In this one, it's all about racing driver. Being a big motorsports fan myself, I have always looked up to these guys with their daredevil attitude to tackle the fastest machines in the world, fighting G-Foces 4 times their weight sometimes and still make everything look like a normal day at work. So here's my 30 favourite motorsports drivers.
Like the wrestling list, only the first ten were truly ranked, the rest of the 20 I just tried to get as many guys who I've been a fan of over the years included.
#30 Sebastien Bourdais
Easy one here, always liked what he did in ChampCar and I always thought he did alright in F1 considering he was paired against Vettel of all people. Special mention for the fact that he's the first motorsports driver I ever met back in 2008 before the first Singapore Grand Prix at a random Puma store.
#29 Kyle Larson
I still think he's the future of NASCAR even though I've stopped following the series since Jeff Gordon retired. Showed a lot of promise at such a young age, pretty much became my next favourite guy in that series.
#28 Romain Grosjean
Another good French driver on this list that I feel has had the short end of the stick. Fared really well against Kimi Raikkonen in Lotus but just hasn't been the same guy since his issues after the 2012 crash. Lovely fella too, was nice to me the two times I've met him.
#27 Gilles Villeneuve
One of two guys on this list I never axtually got to see in action but became fans of hist reading about him and watching old tapes of him. One of the greatest drivers never to have been F1 world champion.
#26 David Coulthard
Another guy who had his shot at the top teams but sadly never quite got the world championship. Was a big fan of McLaren during that era so I found myself cheering for DC a lot. Also the only F1 driver ever I can claim to have raced against with.
#25 Kimi Räikkönen
What can I say about this guy you don't already know. Showed his speed at suxh a young age and even now 40, he's still at the top of his game. Always been a fan of the Iceman before he moved to Ferrari.
#24 Josef Newgarden
The more I watch him in IndyCar these days, the more impressed I am by his driving. As if winning the championship in his first year with Team Penske, he just did the double. And he's a funny guy too. The scary thing is that he's still so young!
#23 Sebastian Vettel
He was impressive the moment he got in am F1 car and I became a fan. Touted as the next Schumacher, it looked as if he will be the one to break all the records, winning 4 world titles in a row. Sadly he moved to Ferrari and has never looked like his old self since and now Lewis Hamilton is the one breaking all the records. Like Kimi, stopped liking him when he joined Ferrari.
#22 Michael Schumacher
Was never a fan of Ferrari so I hated him early on but I can have to give him his due, the things he's done are impressive. I was cheering him on when he came back with Mercedes. Still cheering him on to recover from his injury.
#21 Giancarlo Fisichella
Always thought he deserved better in his career. Fisi always shone in cars that were nit that good, scoring a few podiums. But when he was with Renault and Ferrari, he never did replicate that form.
#20 Takuma Sato
No attack. No chance. Love that mantra Taku-san lives by. Always liked him but became a bigger fan when he moved to IndyCar and showed his true potential. Now he's an Indianapolis 500 winner, not many people can claim that accolade.
#19 Helio Castroneves
One of the first few guys to catch my attention when I started watching IndyCars, became a fan and stayed that way. Shame he never did win the IndyCar championship but 3 Indy 500 wins is still an amazing feat.
#18 Carlos Sainz
I always knew he was good, just never had the chance to show it until his move to McLaren. For me, he was the best F1 driver of 2019 and has made a fan out of me this year. Showed glimpses of those brilliance in Toro Rosso and it does make you wonder, why did Red Bull let him go?
#17 James Hinchcliffe
One of the funniest guys in IndyCar but also one of the best drivers. Just never truly had the car/team combo to shine yet but he has proven with Andretti, he's as good as anyone in the right machine.
#16 Lando Norris
Made a fan out of me during his GP2 season last year and even more this year in F1. Kid's got a bright future ahead of him sbd he's also one of the funniest guys in F1. Can't wait to see what more he can do in the upcoming years.
#15 Dan Wheldon
Tbe winner of the very first IndyCar race I ever watched and I have been in awe of him ever since. Followed his career the whole way, was elated when he won the Indy 500 as a part timer driver in 2011 but was devastated when he was killed in that season's finale race at Las Vegas.
#14 Max Verstappen
He was impressive the moment he got in am F1 car and I became a fan. Yup I might have repeated myself but that's the very feeling I got with Vettel, the next best thing to come in F1. Sure Verstappen hasn't gotten himself in a position to fight for a world championship yet but he's already finished 3rd in the world championship in a car that clearly only the 3rd fastest. I'd say the best raw talent in F1 going today.
