HistoryData
sports2007

2007 Formula One World Championship — 61st season of Formula One motor racing

January 1, 2007

Kimi Räikkönen won the 2007 Drivers' Championship by one point, while McLaren were excluded from the Constructors' Championship amid an espionage scandal.

Quick Facts

Year
2007
Category
sports

Key Facts

Season number
61st FIA Formula One season
Races
17 events
Drivers' Champion
Kimi Räikkönen (Ferrari)
Championship margin
Won by 1 point
Constructors' Champion
Ferrari (McLaren excluded)
Season span
18 March – 21 October 2007

By the Numbers

61
Season number
17
Races
1
Championship margin
18
Season span

Cause → Event → Consequence

Cause

McLaren became embroiled in an espionage controversy after obtaining confidential Ferrari technical data, prompting the FIA to exclude the team from the Constructors' Championship. Meanwhile, three drivers — Räikkönen, Lewis Hamilton, and Fernando Alonso — entered the final race separated by just a few points, leaving the Drivers' title unresolved until the closing laps of the Brazilian Grand Prix.

Event

The 2007 FIA Formula One World Championship ran across seventeen races from March to October. Ferrari driver Kimi Räikkönen, lying third in the standings before the final race, overtook both Hamilton and Alonso to claim the Drivers' title by a single point. Ferrari also secured the Constructors' Championship after McLaren's exclusion, while Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel made their Formula One debuts during the season.

Consequence

McLaren's exclusion from the Constructors' standings and the rejection of their subsequent appeal by the International Court of Appeal confirmed Ferrari's titles. The season also marked the final year traction control was permitted, as standardised ECUs were mandated from 2008. As of 2026, Räikkönen's title remains the last Drivers' Championship won by a Ferrari driver and the last by a Finnish driver.

Result

Kimi Räikkönen / Ferrari (Drivers' & Constructors' Champions)
Räikkönen won by 1 point
Lewis Hamilton / McLaren (runner-up, Drivers')
Last Ferrari Drivers' Championship title as of 2026; final season with traction control permitted

Timeline Context

Timeline around 20072007200420052006200820092010EuroBasket 2007 — 2007 edition of the Eurobasket2007 FIFA Club World Cup — 2007 edition of the FIFA Club World Cup2007 World Championships in Athletics — 2007 edition of the World Championships in Athletics2007 World Men's Handball Championship — 2007 edition of the World Men's Handball ChampionshipJanuary 2007 — month of 2007Adam Air Flight 574 — 2007 aviation accident in IndonesiaJunior Eurovision Song Contest 2007 — 5th annual Junior Eurovision Song Contest2007 AFC Asian Cup — football tournament2007-formula-one-world-championship-61st-season-of-formula-2007