Mercedes engines became the most successful power units in Formula 1 history on Saturday (26) when George Russell secured victory at the Baku City Circuit. The British driver crossed the finish line just 0.196 seconds ahead of Red Bull Racing driver Max Verstappen, securing the manufacturer its 252nd Grand Prix triumph and moving it past Ferrari on the all-time victory leaderboard.
Russell converted pole position into victory in a tightly contested Azerbaijan Grand Prix, giving the German manufacturer the top spot it had chased for decades. “It’s amazing to be back on the top step of the podium. I just want to say a big thanks to my team, because they continued to believe in me through tough moments, helped me come through it. I’m really proud to have had this weekend,” Russell said after climbing out of his car in Baku.
George Russell secures historic milestone in Baku
The race in Baku took place on a Saturday because local organizers moved the schedule forward by one day at the request of authorities in Azerbaijan, honoring the national Day of Remembrance observed on September 27. The schedule adjustment set the stage for an intense battle through the streets of the capital, where Russell held off Verstappen until the final sector to register his milestone performance. His teammate Andrea Kimi Antonelli, who currently leads the 2026 Formula 1 drivers championship, backed up the effort for the Brackley-based squad.
Mercedes achieved its total of 252 Grand Prix victories across 664 races entered with its machinery, establishing an unprecedented efficiency rate in the sport. In comparison, Ferrari achieved its 251 victories over the course of 1,139 Grand Prix starts since the inaugural Formula 1 world championship season in 1950. The Italian constructor had held the all-time engine record uninterrupted since 2004, when it eclipsed the mark previously set by Ford-Cosworth.
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All-time Formula 1 engine manufacturers by victories
- Mercedes: 252 wins in 664 Grands Prix
- Ferrari: 251 wins in 1,139 Grands Prix
- Ford-Cosworth: 176 wins
- Renault: 169 wins
Four teams built the Mercedes engine legacy
Unlike Ferrari, which secured 250 of its 251 wins through its factory Scuderia Ferrari operation and only one via a customer team when Sebastian Vettel won at Monza for Toro Rosso in 2008, the Mercedes record relies on four distinct organizations. The official Mercedes factory team accounts for 142 victories, dividing between nine triumphs scored during the 1950s and 133 achieved during the modern turbo-hybrid and ground-effect eras. Customer partnerships provided the remainder, led by McLaren with 101 victories, followed by Brawn GP with eight wins in 2009 and Racing Point with a single win taken by Sergio Pérez at the 2020 Sakhir Grand Prix.
The German manufacturer first entered Formula 1 as a works team in 1954, immediately dominating the sport when Juan Manuel Fangio took four victories and the world championship title. Fangio repeated his championship triumph with the silver cars in 1955, but Mercedes withdrew entirely from motorsport at the conclusion of that campaign following the Le Mans 24 Hours disaster, where an accident claimed the lives of 84 people and injured more than 100 spectators in the deadliest crash in racing history.
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Return to racing and path to 252 wins
Mercedes remained absent from Formula 1 for four decades before returning as an engine supplier to McLaren in 1995. David Coulthard claimed the partnership’s breakthrough victory at the 1997 Australian Grand Prix, opening a successful phase that yielded multiple titles. In 2009, Mercedes agreed to supply the newly formed Brawn GP squad, which swept both the drivers and constructors championships before Mercedes purchased the operation to re-establish its full works outfit for the 2010 season.
Russell’s triumph in Baku marks the latest chapter of that ongoing factory effort, closing a 22-year reign by Ferrari atop the historical engine rankings.