Category profile
- Dominance
- 78
- Peak
- 86
- Longevity
- 80
- Honours
- 84
- Statistics
- 78
Career timeline · Race wins per season
| Season | Race wins per season | Share of career |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 0 | |
| 1961 | 0 | |
| 1962 | 0 | |
| 1963 | 0 | |
| 1964 | 2 | |
| 1965 | 1 | |
| 1966 | 2 | |
| 1967 | 0 | |
| 1968 | 1 | |
| 1969 | 0 | |
| 1970 | 0 | |
| 1971 | 0 |
Data sources
- FIA
- Formula1.com
- Motorsport Stats
Figures come from public records and are normalised per sport. See the methodology for category weights. Method
Why John Surtees ranks #19 in Formula 1
John Surtees ranks 19th among Formula 1 athletes on GOAT Rank and 848th of 1063 across every sport in the index. The published GOAT Score of 81.2 is the weighted result of five verified category scores: Dominance 78, Peak 86, Longevity 80, Honours 84, Statistics 78. Those categories are normalised against the full Formula 1 reference universe of 146 records, not a shortlist, so the position reflects the whole sport rather than a handful of famous names.
The record covers 1956–1972 with 12 documented competitive seasons. The strongest single season in that series is 1964, which sets the Peak component at 86. Peak is the defining strength of the profile at 86 out of 100, and it carries 20% of the final score. The underlying career record includes f1 world titles 1, motorcycle world titles 7, grand prix wins 6, podiums 24.
Immediately ahead sits Max Verstappen on 86.1, a gap of 4.9 points. Directly behind is Felipe Massa on 79.0. The position moves whenever the verified record moves: new titles, new seasons or a corrected source all feed straight back into the same formula, and every change is dated on this profile.
John Surtees GOAT Score explained
- Dominance78/100 · weight 25%
- Measures how far Surtees stood above the field while competing. Scored 78/100 against the full Formula 1 cohort.
- Peak86/100 · weight 20%
- Rates the best sustained stretch of the career, centred on 1964. Scored 86/100.
- Longevity80/100 · weight 20%
- Rewards staying at that level over time: 16 years of competition and 12 recorded seasons. Scored 80/100.
- Honours84/100 · weight 20%
- Counts documented titles, majors and awards in the verified record. Scored 84/100.
- Statistics78/100 · weight 15%
- Normalises the raw career numbers against everyone in the sport reporting the same metric. Scored 78/100.
Top Surtees comparisons
John Surtees — frequently asked
- Is John Surtees the GOAT?
- Not on the current data. John Surtees ranks 19th in Formula 1 with a GOAT Score of 81.2, behind Lewis Hamilton on 96.1.
- What is John Surtees's GOAT Score?
- 81.2 out of 100. It is the weighted sum of Dominance 78 (25%), Peak 86 (20%), Longevity 80 (20%), Honours 84 (20%), Statistics 78 (15%), computed from the verified career record.
- Where does John Surtees rank all time?
- 848th of 1063 eligible athletes in the cross-sport index, and 19th within Formula 1.
- John Surtees vs Max Verstappen: who ranks higher?
- Max Verstappen, on 86.1 against John Surtees's 81.2 — a margin of 4.9 points.