Dutch driver Max Verstappen (Red Bull) can ‘seal’ the Formula 1 world title at the Japanese Grand Prix, the 18th of 22 races this season, which takes place at the Suzuka circuit on Sunday.
The 25-year-old wins the title if he wins and sets the fastest lap of the race, earning him an extra point no matter what his opponents do.
With a lead of 104 points over Monegasque Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) and 106 over Mexican team-mate Sérgio Pérez, his Red Bull team-mate, Verstappen’s double championship is not threatened by any other driver, at a time when there are still 138 points left. to be in discussion.
Max Verstappen can still become champion in several scenarios, even if in the worst case he finishes sixth, Leclerc does not score and Pérez does not get further than 10th position.
If he doesn’t win and takes second, Max Verstappen will celebrate his second title as Leclerc finishes under fifth (fourth if the Red Bull driver sets the fastest lap) and Pérez under fourth (under third if the Dutchman makes the faster turn). .
If he finishes third in Sunday’s Japanese race, Verstappen will still be champion if Ferrari’s opponent does not go beyond seventh (sixth if the Dutchman does the fastest lap) and Sérgio Pérez does not better than fifth.
Even if only fourth, Max Verstappen is champion with Leclerc under sixth and Pérez under fifth (or at least seventh if Verstappen sets the fastest lap).
The Red Bull driver still has the chance to celebrate the title if he finishes fifth. For that he needs Leclerc not to get further than ninth place and Pérez not further than eighth.
Until the end of the season, Max Verstappen could also become the driver with the most wins in one season (the record is 13 and belongs to the Germans Michael Schumacher and Sebastian Vettel).
The Dutchman can also have the most wins in a row (he has five and Vettel’s record is nine since 2013).
Currently, with 341 points, Verstappen can still beat the record for the most points added, which has been held by Lewis Hamilton (413) since 2019.
The Red Bull driver is also running for the record for the largest points difference to the runner-up in the World Championship. The record belongs to Sebastian Vettel, thanks to the 155 points left behind by runner-up Fernando Alonso in 2013.
Finally, the fast laps in the race are the hardest to beat. The maximum ever reached was 10 in a season, by Michael Schumacher (2004) and by the Finn Kimi Raikkonen (2005). Verstappen currently has five.
Source: DN
