Max Verstappen is a four-time Formula 1 champion.
Verstappen won his fourth consecutive title late on Saturday evening in Las Vegas with a fifth place. Verstappen only had to stay ahead of Lando Norris to capture the championship with two races to go.
Verstappen is the fifth driver to win at least four consecutive titles, joining Lewis Hamilton, Sebastian Vettel, Michael Schumacher and Juan Manuel Fangio. Hamilton won four consecutive championships between 2017 and 2020, meaning there have only been two F1 champions in the past eight seasons. Throw in Nico Rosberg’s 2016 title and only four drivers have won a world championship since Jenson Button became champion in 2009.
The weekend did not start well for Verstappen. Red Bull continued to look for pace during the first two training sessions and even brought the wrong rear wing onto the track. The car had a higher downforce mounting instead of a smaller wing for the long straight down Las Vegas Boulevard.
That didn’t matter. Verstappen qualified fifth and drove his way to second place in the opening stages of the race. He fell back in the second half but was well ahead of Norris, who finished sixth and was almost 10 seconds behind before making a free pit stop with two laps to go for new tires and a run on the fastest lap of the race.
Although Verstappen clinched the championship before the end of the season, the 2024 season has been significantly different from 2023 and 2022. He has taken eight wins in 22 races so far, after winning 19 of 22 races a season ago and in 2022 15 out of 22.
But he was still by far the best driver, despite not having a car as dominant as the previous two seasons. While his teammate Sergio Perez continued to struggle, Verstappen got the best out of the car despite a 10-race winning streak that he broke at the Brazilian Grand Prix earlier this month.
Russell’s win is his second of the season. This means that seven drivers – Verstappen, Norris, Russell, Hamilton, Carlos Sainz, Charles Leclerc and Oscar Piastri – have won at least two races in 2024. That has never happened before in the history of F1.
Russell started first and led every lap as he quickly pulled away from the field. Hamilton made a brilliant drive from tenth to second, but used his tires as he bravely tried to chase Russell, losing time to his teammate in the final three laps.
Hamilton would have had a great chance of winning the race with a better third qualifying lap. But he did not have a good lap on the last lap and had to start last of the ten drivers who advanced.
Las Vegas Grand Prix Results
1. George Russell, Mercedes
2. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes
3. Carlos Sainz, Ferrari
4. Charles Leclerc, Ferrari
5. Max Verstappen, Red Bull
6. Lando Norris, McLaren
7. Oscar Piastri, McLaren
8. Nico Hulkenberg, Haas
9. Yuki Tsunoda, RB
10. Sergio Perez, Red Bull
11. Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin
12. Kevin Magnussen, Haas
13. Zhou Guanyu, Sauber
14. Franco Colapinto, Williams
15. Lance Stroll, Aston Martin
16. Liam Lawson, RB
17. Esteban Ocon, Alpine
18. Valtteri Bottas, Sauber
Not classified: Alex Albon (Williams), Pierre Gasly (Alpine)
