F1 1000th GP: 5 Best F1 Teams of all time

This weekend's Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai is a very special one as Formula One celebrates 1000 races.

F1 had it's very first race all the way back in 1950 where an Italian racer named Giuseppe Farina won the British Grand Prix for Alfa Romeo.

Completing that podium was fellow Italian Luigi Fagioli and in third was British driver Reg Parnell.

Since May 13 in 1950 we have seen another 998 races take place across the globe from Brazil, the streets of Monte Carlo to the beautiful night setting of Marina Bay.

F1 has come a long way.

And in that process, many drivers and teams have come and gone including the veteran groups of Ferrari, Williams and McLaren.

But let's not forget the legendary figures that were developed in the racing series of Michael Schumacher being the most successful F1 driver of all time, Ayrton Senna setting a new standard in the 1980s and 1990s - we could go on and on and on.

In this article we're going to take a look at the most successful teams F1 has ever seen.

But who is the best?

Here are your 5 best F1 teams of all time...

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#5 Red Bull (2005 - Present)

Vettel celebrating a 4th world championship at Indian GP in 2013

Red Bull's existence in Formula 1 has so far seen them in the sport for over 14 years and what a contributing team they have been.

The team started out at the start of the 2005 season with David Coulthard and a shared seat between Vitantonio Liuzzi and Christian Klien.

Coulthard was mainly there to be a part of the build-up and testing before a young Sebastian Vettel took over his seat ahead of the 2009 season.

And what a move that was from Red Bull as Vettel and the team won a total of four driver's championships along with four constructors' championships in between 2010 and 2013.

Racing has been a bit more difficult since 2013 for Red Bull but they are still up there fighting for Grand Prix wins.

#4 Team Lotus

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For you younger F1 audiences, you may not know that Team Lotus are one of the most successful teams in the history of the racing series.

Let's go through the numbers...

Seven constructors' championships, six driver's championships, 74 race victories and 102 pole positions.

Their history of drivers is also very impressive that has seen the likes of Graham Hill, Jim Clark, Stirling Moss and Nigel Mansell represent the team.

Some of their noted staff include Peter Wright, Peter Warr, Keith Duckworth and Frank Dernie.

But some of you younger generations may remember Lotus making a return in 2010 when Tony Fernandes brought back the team.

In 2010, the car was a green and gold livery before brought back the legendary black and gold livery.

The 2019 Haas livery copies the Lotus look.

A return to F1 for Lotus would certainly be exciting but no sign of it in the mean time.

#3 Mercedes (1954-1955, 2010-Present)

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Arguably one of the best teams Formula One has hosted.

The last four to five years would certainly vouch for that statement as the silver arrows' second spell as a work's team has been one hell of a journey to follow.

Their second term began in 2010 as Michael Schumacher shocked the F1 world by returning to the sport after originally retiring in 2006.

The seven-time world champion tried to make a return to the Ferrari team but the Italian team were not convinced so Mercedes was the German's other option.

Nico Rosberg also joined the team after Mercedes took over Brawn GP in 2010.

Schumi would go onto race in F1 for three more seasons until making way for Lewis Hamilton to take over his seat at the end of 2012.

What a decision that was from the Briton after risking a move away from his boyhood team, McLaren.

From 2014 onwards, Hamilton and Mercedes have dominated both the driver's and constructors' championships as the silver arrows bid to become the first team to ever win both titles six years in a row.

It's very possible.

#2 McLaren (1966-Present)

Lewis Hamilton winning the British Grand Prix for McLaren in 2008

The 1966 Monaco Grand Prix hosted McLaren's debut race in Formula One.

McLaren started their life in F1 with a Ford engine while Bruce McLaren was team mates with fellow New Zealander Chris Amon.

The name is still with us in F1 53 years later.

McLaren is one of the most successful teams in F1 and the numbers will tell you why.

12 driver's championships, 8 constructors' championships, 182 race wins, 155 pole positions has been achieved in over 800 races.

Statistics like that certainly help back a group like McLaren to convince you how good they have been in the sport.

Despite their problems competing with the big names over the last 5 to 6 years.

Their last ever race win was the 2012 Brazilian Grand Prix when Jenson Button was on top of the podium.

Times right now are tough for the Woking team but every big team go through a rough patch.

#1 Ferrari

A winning moment in Malaysia for Ferrari

Where do we even start with a team like Ferrari?

Ferrari is no doubt the biggest team F1 has ever had, you could compare the Italian team to other famous sporting group names of Real Madrid, New England Patriots, the All Blacks and many more headliners.

Many big names have represented the team including the faces of Michael Schumacher, Niki Lauda and Fernando Alonso.

In a way, Ferrari are seen as like a Real Madrid setup where they employ the best.

But they have struggled to win either championships.

Their last championship success was winning the constructors in 2008 the year after winning the world championship with Kimi Raikkonen.

Since then, Ferrari have kept competing at the top but no championship wins to show for it.

Mercedes at the moment are in their way but could 2019 be the year with Sebastian Vettel and Charles Leclerc?

Who is the best F1 team of all time? Comment below...

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