What is the Triple Crown of Motorsport and which drivers have achieved the rare feat?

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The phrase ‘Triple Crown’ was invented to describe horse racing victories, so it’s only fitting that motorsport create their own version, now called the Triple Crown of Motorsport.

As the name suggests, the Triple Crown of Motorsport is an unofficial title earned by the drivers who score victory in the three biggest races in the world.

But what races are included? And have any drivers actually accomplished it? Let’s find out.

What is the Triple Crown of Motorsport?

The Triple Crown of Motorsport is an unofficial title given to any driver who wins the Formula 1 Monaco Grand Prix, the Indianapolis 500, and the 24 Hours of Le Mans

Why those three races? The answer is fairly simple: Monaco, Indianapolis, and Le Mans are the three most challenging and historically meaningful races in the world, and all three represent the mastery of a very distinct skillset.

The oldest of the three events is the Indianapolis 500, which has been held 110 times since it debuted in 1911. This race is an absolutely mammoth undertaking; for most of its history, practice and qualifying was a monthlong affair that began when the track opened on May 1 and would end after the conclusion of 500 miles on race day, all on a 2.5-mile oval track that has been variously paved with bricks and asphalt. This is an event that requires a driver to manage dicey traffic, a huge number of pit stops, and aerodynamic drafting, all while overcoming the fear of colliding into the wall at over 200 mph.

Next came the 24 Hours of Le Mans, a race first hosted in 1923 as a way to put the endurance of early automakers to the test. Many races in the early 1920s saw drivers competing flat-out over a limited distance; Le Mans was implemented in order to evaluate reliability and fuel efficiency over the course of two turns of the clock. It requires patience, endurance, and strategic management from the drivers behind the wheel.

And then there was Monaco, with the Formula 1 Grand Prix first hosted in 1929. The shortest of the three Triple Crown Races, Monaco is nevertheless a major test of focus and bravery as drivers attempt to thread through the narrow, twisting confines of Monte Carlo at high speed without colliding into a wall.

Three different races, three very distinct skillsets.

Will F1’s 2026 regulations deliver more overtakes in Monaco, or is the circuit past saving?

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The only driver to win the Triple Crown of Motorsport

There has only been one driver to win the Triple Crown of Motorsport: Graham Hill.

Born in Hampstead in 1929, Graham Hill never had plans to be a race car driver. In school, he studied engineering; after graduation, he was conscripted into the Royal Navy. In fact, he didn’t even pass his driving test until he was 24 years old!

Yet once he had a taste of speed, he was hooked. In 1954, he discovered he could turn laps at Brands Hatch for just five shillings; not long after, he made his professional racing debut in Formula 3 and signed on as a mechanic with a growing operation known as Team Lotus. Ever the charmer, Hill ended up in the cockpit to make his debut at the 1958 Monaco Grand Prix.

It would take a few years, but Hill would come to earn the nickname Mr. Monaco as a result of his incredible performances in the principality: Five victories, two pole positions, and three fastest laps in the course of 17 starts. It was a record number of wins at Monaco that would only be broken by Ayrton Senna in 1992.

In the 1960s and 70s, it wasn’t easy to make a living as a Grand Prix driver, and that prompted many major names to expand their horizons. Graham Hill was one such man; between 1966 and 1968, he contested the iconic Indianapolis 500 and won that race the very first time he qualified for it in 1966.

Yet victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans eluded him. Hill was a regular face at the event between 1958 and 1966, where he’d only net a best finish of second. After a few years’ break, he and Henri Pescarolo drove their Matra to victory in 1972.

Thus far, no other driver has completed the Triple Crown of Motorsport.

READ MORE: How every corner at the Monaco Grand Prix got its name including Sainte Devote and Rascasse

Have any teams won the Triple Crown of Motorsport?

The Triple Crown of Motorsport is primarily considered to be a driver-specific accomplishment, but there is one team (meaning, a constructor and chassis builder) to have done so: McLaren.

McLaren Racing have taken wins at the Monaco Grand Prix with the likes of Alain Prost, Ayrton Senna, Mika Hakkinen, David Coulthard, Kimi Raikkonen, Fernando Alonso, Lewis Hamilton, and Lando Norris.

Their Indianapolis 500 victory came in 1974 with American racer Johnny Rutherford behind the wheel. Their Le Mans win came in 1995 with drivers JJ Lehto, Yannick Dalmas, and Masanori Sekiya sharing the drive.

Are any active drivers close to winning the Triple Crown of Motorsport?

Fernando Alonso has made no secret of his desire to chase the Triple Crown, and he’s just one victory away from it. The Spaniard won his first Monaco Grand Prix in 2006 while racing for Renault, and he netted back-to-back victories at the 24 Hours of Le Mans with Toyota Gazoo Racing in both 2018 and 2019.

Alonso has tried his hand at the Indianapolis 500 three times with backing from McLaren, but the oval race has presented a serious challenge to the current Aston Martin racer. His best finish at the race was also his most recent, when he finished 21st of 33 drivers in 2020.

And the only other living and semi-active racer to be in contention for the Triple Crown is Juan Pablo Montoya. He won at Monaco in 2003 during his Formula 1 stint with Williams, while his two Indianapolis 500 victories came in 2000 and 2015. At 50 years of age, his career behind the wheel has largely come to an end, but that doesn’t mean victory at Le Mans is out of reach.