Driver prices and how to play the Formula 1 game

F1 is officially underway for 2024 which means the return of its popular fantasy game, where participants can manage their own racing team.

It offers people the opportunity to virtually build a team of drivers and constructors to compete online by scoring points depending on how their squad performs in real life. 

People can now sign up for F1 Fantasy 2024 ahead of the Bahrain Grand Prix on 29 February – 2 March.

How to play F1 Fantasy

F1 Fantasy is free to play, and people can register for the game via the official F1 app or its website where both have a special section dedicated for it. However, to play, a person first needs an F1 account but that is free and very quick to sort.

To play F1 Fantasy for the season-opening Bahrain GP, a person must sign up and create their team by 4pm GMT on Friday 1 March, which is when qualifying starts as the race is on a Saturday due to the start of Ramadan.

However, it is still possible to start playing F1 Fantasy after the opening grand prix, but that would mean missing out on a weekend’s worth of points and potentially starting on the back foot.

Once a person has signed up for F1 Fantasy, it’s time to build a team. F1 Fantasy players have a budget of $100m which must go towards five drivers and two constructors.

Logan Sargeant, Williams W46

Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images

But just because a player has one team for the opening race, it doesn’t mean they must stick to that line-up for the rest of the season. This is because participants are given two free transfers before each grand prix, so they can replace a driver or constructor if they wish.

If an F1 Fantasy player does not use both free transfers at once, one will carry over to the following race where it must then be used because they cannot be accumulated throughout the year. It is also possible to exceed the permitted number of free transfers, but any additional switches will incur a 10-point penalty.

It is also worth watching out for the price changes because they vary after each grand prix depending on performance. So, just because a driver costs a certain amount before the Bahrain GP does not necessarily mean that will be his value come July’s British GP.

Ahead of a grand prix weekend, F1 Fantasy players must also give DRS Boost to one of their drivers, meaning his points tally will be doubled for the round.

F1 Fantasy players are also given six special chips for the season: Autopilot, Extra DRS Boost, No Negative, Wildcard, Limitless and Final Fix.

Each chip can be used just once during a season and only one can be selected per race. The chips have different attributes and help an F1 Fantasy player score additional points over a weekend.

Of the six chips, three can be used instantly – Autopilot, Extra DRS Boost and No Negative – while the remaining ones are available after a player’s opening race. 

Once a team has been created, a person can enter various F1 Fantasy leagues to compete against friends, family or other players. F1 Fantasy leagues work just like a normal league table where the player with the highest points tally will be first before working its way down to whoever has the lowest score.

Charles Leclerc, Ferrari SF-24

Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images

It is possible to compete in private leagues which are invitation-only and they are simple to create as, once logged in, tapping the ‘leagues’ button will take a person to where they need to be. Once the private league has been created, a code and link will be generated which can be shared amongst people. 

F1 Fantasy players are also free to join public leagues, while participants are automatically enrolled into the Global League, Favourite Constructors League, Favourite Drivers League and one for all players based in the same country.

F1 Fantasy scoring system

F1 Fantasy points will be awarded – or deducted – based on the performance of a driver or constructor over a grand prix weekend.

For example, 10 points will be awarded to the driver who achieves pole position before a sliding scale reaches the final point position of 10th.

F1 constructors will score the combined points total of its two drivers in qualifying, while also scoring bonus or negative points for other reasons.

F1 Fantasy points are also awarded on sprint weekends – there will be six in 2024 in China, Miami, Austria, Austin, Brazil and Qatar – where they are given for the finer details of a race like positions gained or lost, as well as finishing position.

Sergio Perez, Red Bull Racing RB20

Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images

A constructor will then score the combined total of its two drivers, like it does for qualifying.

The same bonus points are applied during the grand prix, except the fastest lap is worth 10 points on a Sunday instead of five for the sprint race.

Bonus points are also awarded after a grand prix for F1’s official driver of the day, where a participant will score 10 extra points if one of its drivers receives the award.

Like with qualifying and the sprint race, a constructor will score the combined tally of its driver pairing in the grand prix.

However, if one of its drivers scores driver of the day then the bonus points will not be applied to the constructor. So, if Red Bull finishes 1-2 and Max Verstappen achieves driver of the day, then the team will score 43 points for that and not 53.

An F1 constructor can also score points in other ways as it gets 10 points for having the fastest pit stop, five points for the second quickest stop and three points for the third fastest. It is also possible for a constructor to score 18 points in the pit stops if it has all three of the fastest times.

How does F1 Fantasy work?

