2021 Champion Max Verstappen is the most likely to win irrespective of whether he or Charles Leclerc grabs Pole position.
Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen have been duelling each other since their Karting days. They share a rivalry that has been forged by their individual talents.
Both Charles and Max are two of the best young drivers and the future of F1. And since the 2022 season has flagged off in Bahrain, the duo has resumed a fight. And this time the 2022 F1 Championship is at stake.
Recently, the duo went head-to-head in the 2022 French GP. Leclerc was leading the race having qualified in Pole position. But the Monegasque crashed out of the race, losing control of his Ferrari F1-75.
Max won the race with ease, increasing his lead in the championship by 63 points. Interestingly, until then both Max and Charles had 16 poles in their F1 career.
But Max has won 27 races compared with Charles 5. Even Max has 31 retirements to his name compared with Leclerc’s 17. This raises a question regarding Leclerc and Ferrari’s reliability issues.
Although Leclerc has won 4 of his races starting on pole, he has not been efficient in retaining it. Statistics also show that often when Leclerc is car number 1, Max is the most likely winner based on the past trends.
While Max has dominated his stats. He has 68% of the races he has started from pole. In fact his average starting and finishing position is far ahead of Leclerc’s. Only Hamilton boasts better stats than Verstappen in the current F1 grid.
Also Read: Max Verstappen feels lead against Charles Leclerc is bigger than it should be
Max Verstappen has an easy task ahead to win the championship
Max Verstappen has an easy road ahead in the road to retaining his 2021 crown. The Dutchman can win the title even if Charles Leclerc wins all the races ahead.
Charles took the blame onto himself following Ferrari’s horrendous weekend in France. He was clearly frustrated after his 2nd retirement of the season.
Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto said it was a “genuine mistake” from Leclerc. Binotto claims the team must shake off the slump and aim to consistently finish higher in the season ahead.
The race ahead in Hungary is not just important to keep Leclerc’s title hope alive. But Ferrari needs to grab a 1-2 to keep constructors’ hopes. Red Bull is now 82 points ahead of Ferrari.
The two drivers’ saga will only grow. Both are just 24 years of age and we could see more fierce on-track rivalries from the Monegasque and the Dutchman in the coming few seasons.
Also Read: Even if Charles Leclerc wins every remaining races, Max Verstappen could still win the championship
