Formula 1 beginner's guide: 2023 season preview and F1 explained
New to Formula 1? We've got you covered with a comprehensive beginner's guide to the sport.
Welcome to Formula 1. The globe-trotting carnival of motorsport has swept up legions of new fans over recent years, and we're on hand to bring you a whistle-stop guide to the sport as the first race approaches.
A stunning title duel between Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton during the 2021 season and the global success of smash-hit Netflix documentary series Formula 1: Drive to Survive have combined to super-charge the very shape of the sport.
An explosion of interest across the US has led to three races being held stateside in 2023, while the usual plethora of iconic circuits – Monza, Silverstone, Spa, Monaco – return to the bumper 23-race calendar.
If you have entered the sport via F1: Drive to Survive or have simply been enticed by the increasingly mainstream coverage of the races, you are most welcome here.
We have picked through Google data to find the questions you are asking, the rules and intricacies you want to know more about, and we've rounded up everything we have to offer right here in this page.
Whether you want to delve into the full F1 driver line-up or the F1 calendar 2023, whether you're desperate to know what DRS means or simply how fast F1 cars can go, we've got you covered, explained in terms that don't require decades of knowledge in the bank.
RadioTimes.com brings you our comprehensive F1 beginner's guide for the 2023 season.
How does F1 work?
The premise is simple. 10 teams and 20 drivers race around 23 tracks across the world. Points are awarded to the top 10 with first place receiving 25 points and those behind collecting incrementally lower amounts.
Race weekends traditionally begin with practice on Fridays, qualifying on Saturdays and topped off with the main event, a Grand Prix, on Sundays. This can vary, so keep checking our schedule page for the latest details and start times.
We have rounded up the full 2023 calendar for you, as well as a look at how long races last and how qualifying works.
Scroll down the page for more intricate details of the sport, including an explanation of a few key terms, F1 car details and some of the best F1 drivers of all time.
F1 on TV
TV coverage of Formula 1 is crucial. Attending races can be an expensive business once you start adding flights and hotels to your race weekend ticket.
That makes Sky Sports' job all the more important as they beam live coverage of every single single race weekend session directly to our homes across the nation.
- How to watch F1 in the UK
- How to watch F1 on Channel 4
- How to watch F1 highlights
- Meet the Sky F1 presenters and commentators
F1 drivers and teams 2023
- Red Bull (Max Verstappen - Sergio Perez)
- Ferrari (Charles Leclerc - Carlos Sainz)
- Mercedes (Lewis Hamilton - George Russell)
- Alpine (Esteban Ocon - Pierre Gasly)
- McLaren (Lando Norris - Oscar Piastri)
- Alfa Romeo (Valtteri Bottas - Zhou Guanyu)
- Aston Martin (Lance Stroll - Fernando Alonso)
- Haas (Kevin Magnussen - Nico Hulkenberg)
- AlphaTauri (Yuki Tsunoda - Nyck de Vries)
- Williams (Alex Albon - Logan Sargeant)
Check out all the movers and shakers in 2023 – and their performances last season – in our F1 drivers and teams guide.
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F1 FAQs
You know those questions you're too afraid to ask for fear of mocking laughter in response? Those questions you feel you ought to know the answers to, but have never actually heard them explained.
Come right this way. There are no silly questions, and here are just a few examples of the big questions you have been asking.
- What is DRS?
- What does interval mean?
- Why do F1 cars need warm tyres?
- How fast is an F1 car?
- How heavy is an F1 car?
- What do the flags mean in F1?
- What is the most dangerous F1 track?
- How much do F1 drivers get paid?
The best of F1
We round up some of the finest drivers and tracks in the history of Formula 1. If you want to build some of your historical background of the sport, this is where you can make a solid start.
You may have heard of Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost, but just how good were they at their prime? And if you grew up in the '90s, Michael Schumacher was synonymous with the sport, whether you watched it or not.
Delve into the record books to check out the most successful drivers ever to land on the grid.
- Best F1 drivers of all time
- Best F1 tracks: Top circuits ranked
- Who has won the most F1 championships?
- Which driver has won most races in history?
- Which driver has most F1 pole positions?
- Which driver has finished on the podium most?
If you’re looking for something else to watch, check out our TV Guide or Streaming Guide or visit our Sport hub for all the latest news.
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Authors
Michael Potts is the Sport Editor for Radio Times, covering all of the biggest sporting events across the globe with previews, features, interviews and more. He has worked for Radio Times since 2019 and previously worked on the sport desk at Express.co.uk after starting his career writing features for What Culture. He achieved a first-class degree in Sports Journalism in 2014.
