Lewis Hamilton's career earnings have surpassed that of seven-time Formula 1 World Champion Michael Schumacher according to data published by Forbes.
Schumacher has earned an estimated $464 million from his wage packet alone during his 21-year-long F1 career, whereas Hamilton has now topped that by $25m, bringing his total to just shy of half a billion ($489m).
The figures only include a driver's salary, not personal sponsor deals or investments. Schumacher still comes out on top with an estimated net worth of $800m thanks to his various personal sponsorship deals.
However Hamilton is now the highest paid driver, with his annual $40m pay packet from Mercedes contributing to his enormous wealth.
The five-time champion has earned many millions away from F1 too with his various business deals, including a partnership with Tommy Hilfiger.
The data shows that Fernando Alonso is the third-highest earner with a career total of $458m. There's then a large gap to fourth-placed Sebastian Vettel at just $358m, who is F1's second highest paid driver at present with an annual salary from Ferrari of $30m.
The bottom five on the list is made up of retired drivers, with Jenson Button coming in sixth behind Kimi Raikkonen. Followed by Ralf Schumacher, Jacques Villeneuve, Felipe Massa and Rubens Barrichello, all of which enjoyed lucrative deals during their active years.
*Note: The figures don't count for inflation.
1 | Lewis Hamilton | $489m | £375m |
2 | Michael Schumacher | $464m | £356m |
3 | Fernando Alonso | $458m | £351m |
4 | Sebastian Vettel | $358m | £275m |
5 | Kimi Raikkonen | $331m | £254m |
6 | Jenson Button | $147m | £112m |
7 | Ralf Schumacher | $121m | £93m |
8 | Jacques Villeneuve | $115m | £88m |
9 | Felipe Massa | $110m | £84m |
= | Rubens Barrichello | $110m | £84m |