2018 F1 World Championship

The 2018 FIA Formula One World Championship ran over 21 Grand Prix weekends, running from 25 March in Australia to 25 November in Abu Dhabi.

Season

For the second consecutive year, the championship developed into an intense rivalry between Mercedes and Ferrari. At the centre of the fight were two of the sport’s most successful drivers: Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel, each a four-time World Champion entering the season. Their duel added a unique historical dimension to the championship, as it marked the first time in Formula One history that two quadruple world champions were competing for a fifth title. The rivalry quickly captured the imagination of fans and media alike, and the season became widely known as the “Fight for Five.”

The championship battle proved to be closely contested throughout the first half of the season. The lead in the standings changed hands five times, reflecting the fluctuating fortunes of both drivers. By the midpoint of the year, following the British Grand Prix, Vettel held a narrow eight-point advantage over Hamilton. However, momentum gradually shifted in Hamilton’s favour as the season progressed.

Hamilton ultimately secured his fifth World Drivers’ Championship at the Mexican Grand Prix, further cementing his place among the sport’s all-time greats. One race later, at the Brazilian Grand Prix, Mercedes sealed its fifth consecutive Constructors’ Championship, extending the team’s dominant run in the hybrid era of Formula One.

In the final championship standings, Sebastian Vettel finished second in the Drivers’ Championship, ending the season 88 points behind Hamilton, while Ferrari teammate Kimi Räikkönen placed third. In the Constructors’ Championship, Mercedes finished 84 points ahead of Ferrari, with Red Bull Racing securing third place, 152 points behind Ferrari.

The 2018 season also introduced one of the most significant safety innovations in the sport’s history: the halo cockpit protection device. Mounted above the driver’s cockpit, the halo was designed to deflect debris and improve driver safety during accidents. Its introduction marked the first phase of a broader safety initiative, with the FIA planning to implement the device across all FIA-sanctioned and non-FIA-sanctioned open-wheel racing series by 2020.

Looking back from later years, the 2018 championship also marked the last season in which no Honda-powered car achieved a podium finish, a statistic that would soon change as Honda’s performance improved in the seasons that followed.

2018 F1 Entries drivers and teams

Entrant	Constructor	Chassis	Power unit	No.	Race drivers	Rounds
Scuderia Ferrari	Ferrari	SF71H	Ferrari 062 EVO	5	Sebastian Vettel	All
				7	Kimi Räikkönen	All
Sahara Force India F1 Team	Force India-Mercedes	VJM11	Mercedes M09 EQ Power+	11	Sergio Pérez	1–12
				31	Esteban Ocon	1–12
Racing Point Force India F1 Team	Force India-Mercedes	VJM11	Mercedes M09 EQ Power+	11	Sergio Pérez	13–21
				31	Esteban Ocon	13–21
Haas F1 Team	Haas-Ferrari	VF-18	Ferrari 062 EVO	8	Romain Grosjean	All
				20	Kevin Magnussen	All
McLaren F1 Team	McLaren-Renault	MCL33	Renault R.E.18	2	Stoffel Vandoorne	All
				14	Fernando Alonso	All
Mercedes AMG Petronas Motorsport	Mercedes	F1 W09 EQ Power+	Mercedes M09 EQ Power+	44	Lewis Hamilton	All
				77	Valtteri Bottas	All
Aston Martin Red Bull Racing	Red Bull Racing	RB14	TAG Heuer F1-2018	3	Daniel Ricciardo	All
				33	Max Verstappen	All
Renault Sport Formula One Team	Renault	R.S.18	Renault R.E.18	27	Nico Hülkenberg	All
				55	Carlos Sainz	All
Alfa Romeo Sauber F1 Team	Sauber-Ferrari	C37	Ferrari 062 EVO	9	Marcus Ericsson	All
				16	Charles Leclerc	All
Red Bull Toro Rosso Honda	Toro Rosso-Honda	STR13	Honda RA618H	10	Pierre Gasly	All
				28	Brendon Hartley	All
Williams Martini Racing	Williams-Mercedes	FW41	Mercedes M09 EQ Power+	18	Lance Stroll	All
				35	Sergey Sirotkin	All

2018 Formula 1 Race Calendar

Round	Grand Prix	Circuit	Date
1	2018 Australian Grand Prix	Albert Park Circuit , Melbourne	25 March
2	2018 Bahrain Grand Prix	Bahrain International Circuit, Sakhir	8 April
3	2018 Chinese Grand Prix	Shanghai International Circuit, Shanghai	15 April
4	2018 Azerbaijan Grand Prix	Baku City Circuit, Baku	29 April
5	2018 Spanish Grand Prix	Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, Montmeló	13 May
6	2018 Monaco Grand Prix	Circuit de Monaco , Monte Carlo	27 May
7	2018 Canadian Grand Prix	Circuit Gilles Villeneuve , Montreal	10 June
8	2018 French Grand Prix	Circuit Paul Ricard, Le Castellet	24 June
9	2018 Austrian Grand Prix	Red Bull Ring, Spielberg	1 July
10	2018 British Grand Prix	Silverstone Circuit , Silverstone	8 July
11	2018 German Grand Prix	Hockenheimring, Hockenheim	22 July
12	2018 Hungarian Grand Prix	Hungaroring , Mogyoród	29 July
13	2018 Belgian Grand Prix	Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot	26 August
14	2018 Italian Grand Prix	Autodromo Nazionale di Monza , Monza	2 September
15	2018 Singapore Grand Prix	Marina Bay Street Circuit, Singapore	16 September
16	2018 Russian Grand Prix	Sochi Autodrom, Sochi	30 September
17	2018 Japanese Grand Prix	Suzuka International Racing Course, Suzuka	7 October
18	2018 United States Grand Prix	Circuit of the Americas, Austin, Texas	21 October
19	2018 Mexican Grand Prix	Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, Mexico City	28 October
20	2018 Brazilian Grand Prix	Autódromo José Carlos Pace , São Paulo	11 November
21	2018 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix	Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi	25 November

2018 Formula 1 Race Results

Round	Grand Prix	Pole position	Fastest lap	Winning driver	Winning constructor	Report
1	2018 Australian Grand Prix	Lewis Hamilton	Daniel Ricciardo	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	Report
2	2018 Bahrain Grand Prix	Sebastian Vettel	Valtteri Bottas	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	Report
3	2018 Chinese Grand Prix	Sebastian Vettel	Daniel Ricciardo	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	Report
4	2018 Azerbaijan Grand Prix	Sebastian Vettel	Valtteri Bottas	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	Report
5	2018 Spanish Grand Prix	Lewis Hamilton	Daniel Ricciardo	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	Report
6	2018 Monaco Grand Prix	Daniel Ricciardo	Max Verstappen	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	Report
7	2018 Canadian Grand Prix	Sebastian Vettel	Max Verstappen	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	Report

2018 Formula 1 Standings

Driver standings

Team standings