Ranking every LEGO Speed Champions wave, 10 years on
10 years and 16 waves later, we’ve ranked every single LEGO Speed Champions wave to ever hit shelves, from the theme’s very beginning.
From solo car waves to multiple cars and even in-depth side builds, every LEGO Speed Champions wave is vastly different from the ones that came before. Of course, ranking them comes to personal preference, nostalgia, and dozens more factors besides.
That hasn’t stopped us from making some executive decisions, however, and ranking every single LEGO Speed Champions wave ever released. Read on for our scientific and hopefully not too controversial ranking.
16 – August 2019
Not all LEGO Speed Champions waves are made equal and it’s hard for those with just one set to compete with the big boys. 75895 1974 Porsche 911 Turbo 3.0 launched solo on August 1, 2019. It’s perfectly fine as a LEGO set, although the inclusion of traffic cones is a seemingly random one, especially for a set sandwiched between some models with very detailed side builds (but more on that later).
The printed torso with the Porsche logo is a nice touch but a solo set without much to shout about can’t hold its own against what else the theme has to offer.
15 – June 2017
June 2017 also saw just one set – 75880 McLaren 720S – launch but the unique side build featured helps it stand out. Featuring an original design sketch and printed 3D miniature version of the McLaren 720S, this set has a lot to love for car nerds who both want to be behind the wheel and designing it.
14 – January 2020
This marks the first wave of eight-wide LEGO Speed Champions cars and you can tell that the LEGO Group is finding its feet in the new style. The cars feel a lot more blocky (we know, they’re cars made of bricks but even still) and quite a departure from the pretty realistic builds that came before and after.
That said, the diversity across the five cars – 76895 Ferrari F8 Tributo, 76896 Nissan GT-R NISMO, 76897 1985 Audi Sport quattro S1, 76898 Formula E Panasonic Jaguar Racing GEN2 Car & Jaguar I-PACE eTROPHY, and 76899 Lamborghini Urus ST-X & Huracán Super Trofeo EVO – is still something to be applauded.
13 – January 2023
A foray into pop culture that still proves popular today, if we were ranking LEGO Speed Champions cars, this would be a highly popular one. As it stands in a solo wave in January 2023, it’s hard to creep past some of the larger and more diverse waves – but don’t think this means 76917 2 Fast 2 Furious Nissan Skyline GT-R (R34) isn’t a worthy homage to an iconic car.
12 – August 2024
76934 Ferrari F40 and 76935 NASCAR Next Gen Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 make up this two-car wave. Balancing classy history in the former and eye-catching colours in the latter, they both have a lot to love for very different reasons. 76935 NASCAR Next Gen Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 is particularly controversial but it’s nothing if not a conversation starter. Where LEGO Speed Champions seeks to represent a love of all types of motorsports, NASCAR is well replicated here.
11 – March 2023
This quartet of sets is fine – but nothing to write home about. Each one – 76914 Ferrari 812 Competizione, 76915 Pagani Utopia, 76916 Porsche 963, and 76918 McLaren Solus GT & McLaren F1 LM – delivers a perfectly satisfying recreation of a car. However, there’s not a lot of variety to speak of, meaning the March 2023 has a tendency to fade into obscurity.
10 – March 2022
As one of the biggest waves in the theme, this March 2022 wave is a good example of the highs and lows of Speed Champions. While have one of the best early iterations of Formula 1 on this scale in 76909 Mercedes-AMG F1 W12 E Performance & Mercedes-AMG Project One, as well as excellent homages to both James Bond and Fast & Furious in 76911 007 Aston Martin DB5 and 76912 Fast & Furious 1970 Dodge Charger R/T, there are also some builds that fall flat from their real-life inspirations.
The muddy colour scheme of 76907 Lotus Evija and the inaccurate silhouettes of 76910 Aston Martin Valkyrie AMR Pro and Vantage GT3 leave this theme flagging behind some others – despite some true gems hidden amongst the rest.
