People are only just realising why F1 drivers live in Monaco

Offbeat news from the world of sport

Ever wondered why so many F1 drivers live in Monaco?

With its beautiful scenery, luxurious location and temperate climate, there are more than a few reasons why the great and good of motorsport, including Lewis Hamilton, might decide to base themselves in the stunning French principality.

But there's one three letter word that probably matters above all else when considering the lure of Monaco. And that word is 'tax.' Monaco has extremely favourable tax laws, to put it mildly.

Residents of the city-state do not pay any income tax, wealth tax, or capital gains tax. Not only that, but direct heirs do not pay any inheritance tax either. What that means, essentially, is that anyone who lives in Monaco gets to keep everything that they earn from salaries or sponsorship. Not bad, right?

It's not hard to see why that might be attractive to the likes of Mercedes star Hamilton, who is worth £225million and reigning world champion Max Verstappen, who is worth £45million.

Both drivers own glamorous boltholes in Monaco, along with a host of other Formula One drivers past and present including Charles Leclerc, who is Monegasque by birth, plus Daniel Ricciardo, Valtteri Bottis, Lando Norris, David Coulthard and Mika Hakkinen.

What do you think about F1 drivers living in Monaco? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below

Bottas and Ricciardo have both showed off the stunning views from their respective apartments on YouTube and on Instagram in the past.

F1 drivers are often somewhat coy about their reasons for moving to Monaco, but McLaren starlet Norris didn't beat about the bush after it was revealed he was moving to the principality at the start of the year.

"It's not been something I've been thinking of for a very long time and I was very happy being where I have been [near McLaren's headquarters in Woking, UK] for the last two years," he said.

"But there is a point when… to look after my future for the last two years it has been better to be where I've been by being near McLaren, so I can access it easily and so on, but now is the point where it's, for my future, more beneficial to move to Monaco."

"The reasons why are very obvious and I've said the reasons why," he explained, alluding to Monaco's tax laws.

"There's probably drivers in the paddock here who get to F1 and make some decisions because they expect their career in F1 to maybe be 10 years, and it can turn into one year or two years," Norris said.

"This can be life-changing for yourself for 20, 30, 40 years' time. Anyone else in the world in my position, they would probably do something very similar." Not half, Lando.

• Formula One
• F1

Source: Read Full Article