The numbers game

Starting from next season Formula One drivers will race with a permanent number which they will keep with them during their years in Formula One.

The idea was approved by the FIA at the end of last season and drivers were asked to make their selections, choosing three numbers, with priority given to whichever driver finished the 2013 higher in the Championship.

Number One will remain reserved for the reigning Formula One Champion if they choose to select it.

For 2014, that of course is quadruple Formula One World Champion Sebastian Vettel, he has elected to race the number one next season.

For 2015, if he doesn’t win a fifth consecutive title he will revert to the number 5.

No driver selected the number 2, with Daniel Ricciardo selecting the number 3 due to his Karting past and being a fan of late NASCAR champion Dale Earnhardt.

Nico Rosberg selected the number 6, which his father Keke won the F1 World Championship with and superstition and history were the main reasons behind a lot of the drivers selections with Fernando Alonso taking his old 14 Karting number and Jenson Button returning to number 22, the number which he raced when he claimed the 2009 F1 title.

Williams driver Valtteri Bottas opted to get creative with his selection, picking number 77 to create a ‘boy racer’ style personalised number plate Bo77as.

Kimi Raikkonen however didn’t really get into the spirit of things, selecting the number 7 he said: ‘it’s the number I already had last year and I saw no reason to change it’.

1* Sebastian Vettel

3 Daniel Ricciardo

5* Sebastian Vettel

6 Nico Rosberg

7 Kimi Raikkonen

8 Romain Grosjean

11 Sergio Perez

13 Pastor Maldonado

14 Fernando Alonso

17 Jules Bianchi

19 Felipe Massa

20 Kevin Magnussen

21 Esteban Gutierrez

22 Jenson Button

25 Jean-Eric Vergne

26 Daniil Kvyat

27 Nico Hulkenberg

44 Lewis Hamilton

77 Valtteri Bottas

99 Adrian Sutil

TBA Max Chilton

* As 2013 Formula One Champion Sebastian Vettel has selected the number 1 for the 2014 season.