The five oldest drivers to race Formula One

The opening weekend of the Formula One season kicked started last weekend in Bahrain with one man stealing the show.

A 41-year-old Fernando Alonso earned the 99^th podium of his career in his full debut for Aston Martin at the weekend, and it raises the question, how old is too old to be a Formula One driver?

Many may assume driving a Formula One car is fairly easy on the body. However, at every corner a driver makes a turn, they could experience from two up to seven G's of force.

With the force and pressure a Formula One driver must sustain during a two-hour race, the sport is dominated by young and fit drivers.

But back in the early days of motor racing, having young and fit drivers wasn't really a requirement.

Here are the five oldest drivers to start a race in Formula One history.

Adolf Brudes entered the 1952 German Grand Prix, racing for team Veritas. He retired from the race after only five laps after suffering from engine problems.

The 1952 German Grand Prix was the only Formula One race Brudes competed in. However, he had a successful 49-year racing career with sports cars and motorcycles.

A 53-year-old Luigi Fagioli created history at the 1951 French Grand Prix, becoming the first Formula One driver to win a race in his fifties and being the only driver to be born in the 19^th century to win a Grand Prix.

In a short Formula One career, Fagioli holds seven World Championship entries, one win, and six podiums.

Arthur Legat raced in the 1953 Belgian Grand Prix at 54 years old. He had to retire from the race due to transmission problems.

Legat only entered the 1952 and 1953 Belgian Grand Prix in his Formula One career. Despite that, he did go on to win the Grand Prix des Frontières at Chimay in 1931 and 1932.

A 55-year-old Philippe Etancelin finished eighth in the 1952 French Grand Prix, earning the only points of his Formula One career.

Etancelin entered 12 Formula One races in his career with the help of his wife Suzanne, his crew chief. In his racing career, he also entered Hillclimb racing and won other Grand Prix in the 1930s before the sport became Formula One.

Louis Chiron was 101 days older than Philippe Etancelin, becoming the oldest driver to race a Formula One car, finishing sixth in the 1955 Monaco Grand Prix.

Chiron started 15 races in Formula One, gaining one podium finish. His legacy still lives on, with the Bugatti car brand naming a car after him called the Bugatti Chiron.