Max Verstappen (Red Bull) won his third consecutive Formula 1 world title in the Qatar Grand Prix sprint at the Lusail circuit on Saturday after his teammate Sergio Pérez retired.
The 26-year-old Dutchman needed just three points to win the title and the Mexican rider was the only opponent who could delay his coronation. He had to retire after being hit by Frenchman Esteban Ocon (Alpine).
Verstappen, who was third at the time of Pérez’s accident, ultimately didn’t even have to wait until the end of the sprint, which he finished in second place behind Australian Oscar Piastri (McLaren), to be crowned. He would have won the title even if he had retired before the end of the 19-lap race.
This result, which has been expected for weeks, rewards the almost perfect season of the Dutchman, who won 13 of the first 16 Grands Prix this season, including a record series of ten wins in a row.
Apart from the street circuit in Singapore, where he finished fifth in mid-September, Verstappen has consistently occupied one of the top two places this year and takes his third title six races before the end of the season, equaling the mark set by German legend Michael Schumacher in 2002 .
The Red Bull driver, who had already offered his team the constructors’ title in Japan two weeks ago, made perfect use of the immense superiority of his RB19 car throughout the season and made almost no mistakes.
Verstappen, who set the record for consecutive victories in Formula 1 in September at Monza, in the country of great rival Ferrari, is expected to break several more records in the coming weeks, such as the record for most points scored in a season or the greatest distance to his first pursuer.