Max Verstappen hit with extortionate bill twice the price of Lewis Hamilton to stay in F1 next year
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Max Verstappen faces a staggering £845,000 Super License fee bill for the 2025 Formula 1 season, nearly double the amount his rival Lewis Hamilton will need to pay.
The stark disparity sees Hamilton charged just £436,000 for his mandatory racing license for next year.
The fee gap stems directly from Verstappen's dominant performance in the 2024 season, where he claimed the Drivers' Championship with an impressive 437 points.
Hamilton's seventh-place finish in the championship standings has resulted in a considerably lower fee requirement for the Ferrari-bound British driver.
Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen will pay very different Super Licence fees
GETTYThe FIA's Super License system requires all F1 drivers to pay a base rate of £9,444 to compete.
On top of this base fee, drivers must pay an additional £1,907 for every championship point they scored in the previous season.
The system has actually provided some relief for Verstappen compared to last year, when his extraordinary 575-point haul in 2023 led to an even larger fee.
Verstappen has been openly critical of the expensive licensing system in Formula 1.
"I think the sum is absurd," the Dutch champion told ServusTV last year.
Lando Norris will pay the second-highest fee
Reuters"I don't think it's right that we have to pay so much. That's not the case in other sports either."
The reigning champion also pointed to the increasing race calendar as a factor in his criticism.
Verstappen earns a staggering £59million annual salary from his Red Bull contract.
However, Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko has revealed that Verstappen won't be paying the fee himself.
"I'm afraid we have to pay that, if I have our contract right in my head," Marko confirmed.
Lando Norris will face the second-highest Super License fee for 2025, with a bill of nearly £725,000 following his strong championship performance.
Charles Leclerc, Oscar Piastri and Carlos Sainz will also face significant fees after their successful 2024 campaigns.
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Andrea Kimi Antonelli will pay just the entry fee
GettyAt the other end of the scale, several newcomers to Formula 1 will benefit from minimal license costs.
Sauber's Gabriel Bartoleto, Mercedes' Kimi Antonelli and Alpine's Jack Doohan will only need to pay the base rate of £9,444.
This significant cost reduction for new drivers comes as they did not score any championship points in the previous season.
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