After two years of boring one-sided dominance, Max Verstappen has had to break his share of sweat in 2024, with drivers from Ferrari, McLaren, and Mercedes pushing him to the limit. While he continues to lead the Drivers’ Championship with four race weekends to go, Verstappen’s team Red Bull is not so comfortable on the Constructors’ title front. In fact, after the Mexican GP, they fell down to P3 in the standings.
If the season now ends with all drivers and teams exactly where they are — Verstappen P1 and Red Bull P3 — the record books would have to be rewritten.
This would mark the first time since the 1983 season that a driver from outside the top two teams in the Constructors’ standings would go on to win the Drivers’ Championship.
Brazilian driver Nelson Piquet won the title that year, driving for Brabham, but the British team did not win the constructors’ Championship. That went to Ferrari, with Renault behind them in P2.
If Verstappen manages to hold on to P1, he will be breaking a 40-year-old record. However, doing so will surely be difficult for the 27-year-old, owing to the stiff competition and results from previous weeks.
Verstappen has to be at his absolute best
In 2023, Verstappen set a new record with a 10-race winning streak, surpassing Sebastian Vettel’s previous record of nine consecutive victories. This year, however, the Dutchman has faced an equally long winless streak.
In Mexico City last weekend, Verstappen gave up a huge advantage to his direct title rival Lando Norris, after a 20-second time penalty — for his aggressive driving — limited him to a P6 finish. Norris, meanwhile, stood on the second step of the podium, bringing down his gap with Verstappen to just 47 points.
If Verstappen continues to perform like he did in Mexico and Norris capitalizes on his misfortune, the McLaren driver could become the 2024 world champion. To prevent that, Verstappen will have to be at his absolute best.
