{"asOf":"As of Round 4, 2026 · Miami","source":"live","stats":{"championsCount":35,"everDefended":11,"neverDefended":24,"defences":24,"opportunities":75,"ratePct":32},"reigning":{"id":"lando-norris","name":"Lando Norris","surname":"Norris","titleYear":2025,"position2026":6},"seasons":[{"season":1950,"driver":"Nino Farina","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1951,"driver":"Juan Manuel Fangio","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1952,"driver":"Alberto Ascari","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1953,"driver":"Alberto Ascari","defendedPrevious":true},{"season":1954,"driver":"Juan Manuel Fangio","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1955,"driver":"Juan Manuel Fangio","defendedPrevious":true},{"season":1956,"driver":"Juan Manuel Fangio","defendedPrevious":true},{"season":1957,"driver":"Juan Manuel Fangio","defendedPrevious":true},{"season":1958,"driver":"Mike Hawthorn","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1959,"driver":"Jack Brabham","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1960,"driver":"Jack Brabham","defendedPrevious":true},{"season":1961,"driver":"Phil Hill","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1962,"driver":"Graham Hill","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1963,"driver":"Jim Clark","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1964,"driver":"John Surtees","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1965,"driver":"Jim Clark","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1966,"driver":"Jack Brabham","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1967,"driver":"Denny Hulme","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1968,"driver":"Graham Hill","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1969,"driver":"Jackie Stewart","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1970,"driver":"Jochen Rindt","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1971,"driver":"Jackie Stewart","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1972,"driver":"Emerson Fittipaldi","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1973,"driver":"Jackie Stewart","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1974,"driver":"Emerson Fittipaldi","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1975,"driver":"Niki Lauda","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1976,"driver":"James Hunt","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1977,"driver":"Niki Lauda","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1978,"driver":"Mario Andretti","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1979,"driver":"Jody Scheckter","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1980,"driver":"Alan Jones","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1981,"driver":"Nelson Piquet","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1982,"driver":"Keke Rosberg","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1983,"driver":"Nelson Piquet","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1984,"driver":"Niki Lauda","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1985,"driver":"Alain Prost","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1986,"driver":"Alain Prost","defendedPrevious":true},{"season":1987,"driver":"Nelson Piquet","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1988,"driver":"Ayrton Senna","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1989,"driver":"Alain Prost","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1990,"driver":"Ayrton Senna","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1991,"driver":"Ayrton Senna","defendedPrevious":true},{"season":1992,"driver":"Nigel Mansell","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1993,"driver":"Alain Prost","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1994,"driver":"Michael Schumacher","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1995,"driver":"Michael Schumacher","defendedPrevious":true},{"season":1996,"driver":"Damon Hill","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1997,"driver":"Jacques Villeneuve","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1998,"driver":"Mika Häkkinen","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":1999,"driver":"Mika