Formula One teams spend hundreds of millions of pounds trying to find a few 10ths of a second in extra performance. So, by that measure, the salaries of the top drivers are reasonable value.

But finding the next great talent is incredibly difficult. In recent times, the trend has been for manufacturers and big sponsors, such as Red Bull, to have a young driver programme. The idea is to spot talents early, nurture them and then get them cheap for their first few years in F1.