F1 Driver Fitness

[NathanOlder]

Hi guys, just wondered if anyone had any info related to how fit the drivers really are. Most of my friends / work friends are football fans (soccer) and really dont believe how fit an F1 driver is.
I seem to remember years ago there was a game show that put different sports people against each other in fitness tests, and I wonder if an F1 driver ever took part in this kind of thing.
Would love to stick it to the football fans who think F1 driver are just "sitting there"

[Big Tea]

James Hunt did the original 'SuperStars' and did well.
His problem was not being able to square his solders on the lift or he may have won. He claimed he was just round shouldered.

Button and Webber do Ironman, not many footballers do that.

[ivanlesk]

Vandorne's (McLaren documentary) preseason looked very painful and iirc Alonso posted few weeks ago some preseason numbers, kilometers etc.

[strad]

I've watched specials where they show that they really bust their asses.

[Manoah2u]

Hi guys, just wondered if anyone had any info related to how fit the drivers really are. Most of my friends / work friends are football fans (soccer) and really dont believe how fit an F1 driver is.
I seem to remember years ago there was a game show that put different sports people against each other in fitness tests, and I wonder if an F1 driver ever took part in this kind of thing.
Would love to stick it to the football fans who think F1 driver are just "sitting there"

F1 drivers are far more fit than footballers, lets start with that.

their necks are the strongest of all, and their fatigue levels aswell. they can do triathlons 'easy' even, take button just as an example, and also on 30+ years of age at that. they have the highest levels of response, and all without using any kind of drugs. their fitness regime is extraordinary, they're constantly working out and have a seriously strict diet.
their recovery time from injury due to their absurd fitness, health and general rythm is almost out-of-this-world.
and then they also perform in some of the hottest countries and areas in the world, whilst having a hot engine behind them, in a tight confinement of a car tub, operating many mechanics and electronics whilst communicating.

f1 drivers are possibly even 'the best out there'.

those armchair specialists saying 'they just sit there', i'd like to see them try a few laps in a kart to start with and see how much they last before being destroyed completely, let alone a 60+ lap race with cars going 300+ khp with triple the G forces of a kart. i'm sure those 'armchair specialists' complain how hard a 2 hour drive in a comfortable family car is, imagine 2 hours of constant battle in a ferocious f1 car.

[JonoNic]

I remember watching this piece when Nico Rosberg was racing for Williams https://youtu.be/YAykMktOsU4

[marmer]

Hi guys, just wondered if anyone had any info related to how fit the drivers really are. Most of my friends / work friends are football fans (soccer) and really dont believe how fit an F1 driver is.
I seem to remember years ago there was a game show that put different sports people against each other in fitness tests, and I wonder if an F1 driver ever took part in this kind of thing.
Would love to stick it to the football fans who think F1 driver are just "sitting there"

F1 drivers are far more fit than footballers, lets start with that.

their necks are the strongest of all, and their fatigue levels aswell. they can do triathlons 'easy' even, take button just as an example, and also on 30+ years of age at that. they have the highest levels of response, and all without using any kind of drugs. their fitness regime is extraordinary, they're constantly working out and have a seriously strict diet.
their recovery time from injury due to their absurd fitness, health and general rythm is almost out-of-this-world.
and then they also perform in some of the hottest countries and areas in the world, whilst having a hot engine behind them, in a tight confinement of a car tub, operating many mechanics and electronics whilst communicating.

f1 drivers are possibly even 'the best out there'.

those armchair specialists saying 'they just sit there', i'd like to see them try a few laps in a kart to start with and see how much they last before being destroyed completely, let alone a 60+ lap race with cars going 300+ khp with triple the G forces of a kart. i'm sure those 'armchair specialists' complain how hard a 2 hour drive in a comfortable family car is, imagine 2 hours of constant battle in a ferocious f1 car.

They are not fitter than footballers and equally footballers are not fitter than F1 drivers

Fitness applies to what you do. No F1 driver on the grid could keep pace in a game of football sure people like Jenson and Webber could run about but not at the speed footballers do.
Equally no footballer could driver at the same speed as an F1 driver for a whole gp they could drive the car slowly and get around but wouldn't be fast or impressive.

But back to the football the reason an F1 driver would struggle if playing in a game against pros even if you adjusted there skill level they don't train for it. They might run and build up stamina and lift weights with legs for power but I don't see why they would do agility work so running backwards and sideways and big bursts of sprinting would show them up.

[adrianjordan]

Well that depends on what you define as "fitness".

If you're talking just plain cardiovascular endurance, then F1 drivers are certainly right up there with Marathon Runners and professional tour cyclists.

[Ennis]

As much as I love F1, there is no way the drivers are anywhere near the fittest.

First - we need to define fittest. They are certainly the most capable of driving an F1 car over long periods of time, often in uncomfortable temperatures, but could they complete a football match at high pace? Could they go 12 rounds in boxing?

