Top 3 worst F1 cars to win Grand prix

The world championship Formula 1 races have occasionally been won by vehicles that hardly ever appeared to be candidates for victory. Who among the group was the worst, though?

Ferrari F60 in a file photo (image: Twitter)
By Mahaksh Chauhan | Feb 5, 2023 | 3 Min Read follow icon Follow Us

In Formula 1, the majority of winning cars are unique. Given the dependability of current racing vehicles, the intensity of competition ensures that truly subpar designs are rarely found on the podium. However, occasionally a confluence of good fortune, inspiration, and/or peculiar weather grants underdog automobiles their day in the spotlight. We considered the automobiles’ general speed, dependability, how challenging they were to drive, and the circumstances surrounding their achievement when compiling this list.

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3. Ferrari F60

The Ferrari vehicle for the 2009 F1 regulations was subpar. Along with failing to adopt the double-diffuser technique, which Brawn used to great advantage, the team’s F60 also lacked the correct weight distribution due to its KERS, albeit a larger wheelbase introduced at the British GP in June helped. Due to testing limitations and Ferrari’s disagreement with the legality of the double diffuser, the company didn’t react as soon as it might have. It also occasionally had trouble getting the best performance out of the Bridgestone tyres. In that season, the top eight cars earned points, and it took Kimi Raikkonen and Felipe Massa four races to start Ferrari off. During a strong four-race run, Raikkonen overcame Giancarlo Fisichella’s KERS-less Force India to win at Spa thanks to a safety car he helped to create and KERS, but the appalling (and pointless) performances of Luca Badoer and Fisichella, both of whom replaced Massa after his serious Hungary qualifying crash, highlighted how challenging the car was.

2. Toro Rosso STR3

Despite the sporadic eye-catching qualifying results, frequently brought on by Pirelli tyres, Minardi was considerably more likely to place last than first. And even after Red Bull acquired the team and changed its name to Toro Rosso (before changing it to AlphaTauri for 2005), nothing seemed to alter dramatically. The STR3, which debuted for the season’s sixth race in 2008, was actually a Red Bull RB4 with a Ferrari engine in place of a Renault one. During a season that was primarily controlled by McLaren and Ferrari, Sebastian Vettel was able to win points with it frequently.

But only once did it even resemble a potential winner. It was competitive at Monza thanks to a number of factors, including the rain, Vettel’s skill, Ferrari’s strength, and a weight distribution that was farther to the rear than others. Vettel finished first in qualifying and went on to win the race well, the first for both the team and the driver, despite a chaotic moment. With a package that wasn’t meant to be that close to the podium, it was an amazing day, according to Vettel. Nevertheless, Toro Rosso came in sixth place in the constructors’ standings and wouldn’t finish on the podium again for more than ten years.

1. Ligier JS43

Oliver Panis’ “day of days” gave the JS43 a startling victory in one of those infrequently occurring insane Monaco GPs. The Mugen-Honda-powered Ligier, which was 2.502% slower than the Williams FW18 on average, was the seventh-fastest vehicle in 1996. To put that into context, compare it to the gap between the Ferrari and Williams vehicles that set the pace in 2022. In Monaco, Panis qualified 14th, two seconds off Michael Schumacher’s daring Ferrari pole position. However, the wet race turned out to be a battle of wits, and Panis was motivated.

Panis moved up to third place by the time the remaining competitors switched to slick tyres, trailing only Damon Hill’s Williams and Jean Alesi’s Benetton. When Panis’ Renault engine blew up on lap 41 of what would have been a 75-lap race due to the two-hour restriction, Hill was 26.3 seconds ahead and 48.5 seconds behind. Alesi thereafter held the lead until his retirement with 16 laps remaining due to suspension damage. Despite fuel worries, Panis took over at the front and successfully held David Coulthard’s McLaren at bay to win his sole world championship and the eighth and final for the French squad. In the remaining 15 races of 1996, Ligier only accrued five points, but the 10 points from Monaco allowed it to place sixth in the constructors’ standings in Ligier’s final season before changing its name to Prost.