Red Bull’s three-time champion Max Verstappen ended a 10-race winless streak with a remarkable victory from 17th on the grid in Brazil three weeks ago. To secure his title, he only needs to outscore Norris or ensure the McLaren driver finishes outside the top eight. With 60 points remaining after the Vegas race, the Dutchman leads the standings with 393 points, 62 ahead of Norris, who sits at 331.
If Verstappen can hold off his friend and rival Lando Norris at this weekend’s Las Vegas Grand Prix, he will become only the sixth driver in Formula One history to secure four world championship titles joining an elite list of Juan Manuel Fangio, Alain Prost, Michael Schumacher, Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton.
Verstappen could also join Lewis Hamilton, Sebastian Vettel, Michael Schumacher, and Juan Manuel Fangio as the only F1 drivers to win four F1 championships in a row.
Last season, Verstappen joined an exclusive group of three-time world champions with his victory at the Qatar Grand Prix. This season he could go one better and become only the 5th driver to go four in a row.
Schumacher holds the record for the most consecutive F1 drivers’ championships, securing five straight titles from 2000 to 2004. His remarkable streak started with a bold decision to join Ferrari in 1996, a team that had been without a championship for 13 years, even though Schumacher was the reigning two-time world champion after his successful tenure with Benetton.
Following a dominant start to the season with seven wins in the first 10 races, Verstappen faced a dip in form that raised concerns about his aggressive racing approach. However, a strong recovery in Brazil and his victory on the vibrant streets of Las Vegas during last year’s inaugural event position him as the frontrunner to claim his fourth consecutive title.
When asked if the team had planned anything special in case he clinches the championship in Las Vegas, Verstappen responded: “If they did, I don’t want to know! I just want to focus on the weekend and try to have a good performance. Brazil was a very welcome victory for us after a while, but this is again very different.
“Going off the last races we were definitely not the quickest car so we’ll see what we can do here. Last year we had a fun race here but Ferrari was very fast already. This track seems to suit their car but I hope that we can be in that fight this weekend to try and win again.” he added.
McLaren, determined to secure their first constructors’ championship since 1998, will look to delay the inevitable as the F1 season enters its triple-header finale, with races in Qatar and Abu Dhabi on December 1 and 8. Currently, McLaren leads the teams’ title race with 593 points, ahead of Ferrari with 557 and Red Bull with 544.
Mohd Faisal Hakak is a sports author from Kashmir. He likes to keep tabs on the sporting world with a keen interest in football, motorsports, NBA, and other marquee sports. He is a science graduate from Islamia College Srinagar.