In F1 Fantasy, players are allowed up to three separate teams. In each team, players will be given a $100 million budget to select five individual drivers and two constructors, which all have their own unique value. Players must select their teams based on who they think will perform well whilst sticking to the allocated budget.

Guanyu Zhou, Kick Sauber C44

Photo by: Erik Junius

The better the drivers and constructors perform in each race, the more points your team will score. Points will be given for performance in qualifying, race wins and podium finishes, as well as additional points for fastest lap and fast pit stops. Players can also lose points if a driver doesn’t finish a race.

Prices of drivers and constructors will fluctuate based on performance and players will be able to sell and replace parts of their team ahead of each grand prix deadline. You will be allowed up to three substitutions each week, potentially improving your team for more points in each race.

Who are the most expensive drivers in F1 fantasy?

Verstappen is the most expensive driver in F1 Fantasy, which comes as no surprise as he sealed a third drivers’ title by winning a record-breaking 19 of 22 grands prix in 2023.

The Red Bull driver is odds-on favourite to win the championship again, while interestingly McLaren’s Lando Norris is the second most expensive driver and not Verstappen’s team-mate Sergio Perez.

Perez had a disappointing 2023 where he scored less than half of Verstappen’s points tally, while Norris excelled for McLaren scoring a career-best of seven podiums in a single campaign.

Lewis Hamilton, who finished third in the 2023 drivers’ standings, is the fourth most expensive driver at $19.3million while his future Ferrari team-mate in 2025 Charles Leclerc is just $0.2m cheaper after coming fifth in last year’s championship.

This is slightly different to the start of 2023 where Verstappen started the year as the most expensive driver at $26.9m ahead of Hamilton ($23.7m) in second and Leclerc ($21.2m) third. George Russell ($18.6m) and Perez ($18m) rounded up the top five, while Norris was the seventh most expensive driver at $11.2m behind Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz.

Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes W15

Photo by: Erik Junius

Who are the cheapest drivers in F1 Fantasy?

Logan Sargeant is the cheapest driver in F1 Fantasy 2024 after a difficult rookie season where he scored just one point compared to the 27 of Williams team-mate Alex Albon. He is therefore cheaper than both Haas drivers, despite the American outfit finishing last in the 2023 constructors’ championship.

Nico Hulkenberg outscored Kevin Magnussen by six points in 2023 so he is more expensive, while Sauber – known as Alfa Romeo last year – finished next to bottom which has led to its pairing rounding up the five cheapest drivers on F1 Fantasy.

Valtteri Bottas ($6.4m) is also cheaper than team-mate Zhou Guanyu ($6.6m), despite the 10-time grand prix winner finishing four points above the 24-year-old in last season’s championship.

At the start of the 2023 season, Sargeant was also the cheapest driver on F1 Fantasy valued at $4m behind Hulkenberg ($4.3m), Yuki Tsunoda ($4.8m), Zhou ($4.9m) and Nyck de Vries ($5m).

Full price list of drivers in F1 Fantasy

How much do teams cost on F1 Fantasy?

Red Bull is the most expensive constructor in F1 Fantasy 2024 after winning 21 of 22 grands prix last year. The world champions are valued at $27.9m which is $0.7m more than the beginning of 2023, where Red Bull was also the most expensive constructor.

After a strong finish to 2023 where McLaren scored seven podiums in the final eight grands prix, it is the second most expensive constructor with the British outfit worth $23.2m ahead of Mercedes ($20.1m), Ferrari ($19.3m) and Aston Martin ($13.6m).

However, that might come as a surprise given McLaren finished fourth in the 2023 constructors’ championship despite its strong finish, while Mercedes was second to Red Bull and Ferrari third.

F1 Fantasy has also ranked RB as the sixth most expensive constructor after it’s taken a development path similar to sister squad and world champions Red Bull. However, despite a positive 2023 for Williams who came seventh, its best finish since 2017, it is the joint-cheapest constructor alongside Haas.

Meanwhile, Alpine has dropped three places as it was the fourth most expensive constructor at the beginning of 2023. It comes after Alpine had a disappointing 2023 where it finished sixth in the championship, which was the Enstone squad’s lowest position since 2017 when it also came sixth when known as Renault.

Can I win prizes on F1 Fantasy?

F1 Fantasy players can win prizes for having one of the highest-scoring teams globally. Winning the Global League gives a person two paddock club passes to a grand prix next season, while the runner-up gets two champion club tickets – which are only available for selected rounds – to a race in 2025. Finally, whoever finishes third in the Global League will win a £500 F1 Authentics voucher, which is an online auction website for official memorabilia.