Häkkinen","defendedPrevious":true},{"season":2000,"driver":"Michael Schumacher","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":2001,"driver":"Michael Schumacher","defendedPrevious":true},{"season":2002,"driver":"Michael Schumacher","defendedPrevious":true},{"season":2003,"driver":"Michael Schumacher","defendedPrevious":true},{"season":2004,"driver":"Michael Schumacher","defendedPrevious":true},{"season":2005,"driver":"Fernando Alonso","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":2006,"driver":"Fernando Alonso","defendedPrevious":true},{"season":2007,"driver":"Kimi Räikkönen","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":2008,"driver":"Lewis Hamilton","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":2009,"driver":"Jenson Button","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":2010,"driver":"Sebastian Vettel","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":2011,"driver":"Sebastian Vettel","defendedPrevious":true},{"season":2012,"driver":"Sebastian Vettel","defendedPrevious":true},{"season":2013,"driver":"Sebastian Vettel","defendedPrevious":true},{"season":2014,"driver":"Lewis Hamilton","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":2015,"driver":"Lewis Hamilton","defendedPrevious":true},{"season":2016,"driver":"Nico Rosberg","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":2017,"driver":"Lewis Hamilton","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":2018,"driver":"Lewis Hamilton","defendedPrevious":true},{"season":2019,"driver":"Lewis Hamilton","defendedPrevious":true},{"season":2020,"driver":"Lewis Hamilton","defendedPrevious":true},{"season":2021,"driver":"Max Verstappen","defendedPrevious":false},{"season":2022,"driver":"Max Verstappen","defendedPrevious":true},{"season":2023,"driver":"Max Verstappen","defendedPrevious":true},{"season":2024,"driver":"Max Verstappen","defendedPrevious":true},{"season":2025,"driver":"Lando Norris","defendedPrevious":false}],"champions":[{"id":"nino-farina","name":"Nino Farina","surname":"Farina","years":[1950],"everDefended":false,"defenceCount":0,"reason":"Beaten on track the next year — the car or the form fell away."},{"id":"juan-manuel-fangio","name":"Juan Manuel Fangio","surname":"Fangio","years":[1951,1954,1955,1956,1957],"everDefended":true,"defenceCount":3,"reason":"A broken neck at Monza in 1952 cost him the defence of his 1951 title. He came back and won four in a row."},{"id":"alberto-ascari","name":"Alberto Ascari","surname":"Ascari","years":[1952,1953],"everDefended":true,"defenceCount":1,"reason":""},{"id":"mike-hawthorn","name":"Mike Hawthorn","surname":"Hawthorn","years":[1958],"everDefended":false,"defenceCount":0,"reason":"Retired the day he won the 1958 title. He was killed in a road accident that January."},{"id":"jack-brabham","name":"Jack Brabham","surname":"Brabham","years":[1959,1960,1966],"everDefended":true,"defenceCount":1,"reason":""},{"id":"phil-hill","name":"Phil Hill","surname":"P. Hill","years":[1961],"everDefended":false,"defenceCount":0,"reason":"Beaten on track the next year — the car or the form fell away."},{"id":"graham-hill","name":"Graham Hill","surname":"G. Hill","years":[1962,1968],"everDefended":false,"defenceCount":0,"reason":"Beaten on track the next year — the car or the form fell away."},{"id":"jim-clark","name":"Jim Clark","surname":"Clark","years":[1963,1965],"everDefended":false,"defenceCount":0,"reason":"Beaten on track the next year — the car or the form fell away."},{"id":"john-surtees","name":"John Surtees","surname":"Surtees","years":[1964],"everDefended":false,"defenceCount":0,"reason":"Beaten on track the next year — the car or the form fell away."},{"id":"denny-hulme","name":"Denny Hulme","surname":"Hulme","years":[1967],"everDefended":false,"defenceCount":0,"reason":"Beaten on track the next year — the car or the form fell away."},{"id":"jackie-stewart","name":"Jackie Stewart","surname":"Stewart","years":[1969,1971,1973],"everDefended":false,"defenceCount":0,"reason":"Had already privately decided to retire; his teammate Cevert’s death at Watkins Glen ended it one race early."},{"id":"jochen-rindt","name":"Jochen Rindt","surname":"Rindt","years":[1970],"everDefended":false,"defenceCount":0,"reason":"Won the 1970 title posthumously — killed in practice at Monza that September. The only posthumous F1 champion."