Lewis Hamilton holds the record for most consecutive points scoring races in F1 having scored at 48 races in a row between the 2018 British Grand Prix and the 2020 Bahrain Grand Prix. Which other drivers have had long points-scoring streaks?
48: Lewis Hamilton, Britain 2018 – Bahrain 2020
Lewis Hamilton holds the record for the most consecutive points scoring races in Formula 1. Hamilton scored at all 48 races between the 2018 British Grand Prix and the 2020 Bahrain Grand Prix. The streak was only ended due to Hamilton contracting coronavirus and being forced to miss the 2020 Sakhir Grand Prix.
Had Hamilton not missed the 2020 Sakhir Grand Prix – and scored in the race – the streak would have lasted for an additional six races, until his non-score at the 2021 Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
Hamilton’s 48-race points-scoring streak included no fewer than 30 wins, plus an additional 11 podium finishes. He collected three title wins during this 48 race period. Just three of his finishes during the 48 races were finishes outside of the top five. Notably, that included the 2019 German Grand Prix, where Hamilton originally finished outside of the top ten but moved up in the final classification due to penalties for other drivers.
43: Max Verstappen, Emilia Romagna 2022 – Saudi Arabia 2024
At the 2023 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, Max Verstappen equalled the longest scoring streak of his career to date. It was the 21st race in a row at which he scored, equalling his tally of 21 points-scoring races in a row between the 2018 Belgian Grand Prix and the 2019 Hungarian Grand Prix.
Verstappen carried on extending his longest points scoring streak throughout the next season, with his win at the 2023 Monaco Grand Prix seeing him overtake the longest points-scoring streak of Michael Schumacher’s career, putting him fourth in the list of most consecutive points scoring races in Formula 1 history.
He equalled the longest scoring streak of Kimi Raikkonen’s career with his victory in the 2023 Canadian Grand Prix and then overtook him at the next race, the 2023 Austrian Grand Prix. At the 2023 Italian Grand Prix, Verstappen equalled the second-longest points-scoring streak of Lewis Hamilton’s career before moving ahead of that milestone and into second on the all-time list at the Singapore Grand Prix.
Verstappen’s scoring streak finally ended after 43 races at the 2024 Australian Grand Prix, where he retired in the opening stages with a brake failure. Impressively, Verstappen’s streak of 43 points-scoring races included only eight races which he failed to win.
33: Lewis Hamilton, Japan 2016 – France 2018
Not only does Lewis Hamilton hold the record for the most consecutive points scoring races in F1, he also sits third on the list too! Hamilton’s second-longest streak ended with a mechanical retirement at the 2018 Austrian Grand Prix – the race before his longest points-scoring streak began. That means that for the 82 races between the 2016 Japanese Grand Prix and the 2020 Bahrain Grand Prix, the 2018 Austrian Grand Prix is the only one in which he failed to score.
Hamilton recorded 16 victories in this 33-race scoring streak, finishing outside of the top five only twice – with a seventh place at the 2017 Monaco Grand Prix and ninth at the Mexico Grand Prix later that year.
27: Kimi Raikkonen, Bahrain 2012 – Hungary 2013
Kimi Raikkonen held the record for the most consecutive points scoring races until the 2018 Chinese Grand Prix, when it was broken by Lewis Hamilton. Raikkonen scored at all 27 races between the 2012 Bahrain Grand Prix and the 2013 Hungarian Grand Prix.
The streak included both of Raikkonen’s wins for Lotus – his first victory in over three years at the 2012 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix and his win at the season-opening Australian Grand Prix in 2013. The latter would turn out to be his last victory in over five years.
Raikkonen’s scoring streak ended at the 2013 Belgian Grand Prix, due to a visor tear off. The Finn’s brakes overheated due to a tear off being stuck in his left front brake duct and he subsequently suffered a brake failure, putting him out of the race.
24: Michael Schumacher, Hungary 2001 – Malaysia 2003
During his period of dominance with Ferrari, Michael Schumacher set a new record for the most consecutive points scoring races in Formula 1. Prior to Schumacher, Carlos Reutemann held the long-standing record of most consecutive points scoring races, having picked up points for 15 races in a row between the 1980 and 1981 Belgian Grands Prix.
Schumacher set a new record with his 16th points-scoring race in a row at the 2002 French Grand Prix and continued scoring in every race until the 2003 Brazilian Grand Prix, when he crashed out at Interlagos in wet conditions.
Schumacher’s 24-race scoring streak featured only three races at which he failed to finish on the podium. 14 of the 24 races were victories for Schumacher. Schumacher’s record for most consecutive points scoring races stood for just under ten years.
23: Fernando Alonso, Europe 2011 – Hungary 2012
Fernando Alonso’s longest points-scoring streak came between the 2011 European Grand Prix and the 2012 Hungarian Grand Prix. A scoring streak of just over 13 months, the streak included four wins and a further ten podium finishes.
Alonso’s points-scoring streak came to an end at the first corner of the 2012 Belgian Grand Prix when he was taken out of the race in a crash caused by Romain Grosjean. Grosjean’s Lotus flew over Alonso’s cockpit in the incident, for which the Frenchman was handed a race ban.
22: Valtteri Bottas, Britain 2018 – Britain 2019
Silverstone bookended the longest points-scoring streak of Valtteri Bottas’ career, beginning with a fourth place finish in the 2018 British Grand Prix and ending with the runner-up spot at the 2019 British Grand Prix.
The Finn scored for 22 consecutive races, falling four short of equalling Kimi Raikkonen as the Finn to have the most consecutive points scoring races. Bottas finished in the top five at all 22 races, picking up two wins during the streak.
Bottas’ points-scoring streak came to an end at the 2019 German Grand Prix, when he crashed out in wet conditions – capping off a dismal afternoon for the Mercedes team.