So much 'fitness' is sports-specific that I don't know how to objectively measure this.

My feeling though, is F1 drivers aren't near the top from a fitness requirement perspective. Guys like Button are super-fit, but this is partly through hobby. Footballers simply wouldn't be allowed to compete in iron-man type contests as it would bring nothing to their ability to compete at football, and would risk them being injured. If we look to MMA, there are some notorious fighters who also complete iron-man competitions, but there are also 95% who don't and manage to compete just fine.

From the little experience I've had across sports (running, football, karting & fighting), I'd say the sports which involved fighting were the most taxing from a fitness perspective. Any kind of driving the least taxing.

[NathanOlder]

From the little experience I've had across sports (running, football, karting & fighting), I'd say the sports which involved fighting were the most taxing from a fitness perspective. Any kind of driving the least taxing.

Im not so sure, I've never done any fighting so cant comment on that, but I played football (proper football) from when I was a child right up to when i was about 30. Played as a midfielder so did plenty of leg work, but I was always fine because it was rare that you didnt get some sort of rest ever couple of minutes (ball out of play, substitutions ect)
I have also done plenty of Karting at Buckmore Park and when doing races over 30mins in length and having someone on your tail for lap after lap meaning you dont get a rest, and its so mentally draining too as you must not lose concentration for even half a second, I'd say you need to be fitter to do karting than football.

Obviously this is at a very low level so it cant really be compared to professional stuff, but I see in football the ball is out of play a hell of a lot, and and in F1 there is no room for error or a rest. So i'm not so sure. all my opinion of course.

[Postmoe]

Hi guys, just wondered if anyone had any info related to how fit the drivers really are. Most of my friends / work friends are football fans (soccer) and really dont believe how fit an F1 driver is.
I seem to remember years ago there was a game show that put different sports people against each other in fitness tests, and I wonder if an F1 driver ever took part in this kind of thing.
Would love to stick it to the football fans who think F1 driver are just "sitting there"

F1 drivers are far more fit than footballers, lets start with that.

their necks are the strongest of all, and their fatigue levels aswell. they can do triathlons 'easy' even, take button just as an example, and also on 30+ years of age at that. they have the highest levels of response, and all without using any kind of drugs. their fitness regime is extraordinary, they're constantly working out and have a seriously strict diet.
their recovery time from injury due to their absurd fitness, health and general rythm is almost out-of-this-world.
and then they also perform in some of the hottest countries and areas in the world, whilst having a hot engine behind them, in a tight confinement of a car tub, operating many mechanics and electronics whilst communicating.

f1 drivers are possibly even 'the best out there'.

those armchair specialists saying 'they just sit there', i'd like to see them try a few laps in a kart to start with and see how much they last before being destroyed completely, let alone a 60+ lap race with cars going 300+ khp with triple the G forces of a kart. i'm sure those 'armchair specialists' complain how hard a 2 hour drive in a comfortable family car is, imagine 2 hours of constant battle in a ferocious f1 car.

Nope.

There is no way an F1 driver can cope with what a football game demands at high level, same for a football player doing more than 5 laps.

Football players have a highly unbalanced and specialized fitness. Very lean upper torso (except in premier league) and super strong core and legs. Also, drivers lack the proprioception needed to avoid serious injury: they don't know how to handle falls, which, believe me, is one of the most important things in a match.

Playing really well is relatively easy in football, what really stands out for professional players is how incredibly strong they are. Good players tend to be so strong, so dense, you can't imagine.

[jjn9128]

I don't know if F1 drivers are fitter per say than some top footballers (heavy smokers like Rooney and Wilshire definitely), but the different requirements make it hard to compare. As a squash fan I'd say squash players are some of the fittest athletes on the planet - but that's twitch muscle response for high intensity bursts over 1-1.5hrs - they had them wearing heart rate monitors at the last tournament and in rallies they were at 180/190bpm, then in the 30sec rest between points it would drop to 120/130bpm. Put them in a marathon though and they'd be useless. Cycling tour sprinters are also really impressive - because they have to hang in over 100-200km before even getting to the sprint.

Back to the topic I think where F1 drivers definitely have the edge is decision making and cognition under duress. This was an interesting, if over produced, video comparing Button to the Brownlee's (triathletes) - what is interesting is how Button is able to hold his own in the swimming (though his technique is less efficient) and at low intensity cycling - but at higher intensity his core temps rocket.

