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Formula 1: Max Verstappen’s Qatar win ended a four-decade streak

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Formula 1: Max Verstappen's Qatar win ended a four-decade streak

As a seasoned gamer of Formula 1 and life itself, I must say, the 2024 season has been a rollercoaster ride that has tested even the most resilient of fans like myself. The ups and downs, twists and turns, have kept us all on our toes, but one driver who’s consistently managed to stand out amidst it all is Max Verstappen.

Without much debate, it can be stated that the 2024 Formula 1 season hasn’t followed the expected course for Red Bull and Max Verstappen. To put it mildly, their performance this year is a stark contrast to the dominant form they exhibited only last season.

2023 marked a remarkable year for Verstappen as he shattered numerous records. Among these were the most wins in a single season (19), the highest single season win percentage (86.36%), the most points in a single season with an impressive 575 points (beating his record of 454 from the previous year), and the longest unbroken winning streak ever, stretching over ten races. Plus, there were many more records to his name.

2023 stands out as a year with no rival when considering some of the most powerful and memorable seasons in sports history, particularly from the perspective of individual achievements.

2024 saw quite a shift from initial expectations. Initially, Verstappen claimed four victories out of five races, mirroring the start of the season. However, Red Bull encountered significant problems with their car development and comprehension, which transformed the remainder of the season into a much more dynamic and unforeseeable period. Now, as we approach the last race in Abu Dhabi, McLaren and Ferrari find themselves 21 points apart in the world constructor championship standings, with Red Bull having been knocked out of contention.

Since his impressive start with five consecutive wins, Max Verstappen has managed to win just five additional races – a record higher than any other driver. This is largely due to a decline in performance. However, it’s his strong season-opening performance and his knack for outperforming despite the car not being at its optimal level that helped him maintain his grip on a fourth consecutive world championship.

Even in a season when results have been hard to come by, Verstappen has still managed to match and break several records in 2024.

This year, Sergio Perez, Verstappen’s teammate, has faced significant difficulties nearly throughout the entire season, resulting in him securing eighth position in the driver rankings. Consequently, Red Bull Racing ends up in a somewhat disheartening third place in the constructors’ standings.

Although Perez achieved podium finishes together with Verstappen during the first five races of the year, where Verstappen won four times and Perez finished second three times, he hasn’t been on the podium since. In fact, in the last 18 races, his best result has been fifth place. He’s experienced multiple crashes, made numerous errors, and most importantly, he’s found the car challenging to handle and has consistently struggled to match pace with it.

However, Perez’s struggles do highlight just how strong Verstappen’s season has been.

This season, Verstappen has earned more than twice as many victories compared to Perez’s podium finishes. The difference between their positions is the widest among championship-contending drivers since 1994, a year when Michael Schumacher and surprisingly, Max Verstappen’s father Jos Verstappen, finished first and tenth respectively for Benetton.

The 277-point gap between Verstappen and Perez is so massive, that even if you combine the points gaps between the other nine teams’ driver pairings, it only amounts to 254 points, 23 less than the gap at Red Bull. It is the second largest point gap between a pair of teammates in Formula 1 history behind last year’s 290 between the two, and it is virtually double the size of the next closest: Fernando Alonso’s 139-point gap ahead of Felipe Massa in 2012.

Verstappen’s Qatar Grand Prix win, while being ordinary from the perspective of the record books, did help him match a Formula 1 feat that has only been done a few times before.

During the race in Las Vegas, Verstappen achieved an impressive feat by becoming the first Formula 1 driver in 41 years to win a championship while his team didn’t rank among the top two in the constructor standings. Interestingly, this accomplishment mirrors that of Nelson Piquet, the father of his partner Kelly Piquet, who managed the same with Brabham back in 1983.

To put it simply, even if Red Bull had only one car this season, they and Verstappen would still be in contention for the third spot in the constructor championship. As of now, Verstappen is merely 17 points shy of Mercedes’ total of 446 points. In fact, last year, he could have single-handedly won the constructor championship, given that Red Bull clinched it with a substantial lead.

Instead of attributing Perez’s performance to his poor form, it’s crucial to recall the multiple outstanding displays Verstappen has managed with suboptimal equipment that have contributed to this significant difference in their standings.

In the last two events, Brazil and Qatar, he delivered some of his finest performances. Starting from the 17th position in a rainy Sao Paulo, he managed to clinch first place. Following this, after a disappointing eighth place finish in the Qatar sprint race, he regrouped and secured pole position (before receiving a penalty) and ultimately triumphed in the Qatar Grand Prix based on merit.

2021 saw Verstappen claim his maiden title with a remarkable victory over Lewis Hamilton, then regarded as the greatest statistical driver ever. In 2022, he managed to secure his second title despite facing the largest comeback challenge by any eventual champion in Formula 1 history, having retired from two of the first three races.

In the year 2023, he compiled an exceptionally dominant season in Formula 1, which can be considered one of the most dominating in both Formula 1 and sports history. And in the following year, 2024, he clinched the title with two races remaining, while piloting a car generally regarded as the second or third quickest nearly throughout the entire season.

If Verstappen were to retire after the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix this weekend similar to Nico Rosberg, he would certainly be part of Formula 1’s esteemed group of drivers, often referred to as its “Mount Rushmore”. Instead of harboring resentment, it’s high time fans acknowledge and appreciate the extraordinary talent that is being showcased week after week.

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2024-12-05 14:32

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