Thursday 17 March 2016 3:27 pm

F1 Team Budgets: Ferrari have more money to work with than anyone else but Mercedes get best bang for their buck

By: Joe Hall

Mercedes are aiming to get the best bang for their buck for a second year running as the 2016 Formula One season revs into gear in Melbourne this weekend.

Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg dominated on the circuit last season as Mercedes won the constructors' championship by almost 300 points from a budget of €467.4m, the second-biggest in Formula One.

All of the top four sides – Mercedes, Ferrari, Red Bull and Williams – had a budget of more than €400m, dwarfing the remaining six teams, none of whom reached €200m.

Read more: Formula One rising star Jordan King on how it takes more than cash to become a champion

Yet Mercedes, who had the second-largest budget at €467.4m, vastly outperformed their fellow financial heavyweights.

Budgets for the forthcoming season have not yet been released but according to estimates published in Business Book GP, Red Bull Racing had the biggest overall budget last season thanks to huge sponsorship income whole Ferrari received the most from Formula One Management (FOM) which distributes broadcast monies.

On a euro per point basis, Mercedes raced ahead of their rivals with roughly €665,000 per championship point.