Max Verstappen is one of the most accomplished drivers in Formula 1 history, having already written his name in several records. The Dutch driver is only 26 years old with a long and bright career ahead of him.
This means we’re likely to see him still shattering many historical records. However, this article deals with the records Max has already broken and how they led him to the most recent one: most consecutive wins.
Racing DNA
Max Verstappen was born into a high-speed racing family. The son of the former Formula 1 driver Jos Verstappen, Max started following his father’s path at an early age. In 2003, when he was about 6 years old, Jos’ son was already a habitué in the karting tracks of Genk, Belgium. In 2005, the young Max won all tracks in the season, displaying outstanding talent behind the wheel, already taking after his karting champion mother Sophie Kumpen; quite some DNA!
The karting tracks soon became too small for him, and Max premiered in the FIA Formula 3 European Championship after 2013. We’re dumbfounded by his impossible winning streak at his current level, but it’s not the first time “Mad Max” pulled such a feat. It was his debut season in Formula 3 when he scored six victories in a row, snatching third place at the end of the year.
Joining the elite…
Max Verstappen premiered in Formula 1 in 2015, breaking another record: the youngest driver to join the competition. As a junior Red Bull backed driver, he joined the Scuderia Toro Rosso and had a breath-taking duel with former World Champion Kimi Räikkönen in his very first race.
Max Verstappen (NLD) Red Bull Racing RB19. 27.08.2023. Formula 1 World Championship, Rd 14, Dutch Grand Prix, Zandvoort, Netherlands, Race Day.
By 2016, it was already clear that the Dutch driver was a rising force in the sport when he finished the season in the fifth position after being promoted to the senior Red Bull Racing team. Verstappen continued to improve his results, winning more podiums and finishing seasons with more points. In 2019, he was third overall in the championship, the best of his career so far. The best part was yet to come, though.
Unforgettable seasons – 2021 and 2022
After a stream of promising results, 2021 was the year when Verstappen showed all expectations about him were correct. The Dutchman won multiple races, pulling a hat trick in the Austrian, Styrian and French Grands Prix.
He also won at home in Zandvoort before an incredibly excited and orange-painted crowd. His first championship title was confirmed in the final, but controversial, race in Abu Dhabi. “Mad Max” shattered a record held by Michael Schumacher and Sebastian Vettel: most wins in one season.
Fun and games
After so many shattered records and title wins, Max Verstappen has already left his mark on the sport. Formula 1 has over 1 billion fans worldwide, watching every grand prix. Such popularity already inspired countless games and simulators. There are even slot machines based on the theme, which can add a nice twist to your Sweet Bonanza session.
Verstappen’s popularity can also be translated into numbers. He earns over $4m in endorsements monthly, plus an unbelievable salary, currently estimated to be more than $60m a year including various win bonuses; Verstappen makes money almost as fast as he makes history…
The 2023 season
Another year and more shattered records for Mad Max. Indeed, this could be the most successful season for the Dutch driver so far. As it currently stands, his victory total stands at 12 and he is over 200 points ahead of the second place and team partner, Sergio Perez. It’s also noteworthy that Red Bull Racing, as a team, have won all the races this year save for Carlos Sainz’s win in Singapore. This somewhat explains the abyss between the Red Bull Racing team and the rest of the field.
1st place Max Verstappen (NLD) Red Bull Racing RB19, 2nd place Fernando Alonso (ESP) Aston Martin F1 Team AMR23, 3rd place Lewis Hamilton (GBR) Mercedes AMG F1 W14 with Adrian Newey (GBR) Red Bull Racing Chief Technical Officer. 18.06.2023. Formula 1 World Championship, Rd 9, Canadian Grand Prix, Montreal, Canada, Race Day.
At the end of August, Verstappen excited the crowds by winning at home. The Dutch won once again before his many passionate fans at Zandvoort. At the end of the race Verstappen matched the record for the longest winning streak in the history of this sport. The stream of positive results surprised even team principal Christian Horner for whom such positive results surpass even the most optimistic expectations.
Most fans can’t remember the last time Mad Max lost a Grand Prix, but he remembers one of them very clearly. The Azerbaijan Grand Prix was the turning point for his season, according to the driver. During an interview, he said he learned much about the car and its setting in his defeat at Baku. Despite not winning that race, he remarks it was a race of experimentation, implementing his findings in every track since.
The next records?
At this point, no one wonders if Mad Max will break new records; it’s a matter of when. If he keeps making the impossible seem effortless, here are some other marks we’ll likely see broken by the end of the year.
Longest winning streak
Verstappen has already reached the height of legends like Michael Schumacher and Sebastian Vettel and in Monza, he went further than any other driver in history, setting a new winning streak of 10 races which was stopped by Carls Sainz’s win for Ferrari in Singapore.
Most wins in a season (Percentage)
This mark doesn’t actually count how many tracks a driver has, but the percentage of tracks won in a season. Michael Schumacher still holds this one, having finished the 2004 season with 72.22% of victory. Verstappen is currently 83.3% but could finish the season above 90% if he keeps up the excellent job.
Largest margin of points
This mark currently belongs to Sebastian Vettel, who won the 2013 season leading by 155 over the second place, Fernando Alonso. Verstappen got really close last year, finishing 146 points ahead of Charles Leclerc. Given Verstappen’s dazzling performance, he could write his name on this one as he is already over 200 points ahead of teammate Perez with just five grands prix left this season.
Sergio Perez (MEX) Red Bull Racing RB19 leads team mate Max Verstappen (NLD) Red Bull Racing RB19. 07.05.2023. Formula 1 World Championship, Rd 5, Miami Grand Prix, Miami, Florida, USA, Race Day.
More laps led
Verstappen seems to be erasing Vettel from F1’s book of records. Vettel held this one too, with 739 laps led in one year but Mad Max has already beaten that in last weekend’s Qatar Grand Prix where his took his total so far this season to 769 laps and with five races still to be run, we could see the record taken to 1,000 laps or more as there are still over 300 laps left to run…
Consecutive podiums
Technologies come and go, but the record of consecutive podium finishes belongs to Michael Schumacher for more than 20 years now. The German legend scored 19 consecutive podiums back in 2002. Lewis Hamilton got close to it with a streak of 16 podiums. Sadly, Verstappen’s 2022/2023 run of 15 podiums was interrupted, again in Singapore by Carlos Sainz, so he went back to zero and is now on two having to start the tally again but this record is more definitely something he can aim for in the future.
Keyword: Max Verstappen, his record of consecutive F1 wins