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F1 is a young man's game. You talk about the demands of driving the fastest car over some of the most challenging tracks then it's hard to see anything that says 'older age' is a benefit. Well, it surely helps to have experience and that plays a role but most of the physical as well as mental demands tend to gyrate towards a younger athlete.
It is because of this that drivers like Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso are given so much respect for being this competitive at such advanced age. It does, however, beg the question of which drivers in the past were able to overcome this age barrier and win the title.
In this feature, we will be doing just that as we take a look at the top five oldest F1 world champions in history.
Oldest F1 world champions in history
#5 Nigel Mansell - 39 years, 8 days (1992)
Nigel Mansell's first and only title in 1992 was the one that everybody was happy to see. The Brit had been a gutsy frontrunner throughout his career and was almost done with the sport after major heartbreak moments in his career.
Whether it was losing the title in the last race of the season to Alain Prost because of a tire failure or a complete breakdown of relationship at Ferrari, the driver never quite achieved in terms of titles what he deserved.
All of this did, however, change in 1992 when out of nowhere Nigel Mansell had the best car on the grid by some distance. With a decent teammate in Riccardo Patresse playing the role of a rearguard, Mansell romped to his first and only F1 title in dominant fashion at the ripe age of 39.
On the way, he also became the fifth oldest driver in the history of the sport to win the title.
#4 Graham Hill - 39 years, 262 days (1968)
Graham Hill, father of former F1 champion and Sky Sports pundit Damon Hill, was a legend in his own right. A driver with an enviable record in multiple racing categories, Hill's true brilliance came to the fore once Lotus lead driver Jochen Rindt lost his life.
It was at that Graham took over the role of a leader within the team and started guiding it towards some very impressive results.
What made his career even more impressive was that he achieved all of this at a very advanced age and won the 1968 F1 Championship when he was 39.
#3 Jack Brabham - 40 years, 155 days (1966)
The founder of one of the very successful teams of its time, Jack Brabham was also a brilliant racer as well. An all-time great in his own right and a title winner in 1959 and 1960, Brabham took things to a whole another level when he started his own team.
Driving for his team named 'Brabham', Jack went on to win the title six years after his last one in 1966.
What made it even more special was that he had just turned 40 years of age that season when he had that accomplishment.
#2 Giuseppe Farina - 43 years, 308 days (1950)
The first-ever F1 world champion! Nino Farina as he was called endearingly was the first driver to win the title. He did it in 1950 and was one of the very drivers of that era that had raced pre and post-World Wars.
The driver admirably etched his name in history with what he was able to do in the very first world championship.
Even today, he still remains the second-oldest driver to ever win an F1 title at the ripe old age of 43.
#1 Juan Manuel Fangio - 46 years, 41 days (1957)
A driver who is still considered the GOAT by so many fans, Juan Manuel Fangio was the true definition of brilliance in the first few decades of the sport.
He went on to win as many as five world championships in his career but to date, it is his final world championship that is the most endearing.
The Argentine won his fifth world championship in 1958 when he was 46 years of age. To date, Fangio remains the oldest driver to ever win an F1 title.