[Manoah2u]

Fitness applies to what you do. No F1 driver on the grid could keep pace in a game of football

actually, yes, they could.

sure people like Jenson and Webber could run about but not at the speed footballers do.

yes they could

Equally no footballer could driver at the same speed as an F1 driver for a whole gp they could drive the car slowly and get around but wouldn't be fast or impressive.

they couldn't cope more than a lap of 5, their necks can't cope.
exhibit A why f1 drivers are more fit

But back to the football the reason an F1 driver would struggle if playing in a game against pros even if you adjusted there skill level they don't train for it. They might run and build up stamina and lift weights with legs for power but I don't see why they would do agility work so running backwards and sideways and big bursts of sprinting would show them up.

lol, you severely underestimate the pedal work for f1 drivers, cornering, etc. etc. go ahead and see how they train.
seriously, go and investigate.

you seem to mix up fitness with talent.

there are plenty of very fit football players that don't have the talent to 'make the cut' either.
just as in f1, or any sport.

F1 drivers are as fit or perhaps even fitter than football players,
they 'just' (which is actually very important) not talented enough nor motivated enough to get the same results.

[Ennis]

From the little experience I've had across sports (running, football, karting & fighting), I'd say the sports which involved fighting were the most taxing from a fitness perspective. Any kind of driving the least taxing.

Im not so sure, I've never done any fighting so cant comment on that, but I played football (proper football) from when I was a child right up to when i was about 30. Played as a midfielder so did plenty of leg work, but I was always fine because it was rare that you didnt get some sort of rest ever couple of minutes (ball out of play, substitutions ect)
I have also done plenty of Karting at Buckmore Park and when doing races over 30mins in length and having someone on your tail for lap after lap meaning you dont get a rest, and its so mentally draining too as you must not lose concentration for even half a second, I'd say you need to be fitter to do karting than football.

Obviously this is at a very low level so it cant really be compared to professional stuff, but I see in football the ball is out of play a hell of a lot, and and in F1 there is no room for error or a rest. So i'm not so sure. all my opinion of course.

I'd say this then comes down to what 'fitness' really means. F1 drivers need to have a maniacal focus for periods of time which footballers will never need to come near to. Amateur example, but I remember playing duration races in Gran Turismo and going in to an almost trance-like state (which is when I also hit my best laptimes). I'd hit the end and wonder where I'd been for the last hour. Football is much more on and off mentally than that.

The ball is out of play for around 30 mins in a 90 minute game. This isn't always a rest though, especially at the high level where there's movement happening around the ball to try and open up space to receive the ball.

This is all a completely subjective debate, of course. My definition of fitness is how long can your body sustain a certain physical output for.. which is impossible to measure, when you consider a marathon runner goes at a steady state, fighters have a steady state with a lot of explosion in between, etc. I don't consider footballers to be the peak or anywhere near it either btw - my opinion is this is going to sit with cyclists, marathon runners/iron-man type competitors, or some sort of combat sport.

[Jolle]

From the little experience I've had across sports (running, football, karting & fighting), I'd say the sports which involved fighting were the most taxing from a fitness perspective. Any kind of driving the least taxing.

Im not so sure, I've never done any fighting so cant comment on that, but I played football (proper football) from when I was a child right up to when i was about 30. Played as a midfielder so did plenty of leg work, but I was always fine because it was rare that you didnt get some sort of rest ever couple of minutes (ball out of play, substitutions ect)
I have also done plenty of Karting at Buckmore Park and when doing races over 30mins in length and having someone on your tail for lap after lap meaning you dont get a rest, and its so mentally draining too as you must not lose concentration for even half a second, I'd say you need to be fitter to do karting than football.

Obviously this is at a very low level so it cant really be compared to professional stuff, but I see in football the ball is out of play a hell of a lot, and and in F1 there is no room for error or a rest. So i'm not so sure. all my opinion of course.

I'd say this then comes down to what 'fitness' really means. F1 drivers need to have a maniacal focus for periods of time which footballers will never need to come near to. Amateur example, but I remember playing duration races in Gran Turismo and going in to an almost trance-like state (which is when I also hit my best laptimes). I'd hit the end and wonder where I'd been for the last hour. Football is much more on and off mentally than that.

The ball is out of play for around 30 mins in a 90 minute game. This isn't always a rest though, especially at the high level where there's movement happening around the ball to try and open up space to receive the ball.

This is all a completely subjective debate, of course. My definition of fitness is how long can your body sustain a certain physical output for.. which is impossible to measure, when you consider a marathon runner goes at a steady state, fighters have a steady state with a lot of explosion in between, etc. I don't consider footballers to be the peak or anywhere near it either btw - my opinion is this is going to sit with cyclists, marathon runners/iron-man type competitors, or some sort of combat sport.

The experience you describe is called "flow" and it's the primary reason for happiness.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flow_(psychology)

F1 is a very demanding sport because it aks a lot from your mind, staying focussed for 1.30 hours and the physical strain on the body, mostly static. Plus there is no place to hide or rest...

I think most pro-athletes who try to maximise their sport are top-fit. There is always that little bit more they could do to be better, faster, etc etc.