for me

I wanted a clean slate

The business was declining, and meanwhile, I'd built up hundreds of thousands of dollars in credit-card and medical debt. I thought I could put everything on my credit cards, turn things around, and pay it down. Things never turned around, and as the business continued to decline, there was less money to draw from it.

I spoke with bankruptcy attorneys, but I was convinced I could fix the problem.

In 2021, I got remarried. My second wife knew about the financial mess I was in. The interest and penalties were compounding so quickly. There was constant pressure from phone calls, letters, and demands for payment. I wanted relief and a clean slate.

In early 2024, after speaking with my business partner, we decided to dissolve the business. Later that year, I filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy.

I felt both relief and shame after filing for bankruptcy

When I filed for bankruptcy, I had no assets because I'd sold them all to pay my bills. When the debt was wiped out, I felt relief and shame, but the relief took over once I stopped getting phone calls and letters.

It was time to rebuild. I got a sales job, which I hadn't had in decades. I did AI certification training and started rebuilding my credit with credit-rebuilding cards. I launched ChapterSevenReset.com, a free guide to help people in a similar position.

One of the hardest lessons was that we didn't have a life-insurance policy on Tina. It never dawned on me because she wasn't contributing financially. I never considered how caring for her and my grief would take away from my generating income. My second wife and I both have life insurance policies for each other.

Nowadays, my friends say the "old Brian" is back. I've made peace, as best you can, with the fact that Tina is gone. I'm like an amputee. There's a part of me that's missing, and that part will always be missing. It itches. It's always there.

Luisa González’s lawyers allege arbitrary detention and procedural violations after her arrest on Oct. 22 in a case linked to campaign finances.

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Ecuadorian opposition leader Luisa González’s arrest has prompted her lawyers to accuse President Daniel Noboa’s government of selective prosecution, citing alleged procedural violations and inconsistencies in the financial evidence underpinning the case.

RELATED: Ecuador Transfers Luisa González to Riobamba Prison

González, a former presidential candidate and leading figure in the Revolución Ciudadana movement, was arrested on Oct. 22. Her lawyer, Diego Guarderas, disputes the allegations linked to campaign finances and argues that authorities have treated similar cases involving the ruling party differently.

In an interview with CNN, Guarderas questioned figures attributed to Ecuador’s Financial and Economic Analysis Unit (UAFE), which he said changed at different stages of the investigation. According to the defense, the amounts cited ranged from $6,000 to $500,000 and $700,000, while the technical report recorded $204,000.

Bajo una fuerte granizada, la militancia de Revolución Ciudadana se mantiene en los exteriores de la Unidad de Flagrancia tras la retención de la líder política Luisa González.#Ecuador #Noboa #Alerta #Luisa #teleSUR pic.twitter.com/v4MHVWnSzN

— teleSUR TV (@teleSURtv) October 22, 2026

Text Reads: Under a heavy hailstorm, the militants of Revolución Ciudadana remain outside the Flagrancy Unit following the detention of political leader Luisa González.

The legal team argues that discrepancies in campaign accounting have been treated as evidence of money laundering without sufficient technical justification. Guarderas maintains that the shifting figures undermine the legal basis of the accusations against González.

He also pointed to what he described as unequal treatment of campaign-finance irregularities. Ecuador’s National Electoral Council identified inconsistencies exceeding $408,000 in the campaign of Acción Democrática Nacional (ADN), Noboa’s party. According to the defense, prosecutors have not opened an investigation into those findings.

Lawyers challenge arrest and transfer

González’s lawyers have also challenged the procedures leading to her arrest. They say she was informed of the charges only 30 minutes before the hearing at which they were formally presented.

The defense further disputes the jurisdiction of the judges who presided over the hearing, arguing that they failed to account for the provincial jurisdictional privilege of other defendants in the case.

Her legal team has also challenged her transfer from Quito to a prison in Riobamba, about four hours from the capital. Guarderas said a judicial order had required González to remain in Quito to protect the rights of her minor child and her father, who has kidney disease.

Convocan plantón en la Fiscalía en Quito, Ecuador, contra el Gobierno del presidente Daniel Noboa. Legisladores exigen el cese de la persecución política y reclaman información sobre el paradero de Luisa González, exigiendo justicia y debido proceso. 🇪🇨📢 #Ecuador #Quito #teleSUR… pic.twitter.com/F5DK2JzoDV

— teleSUR TV (@teleSURtv) October 22, 2026

Text Reads: Protest rally called at the Prosecutor’s Office in Quito, Ecuador, against the Government of President Daniel Noboa. Lawmakers demand an end to political persecution and request information on the whereabouts of Luisa González, calling for justice and due process.

Despite the order, authorities moved her during a nighttime operation, which Guarderas described as clandestine. He argued that the transfer obstructed the preparation of her defense and violated the judge’s instructions.

Opposition alleges political persecution

Revolución Ciudadana has described the case as political persecution intended to weaken the opposition and prevent González from competing politically. Guarderas likewise accused Noboa’s administration of using judicial proceedings to target prominent opponents.

These allegations remain the position of González’s defense and have not been independently established in the information available for this report.

González’s lawyers said they would file legal challenges seeking to reverse her transfer and report the alleged violations of due process. The case remains before Ecuador’s courts, with the defense contesting both the financial evidence and the procedures that led to her arrest and imprisonment.