Lists are by their very nature subjective, which is why they often cause such heated debate.

But what if you used only statistics as part of an analysis by scientists at the University of Sheffield, surely then you could rule out all the bickering?

Of course not, because according to that study the greatest F1 driver of all time is the Argentinian Juan Manuel Fangio. Cue some hasty Google searches, although Huffington Post have summed up how scientists came to that conclusion:

To compensate for all the variables, the researchers created a “multilevel” statistical model. It took into account team and driver performance between 1950 and 2014, along with the weather conditions in which the drivers competed and the tracks they drove on. ..

…the research shows that the legendary Argentinian driver — who in the 1950s won five world championships for four different teams — towers above all others in terms of his overall performance as a driver.

What about Michael Schumacher? The celebrated German driver notched more wins (91) and more world championships (seven) than any other F1 driver in history…but is #8 on the new list of all-time greats.

Other marquee names didn’t fare especially well either. Ayrton Senna, a favorite of many F1 fans, won three world championships but is only #4 on the list. Lewis Hamilton, another three-time world champion who is still driving, is #12. Niki Lauda failed to make the top 100 even though he too is a three-time world champ (he ranked #142 on the list).

Some lesser-known drivers scored surprisingly high on the list. Christian Fittipaldi, for example, is just out of the top 10 in position #11.

You can see some footage of Fangio in action below:

The full list of the top 10 then:

1. Juan Manuel Fangio (Argentina)
2. Alain Prost (France)
3. Jim Clark (UK)
4. Ayrton Senna (Brazil)
5. Fernando Alonso (Spain)
6. Nelson Piquet (Brazil)
7. Jackie Stewart (UK)
8. Michael Schumacher (Germany)
9. Emerson Fittipaldi (Brazil)
10. Sebastian Vettel (Germany)

Here’s a handy infographic that illustrates in greater detail how they reached their conclusion. Click the image for the full pop-out infographic.

I can almost hear the Schumi fans chomping at the bit…

[source:huffingtonpost]

[imagesource:here]