Photo © United Autosports, 2018 — Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Source: Flickr (United Autosports) (IMAGE: CREDIT LINKS AT THE END OF THE CONTENT)
Daytona sits in a very different world to Formula 1. Yet across decades, F1 champions at Daytona have proven that Grand Prix talent can adapt to one of motorsport’s toughest endurance challenges.
So why is that? No short sprints, no perfectly timed qualifying laps, no Sunday afternoon glory decided in two hours.
Daytona is about survival, rhythm, teamwork and patience over an entire day and night.
Yet despite those differences, the race has repeatedly attracted the biggest names in Grand Prix history.
Across decades, F1 champions have crossed the Antlantic to test themselves on the high banks and tight infield of Daytona.
Some arrived at the end of their careers; some earlier and others after stepping away from F1 altogether.
What links them is curiosity, confidence and a desire to prove that elite driving talent translates beyond single-seaters.
F1 Champions at Daytona list:
Each leaving a unique mark on one of motorsport’s most demanding endurance races.
Jack Brabham
Jack Brabham was never afraid of unfamiliar territory, he was three time world champion in F1 and the only man to win the title in a car bearing his own name, he approached daytona with the same practical mindset that defined his F1 career.
When Brabham competed at Daytona, endurance racing was still raw and physically punishing.
Heavy cars, braking zones were brutal and mechanical sympathy mattered as much as outright speed.
Jack Brabham finished 10th overall in his only appearance in 1970, driving a Matra MS650.
Phil Hill
Phill Hill remains a unique figure in F1 history as America’s only native F1 champion, winning the title in 1961 driving for Ferrari.
He once said that he is in the wrong business, because racing is too risky but endurance racing was always part of his DNA.
However, Daytona suited Hill’s smooth, mechanical-friendly driving and he understood how to nurse machinery, read evolving track conditions, and think hours ahead rather than corners ahead.
In 1962, first time at Daytona, Phil Hill managed to finish in the second place, partnered with the Mexican legend Ricardo Rodriguez.
Phil Hill best race came at came in 1964, winning the Daytona 2000 KM continental with Pedro Rodriguez.
He also competed in 1966 and in 1967, but he did not finish in both races.
Denis Hulme
He carried a reputation as one of the toughtest drivers F1 ever produced.
The 1967 champion was not flashy, not theatrical but relentlessly effective and that mindset translated perfectly to Daytona.
Hulme competed twice in Daytona but he did not finish the races.
Mario Andretti
If one name truly links F1 and American motorsport, it is Mario Andretti.
The 1978 world champion in Formula 1 achieved something no other driver has ever matched, winning at Indianapolis 500, Daytona 500 and F1 championship.
Andretti’s relationship with Daytona goes even deeper, he claimed overall victory in the 1972 Daytona endurance race, which at the time was run over six hours than the mdoern 24.
Jenson Button
Another F1 champions, his driving style was built for endurance racing long before he ever entered a Daytona cockpit.
Button made his Daytona debut in 2024 and finished on the podium, an impressive result considered the complexity of modern endurance.
However, Jenson Button won the title in F1 driving for Brawn Grand Prix in 2009.
Fernando Alonso
Fernando Alonso’s endurance racing chapter may be one of the most impressive transitions by any F1 champion.
Already a two-time world champion in Formula 1, Alonso approached Daytona not as a guest appearance, but as a serious competitive objective.
After gaining experience across endurance competitions, Alonso won the Rolex 24 at Daytona outright in 2019.
He managed traffic aggressively; extracted speed when needed and understood when patience mattered more than lap time.
Beyond the Champions: F1 drivers who competed Daytona
While world champions attract the headlines, Daytona has also welcomed a long list of former F1 drivers who brought depth and credibility to the event.
Felipe Massa, Romain Grosjean, Kevin Magnussen, Kamui Kobayashi, and Brendon Hartley have all competed at Daytona.
Why Daytona Continues to Attract F1 Champions
The appeal is simple, Daytona offers something F1 cannot; uncertainty.
Weather chaanges, traffic never stops and the race unfolds over an entire day rather than a single afternoon.
For F1 champions, it is a chance to rediscover racing in its purest form, where success depends not only on talent, but endurance, trust and judgement.
That is why the list of F1 champions who drove at Daytona continues to grow, and why the Rolex 24 remains one of motorsport’s most respected cross-disciplinary challenges.
Photo © United Autosports, 2018 — Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0
Source: Flickr (United Autosports)
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