},{"id":"emerson-fittipaldi","name":"Emerson Fittipaldi","surname":"Fittipaldi","years":[1972,1974],"everDefended":false,"defenceCount":0,"reason":"Beaten on track the next year — the car or the form fell away."},{"id":"niki-lauda","name":"Niki Lauda","surname":"Lauda","years":[1975,1977,1984],"everDefended":false,"defenceCount":0,"reason":"Beaten on track the next year — the car or the form fell away."},{"id":"james-hunt","name":"James Hunt","surname":"Hunt","years":[1976],"everDefended":false,"defenceCount":0,"reason":"Beaten on track the next year — the car or the form fell away."},{"id":"mario-andretti","name":"Mario Andretti","surname":"Andretti","years":[1978],"everDefended":false,"defenceCount":0,"reason":"Beaten on track the next year — the car or the form fell away."},{"id":"jody-scheckter","name":"Jody Scheckter","surname":"Scheckter","years":[1979],"everDefended":false,"defenceCount":0,"reason":"Beaten on track the next year — the car or the form fell away."},{"id":"alan-jones","name":"Alan Jones","surname":"Jones","years":[1980],"everDefended":false,"defenceCount":0,"reason":"Beaten on track the next year — the car or the form fell away."},{"id":"nelson-piquet","name":"Nelson Piquet","surname":"Piquet","years":[1981,1983,1987],"everDefended":false,"defenceCount":0,"reason":"Beaten on track the next year — the car or the form fell away."},{"id":"keke-rosberg","name":"Keke Rosberg","surname":"K. Rosberg","years":[1982],"everDefended":false,"defenceCount":0,"reason":"Beaten on track the next year — the car or the form fell away."},{"id":"alain-prost","name":"Alain Prost","surname":"Prost","years":[1985,1986,1989,1993],"everDefended":true,"defenceCount":1,"reason":"Retired the moment he won the 1993 title — having cleared Ayrton Senna’s path to Williams for 1994."},{"id":"ayrton-senna","name":"Ayrton Senna","surname":"Senna","years":[1988,1990,1991],"everDefended":true,"defenceCount":1,"reason":""},{"id":"nigel-mansell","name":"Nigel Mansell","surname":"Mansell","years":[1992],"everDefended":false,"defenceCount":0,"reason":"Left F1 for IndyCar in 1993, the year after winning the title."},{"id":"michael-schumacher","name":"Michael Schumacher","surname":"Schumacher","years":[1994,1995,2000,2001,2002,2003,2004],"everDefended":true,"defenceCount":5,"reason":""},{"id":"damon-hill","name":"Damon Hill","surname":"D. Hill","years":[1996],"everDefended":false,"defenceCount":0,"reason":"Beaten on track the next year — the car or the form fell away."},{"id":"jacques-villeneuve","name":"Jacques Villeneuve","surname":"Villeneuve","years":[1997],"everDefended":false,"defenceCount":0,"reason":"Beaten on track the next year — the car or the form fell away."},{"id":"mika-hakkinen","name":"Mika Häkkinen","surname":"Häkkinen","years":[1998,1999],"everDefended":true,"defenceCount":1,"reason":""},{"id":"fernando-alonso","name":"Fernando Alonso","surname":"Alonso","years":[2005,2006],"everDefended":true,"defenceCount":1,"reason":""},{"id":"kimi-raikkonen","name":"Kimi Räikkönen","surname":"Räikkönen","years":[2007],"everDefended":false,"defenceCount":0,"reason":"Beaten on track the next year — the car or the form fell away."},{"id":"lewis-hamilton","name":"Lewis Hamilton","surname":"Hamilton","years":[2008,2014,2015,2017,2018,2019,2020],"everDefended":true,"defenceCount":4,"reason":""},{"id":"jenson-button","name":"Jenson Button","surname":"Button","years":[2009],"everDefended":false,"defenceCount":0,"reason":"Beaten on track the next year — the car or the form fell away."},{"id":"sebastian-vettel","name":"Sebastian Vettel","surname":"Vettel","years":[2010,2011,2012,2013],"everDefended":true,"defenceCount":3,"reason":""},{"id":"nico-rosberg","name":"Nico Rosberg","surname":"N. Rosberg","years":[2016],"everDefended":false,"defenceCount":0,"reason":"Retired five days after winning the 2016 title — the first reigning champion to walk away since Prost in 1993."},{"id":"max-verstappen","name":"Max Verstappen","surname":"Verstappen","years":[2021,2022,2023,2024],"everDefended":true,"defenceCount":3,"reason":""},{"id":"lando-norris","name":"Lando Norris","surname":"Norris","years":[2025],"everDefended":false,"defenceCount":0,"reason":"Reigning champion. The 2026 defence is live."}]}