If there was a record for setting the most records, Max Verstappen would probably have achieved this milestone in 2023. The Dutchman hardly left any crumbs for the competition in a long season, and since the regulations will be virtually the same in 2024, the chance of more Dutch success seems high. In that case, the reigning world champion’s record hunt could soon continue.
A record number of victories (nineteen), a record number of podium places (21), a record number of points (575), and the first driver in the history of the sport to score more than twice as many points as the number two in the title race, including: a record lead of 290 points; it is just a selection from the dominant 2023 season of the Red Bull Racing driver, who was especially proud of winning ten races in a row and leading more than 1,000 laps in a season. The 2024 calendar is even fuller, and so all these records could be in danger again if Verstappen maintains his form. F1Maximaal lists what can be achieved for Verstappen.
Longest winning streak: 10 wins
Verstappen struck mercilessly in Miami in 2023 after a relatively difficult weekend in Azerbaijan. In the North American country, Verstappen had to start ninth after a qualifying setback, but the champion ultimately took the victory convincingly. He also did this in the following months, equaling the winning streak of Red Bull predecessor Sebastian Vettel in Zandvoort, and the following week a unique achievement with his tenth victory in a row in Monza.
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The series came to an end in Singapore in the only weekend in which the victory did not go to a Red Bull driver. Verstappen came out of the Asian country with determination, and left few of his competitors in Japan. He then became world champion in Qatar and won every remaining Grand Prix, bringing the count to 7 again; the longest ever after Verstappen and Vettel. So if Verstappen wins in Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Australia, he can equal his own record on March 24, and go for number eleven two weeks later in Japan, a typical Verstappen circuit. It must be said that Verstappen has never won the first three races of the season.
Longest points streak: 48 Grands Prix
Verstappen not only wins a lot, he also rarely drops out these days. The last technical failures were at the beginning of 2022. A DNF in Bahrain was followed by a narrow victory in Saudi Arabia, after which Verstappen’s courage in Australia sank after further technical problems. The Dutchman quickly recovered from his points deficit and eventually became the dominant champion. Since then, Verstappen has taken 33 victories in 41 weekends.
The record for the longest points streak is held by Lewis Hamilton. To equal the 39-year-old Briton’s record, he must finish the first seven Grands Prix in the top ten. In Emilia-Romagna, Verstappen can then level with his former rival, and a week later in Monaco will have the opportunity to take the record into his own hands. An interesting detail is that Hamilton owed his series to a heavy penalty for both Alfa Romeos in Germany, 2019. Verstappen ruled the water ballet, while Hamilton finished eleventh after several mistakes, but was later promoted to ninth place.
Longest podium streak: 19 races
Due to the setback in Singapore, where Verstappen finished fifth, his series of podiums also came to an end. The counter remained at fifteen. The record therefore remained out of reach: Michael Schumacher finished in the top three every time from the United States Grand Prix in 2001 to the Japanese Grand Prix in 2002, nineteen times in a row. Verstappen now has seven podiums in a row again, thanks to his seven victories. Verstappen can reach nineteen in Silverstone if he can consistently be found at the front, where he can take over the record alone in Hungary.
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Finish on the podium every Grand Prix
Some records can no longer be improved, only equaled. One of those records is Schumacher’s near-perfect 2002 season. The German finished in the top three in each of the seventeen races. Only in Malaysia did the now 55-year-old record champion have to sit on the last step after losing his front wing in a starting incident with Juan Pablo Montoya. Furthermore, Schumi finished first eleven times and second five times. Verstappen saw his chance for this perfect score in Singapore pass him by in 2023.
Leading every Grand Prix
Verstappen missed out on another record early in the season. In 1969, Sir Jackie Stewart managed to lead at least one lap in each of the eleven Grands Prix on his way to his first world title, which is still unique in the sport. Vettel, Alain Prost, Jim Clarck, Graham Hill, and Juan Manuel Fangio all came close, but in one Grand Prix things went wrong. Verstappen scored 20 out of 22 in 2023. In addition to the Singapore Grand Prix, Verstappen already saw this opportunity go up in smoke in Saudi Arabia, where he started fifteenth after technical problems and finished second, behind teammate Sergio Pérez.
Verstappen as king of (North) America
Verstappen already holds some records, but he can further tighten them in 2024. In 2023, the Dutchman became the first driver with three victories in the same country in one year, with victories in Miami, Austin, and Las Vegas. However, Verstappen has been successful in the United States for much longer. In 2021, Verstappen took a crucial victory in the title battle with Hamilton in Austin, while in 2022 he triumphed in Miami and Austin. With six victories in a row in one country, Verstappen is already the record holder, and in 2024 there are three new opportunities on the calendar.
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Even more extreme is Verstappen’s display of power throughout the North American continent. In 2021, 2022 and 2023, Verstappen also won in Mexico, and in 2022 and 2023 also in Canada. This brings the count to no fewer than eleven victories in a row in North America, spread over five different circuits. Verstappen has been undefeated in North America since November 3, 2019, for more than four years. North America will be visited five times in 2024, so it will be a challenge for Verstappen to extend his streak for another year.
Ultimate records of Schumacher and Hamilton still out of reach
The most prestigious records in Formula 1 are the number of world titles and victories. Verstappen will have to be patient for that even longer. Schumacher and Hamilton each collected seven titles, so Verstappen needs at least until 2027 to match that. Verstappen’s current contract expires in 2028, so theoretically the Limburger still has a chance to get his hands on the record alone during his current contract. Then the now 26-year-old driver will have to win eight titles in a row, something that seems almost unthinkable.
The record number of victories will probably be achieved sooner. Verstappen now has 54 Grand Prix victories, which is still far from the figures of Schumacher (91) and Hamilton (103). However, Verstappen took nineteen victories in 2023, and there are two additional races on the calendar in 2024. If Verstappen maintains this form, he can catch up with Schumacher next year, while Hamilton is safe until at least 2026.
