Oldest F1 team: Ferrari, and how old every team on the 2026 grid is

Which is the oldest F1 team?

Ferrari. They have raced in the World Championship since its first season in 1950 and have not missed one since: 2026 is their 77th season in a row. Formula 1 itself calls Ferrari the oldest and most successful team in the championship.

The team is older than the championship. According to Formula 1, Enzo Ferrari founded Scuderia Ferrari in 1929: at first it entered cars built by Alfa Romeo, and it has built its own since 1947. Ferrari did not take part in the first championship race, the 1950 British Grand Prix. Their first start was the Monaco Grand Prix on 21 May 1950.

How old is each team on the 2026 grid?

The table lists all 11 teams of the 2026 season by the f1db lineage: the year each team joined the championship, what it was at the start and the year it took its current name. What counts as “the same team” is explained in the next section.

The top four are Ferrari, McLaren, Mercedes and Williams, and Formula 1 gives the same years for them. Mercedes have raced under their own name only since 2010, but we count their age from Tyrrell — the next section explains why. The youngest team of 2026 is Cadillac, whose first start came on 8 March 2026 in Australia. Audi made their debut on the same day, but by the lineage they continue the Sauber team of 1993.

What counts as the same team

We go by the f1db lineage — the same one as on our team lineage page. A team stays the same if it was bought or renamed and carried on racing without a break, even if the new owner lodged a new entry with the FIA. A team built from scratch is new, even if it has a famous name.

• Mercedes. Today’s team began as Tyrrell in 1970. From 1999 it raced as BAR, then as Honda and Brawn, and since 2010 it has been Mercedes. The Mercedes of 1954–1955 is a different team: it left the championship for several decades.
• Aston Martin. A team called Aston Martin raced in the championship in 1959–1960, then left. Today’s team began as Jordan in 1991 and brought the name back to the grid in 2021, 61 years later.
• Red Bull. The team began as Stewart Grand Prix, set up by Jackie Stewart and his son in 1997. Ford then bought it and renamed it Jaguar from 2000, and since 2005 it has been Red Bull.
• Alfa Romeo. This name has been used in three different eras: 1950–1951, 1979–1985 and 2019–2023. Most recently it was carried by the Sauber team, which has been called Audi since 2026.

The same name doesn’t mean the same team. That is why, for six of the 11 teams, the year in the “In the championship since” column and the year of the current name differ.

Where Formula 1’s count differs

Each team page on formula1.com has a “First Team Entry” line. For eight teams the year matches the lineage, and for three it doesn’t. We go by the lineage and give Formula 1’s year for comparison.

The Aston Martin story is the most tangled. In July 2018 Force India went into administration and was bought by a consortium led by Lawrence Stroll. On 23 August 2018 the FIA accepted a new entry from Racing Point Force India and excluded the old one from the championship, and its Constructors’ points were lost. The staff and the base at Silverstone stayed the same, and in f1db the chain from Jordan is unbroken.

Who has raced the longest without a break?

Ferrari: 77 seasons in a row, from 1950 to 2026. McLaren are second with 61 seasons, and Mercedes third with 57, counting Tyrrell. The table shows the longest runs of consecutive seasons by the same f1db lineage, with 2026 included.

Of these ten, only Lotus are not racing in 2026: Team Lotus left the championship after the 1994 season. None of the 11 teams of 2026 has missed a season since its first start. Of the teams that have gone, the longest runs after Lotus belong to Brabham (1962–1987) and to Ligier together with Prost (1976–2001), 26 seasons each.

How McLaren, Williams and Mercedes began

McLaren. Bruce McLaren founded the team in 1963, and three years later it made its Formula 1 debut at the 1966 Monaco Grand Prix on 22 May. There was a single car, driven by the founder himself. McLaren gave his team its first win at the 1968 Belgian Grand Prix.

Williams. Williams were founded by Frank Williams and Patrick Head in 1977 and entered their first car the following season: their first start was the Argentine Grand Prix on 15 January 1978. Frank Williams also had an earlier team, but f1db treats it as a separate chain: Politoys, Iso-Marlboro, Frank Williams Racing Cars, Wolf-Williams and, in 1977–1979, Wolf.

Mercedes. The roots of today’s team are in Tyrrell: as a constructor, Tyrrell first started a race at the Canadian Grand Prix on 20 September 1970.

How many Constructors’ titles the oldest teams have won is covered in the list of Constructors’ Champions by year.