9 – June 2021
Six years after its conception, LEGO Speed Champions had built up a wide variety of set types by the time it got to June 2021 and this diversity is what makes the June wave of that year so strong. Taken individually, each car is pretty simplistic and likely to appeal to fans of that car in real life – but not much else. However, this is a moment where you can really see what can be achieved even within the bounds of a ~250-piece LEGO car. From iconic road cars to unique examples of high-speed motorsports, this wave doesn’t play it safe.
8 – January 2019
2019 kicked off with a LEGO Speed Champions wave heavy on the behind-the-scenes in motorsports – but a clear focus left us with far from a boring wave. 75890 Ferrari F40 Competizione offered some level of customisation and every set feature minifigure accessories for greater playability. That culminated in 75894 1967 Mini Cooper S Rally and 2018 MINI John Cooper Works Buggy, showcasing not just how far MINI had come as a brand over the years but also how much LEGO Speed Champions had grown.
This would be the last time we would see side builds on this scale in the theme – a feature that’s sorely missed today.
7 – March 2016
A brick-built reminder that newer isn’t always better, 2016’s March wave similarly balances what would become the DNA of Speed Champions – small-scale but detailed models of popular cars – with interactive play features that aren’t quite as prevalent nowadays. A particularly highlight has to be 75874 Chevrolet Camaro Drag Race, complete with a trophy for a start-to-finish play experience.
6 – March 2018
To save simply repeating ourselves to above, let’s just say that the March 2018 does everything that we love about March 2019 and 2016 – and then adds more. More accessories, more detailed side builds, more world-building around the cars we love.
75889 Ferrari Ultimate Garage in particular is a must-have for any Ferrari fan featuring not one, not two but three of prancing horses, complete with a garage to house them in. While modern Speed Champions sets focus almost wholly on the car, this is a fine example of when a set was far more than that, and why it works so well.
5 – March 2024
Smaller waves have tended to rank lower on this list but there are truly no duds in this four-strong wave, between 76919 2023 McLaren Formula 1 Car, 76920 Ford Mustang Dark Horse, 76921 Audi S1 e-tron quattro, and 76922 BMW M4 GT3 & BMW M Hybrid V8. Each one perfectly nails the inspiration vehicle and offers a rewarding build that looks great on display, landing it just inside of our top five LEGO Speed Champions waves.
4 – March 2025
This once again feels like a good time to remind you that this is a ranking of LEGO Speed Champions waves, not cars. While we might have quibbles about individual cars from the LEGO Speed Champions Formula 1 wave, it’s hard to deny that the entire wave as one is a phenomenal achievement.
There’s enough that’s different between them to keep things interesting but they also stay uniform in size and general shape, packing quite the impressive look when all arranged together.
3 – March 2015
It’s not just nostalgia that has us ranking the very first LEGO Speed Champions wave so high; there’s just so much to love about these sets. The colour, the vibrancy, the energy that seeps out of them: all of it comes together to highlight why this theme has endured and why it gets so much love, even after a decade on shelves. The fact that you can still see the framework for today’s LEGO Speed Champions sets in the solo sets pictured above underlines how well this simple idea has performed.
2 – March 2017
Beloved for many of the same reasons as the wave from the preceding year, March 2017 delivers five great models – and one that is still championed by fans today, nearly 10 years on from its release. 75883 Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula One Team is one of the most complete Formula 1 playsets we’ve ever had, offering sections of the track, cars, garage, stands, and more. Even smaller builds like 75881 2016 Ford GT & 1966 Ford GT40 manage to feel like modern models, despite being long retired, highlighting the longevity of LEGO Speed Champions as a theme.
1 – June 2024
The waves we’ve complimented most on their diversity have tended to be four, five, or even six sets-strong. However, the June 2024 wave manages to deliver on a number of areas, despite only featuring three sets: 76923 Lamborghini Lambo V12 Vision Gran Turismo, 76924 Mercedes-AMG G 63 & Mercedes-AMG SL 63, and 76925 Aston Martin Vantage Safety Car & AMR23.
They all have their own challenges but the LEGO Speed Champions designers knocked it out of the park for one of the most well-rounded waves in Speed Champions history. It’s hard to even pick a favourite of the three, a testament to the strength of the wave.
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