Some driver-and-team pairings are unforgettable — Schumacher at Ferrari, Senna at McLaren — but others have slipped the memory. Here are 10 combinations that might have passed you by, from recent years and further back.
Paul di Resta and Williams
DTM champion Paul di Resta arrived in F1 with Force India in 2011, scoring best finishes of fourth before returning to touring cars. A reserve role at Williams in 2016 brought him back; when Felipe Massa fell ill before qualifying at the 2017 Hungarian GP, di Resta was drafted in. He started 19th and finished after completing 60 of 70 laps before technical trouble struck, later describing the sudden call-up as “like being thrown off a cliff.”
Esteban Ocon and Manor Racing
Esteban Ocon’s early F1 career is often linked with Force India, Renault/Alpine and later Haas, but he actually made his Grand Prix debut with backmarker Manor Racing in 2016. Replacing Ryo Haryanto mid-season, Ocon impressed and nearly scored a shock point in Brazil before his later full-time F1 opportunities arrived.
Andre Lotterer and Caterham
Andre Lotterer is a multiple WEC champion and Le Mans winner with years of top-level sportscar success. In 2014 he fulfilled a long-held ambition to start an F1 race, stepping into the Caterham at Spa. Lotterer out-qualified team mate Marcus Ericsson but retired early on race day after only one lap because of technical problems.
Daniel Ricciardo and Hispania/HRT
Daniel Ricciardo came up through Red Bull’s ladder via numerous FP outings for Toro Rosso before his Toro Rosso race seat in 2012. Before that step, he was given race experience at the back of the grid, replacing Narain Karthikeyan at Hispania Racing (HRT) from the 2011 British GP onwards, gaining valuable mileage in poor-performing machinery on his path up the ladder.
Sebastian Vettel and BMW‑Sauber
Before Vettel became synonymous with Red Bull and later Ferrari, he performed practice outings and early races away from the Red Bull umbrella. As a teenager he filled in for the injured Robert Kubica at the 2007 United States GP for BMW‑Sauber, taking a point on debut. That form earned him a race seat at Toro Rosso soon after and launched his rapid rise.
Jacques Villeneuve and Renault
After five years at BAR, Jacques Villeneuve found himself without a seat for 2004 when the team moved on. He resurfaced late in the year with Renault — signed for the final three rounds after Jarno Trulli’s exit — producing a brief return to F1 action despite having been dropped earlier in the season.
Fernando Alonso and Minardi
Before two world championships and years at Renault, McLaren and Ferrari, Fernando Alonso began as a teenager at Minardi in 2001. Driving true backmarker machinery, Alonso nonetheless produced several gutsy displays — notably at the season-closing Japanese GP — that flagged his talent and set up his climb to the top of the sport.
Nigel Mansell and McLaren
1992 World Champion Nigel Mansell returned mid-1994 to Williams following Ayrton Senna’s death, producing a memorable pole and victory at Adelaide. In 1995, with Coulthard and Damon Hill chosen as the regular pairing, Mansell moved to McLaren. He struggled to fit into the narrow MP4/10B, missed the opening rounds, raced at Imola and Barcelona, and then retired from F1 for good.
Mario Andretti and Williams
Mario Andretti, already an F1 champion with Lotus in 1978 and successful across many categories, made one of his final F1 appearances for Williams at the 1982 United States Grand Prix West. He qualified 14th but failed to finish after contact with the wall; his outing came amid the surprise departure of Carlos Reutemann and other upheaval that season.
Gilles Villeneuve and McLaren
Gilles Villeneuve is best remembered as a Ferrari icon, but his Grand Prix debut was actually with McLaren in 1977 at Silverstone, where he partnered reigning champion James Hunt. Villeneuve would soon join Ferrari and become one of the sport’s most beloved figures, but that McLaren start is a lesser-known footnote in his short, spectacular F1 career.
Honourable context
These pairings show how careers can take unexpected turns: champions starting at backmarkers, sportscar legends slipping into one-off F1 roles, and great names briefly linked with teams fans wouldn’t immediately associate with them. They’re reminders that F1 histories are full of surprising detours and short-lived combinations that deserve a second look.