#13 Alexander Rossi
I had been following his junior career before he made his F1 debut in Singapore and I was psyched for him, he had proven his worth in those junior categories. And now that he's moved to IndyCar, he's shown why is he one of the best drivers going today, consistently finding himself in a position to fight for race wins, and on any type of circuit too!
#12 Fernando Alonso
What more can I say about the legend that is Fernando Alonso? Super fast even in a Minardi, and his first year at Renault caught my attention so I followed him ever since. It's a shame Ferrari never gave him the tools to win a 3rd world championship when he should have easily been a 4 or even 5 time world championship. Even showed his versatility by being straight on the pace during his first Indianapolis 500, fighting for the lead most of the way and also winning in his first Le Mans 24 hour race. Surely he will be the second guy to complete the Triple Crown of Motorsports.
#11 Jeff Gordon
Never did watch NASCAR much but one thing was for sure, I was always tuning in to see how Jeff Gordon did. Not sure how I became a fan but I did and it stayed that way until his retirement. So much so I even have a shirt of him, same can't be said about other drivers. He always seemed to find a way to get himself winning races when he shouldn't.
#10 Will Power
One of the best drivers of his generation when it comes to IndyCars. Power always showed his speed ever since joining Penske and race wins came so easily, but on just the road/street courses and because of that would always miss out on that championship. So the fact that he does have a championship win, an Indy 500 win and is now one of the best on ovals just shows how good he truly is.
#9 Nico Hulkenberg
It's a real shame that Das Hulk won't be in F1 after next year, I was always a big fan of him. He's always proven himself in midfield cars, putting them in positions they really shouldn't be. Perhaps he just never had the luck, so many times it looked as if he'd get a podium only for something to happen. A great dude as well, everytime I've met him, he was always nice enough to sign stuff and chat for a bit too.
#8 Aytron Senna
Senna was easily the best driver to ever step foot in a Formula One car but I never got to see him in action as he passed before I got into F1. But reading stuff from the past, watching his documentaries and videos about him, it's not hard to see why he was so highly regarded by all the drivers. Just watch him in action in the rain and that says a lot.
#7 Mika Hakkinen
An early favourite of mine growing up just because I didn't want to follow suite and support Schumacher but I did like Hakkinen's determination in those races. He was just so good and at times when it look like he shouldn't win, he pulls it out. Always been a fan of these Finnish guys I noticed too. And of course, that overtake in Spa in 2000, pure magic.
#6 Mark Webber
Good old Aussie Grit. Always had the speed just never had the luck. Always thought he was one of the best drivers of his generation, but unluckily for him, he had Vettel as a teammate who was unstoppable. Be it with a top team or a midfield team, it was always fun watching him fight his way through any battles.
#5 Jenson Button
Another guy who I became a fan of after seeing him in action for just a few races with Williams. Always knew JB was good, possibly even good enough to be a world champion and it was a shame it took a long time for it to happen but it did in 2009. His years with McLaren pretty much showed he was a match for anyone on his day, beating Lewis Hamilton more times than not.
#4 Nick Heidfeld
Easily the best driver I've seen in F1 who sadly never got to win a race. And to be fair to Quick Nick, he was never given a chance to win a race. And the two times he found himself in a position, both were taken from him but strategy and my his team favouring the other guy. Always thought he was one of the better drivers around.
#3 Ralf Schumacher
While my family were mostly Michael Schumacher fans, I wasn't on board that train. Mika was the guy for me until I saw Michael's younger brother Ralf in action for Williams, doing things in the car back in 1999 when it really shouldn't. Hopped onto his bandwagon ever since. On his day, he was a match for even the best in the business. Shame he never had that consistency to make a run for the world championship.
#2 Ryan Briscoe
He's the main reason I got into IndyCars in the first place. I had been following his junior career and flipping through Autosport, I had read that he was joined IndyCar in 2005 which was also the first year we got it on TV and I thought, let's just watch it. Been hooked since and I've been lucky enough to see my favourite win a few races for Team Penske, the best being his last win in Sonoma in 2014 as I was there live watching it! Still is a great racer over in endurance racing these days.
#1 Daniel Ricciardo
Surprised to see him at #1? I think I can confidently say he's now my favourite driver of all time in F1. Maybe the best overtaker in F1 the past few years and I do like good racing. An all round good dude, everytime I've met him, he's been nice to me. And of course one of the funniest human beings around. But he's also one of the fastest drivers around. Shame he hasn't gotten himself in a position to fight for a world championship, he'd be a hard one to fend off.
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