Max Verstappen Joins Elite Club of Drivers with 40+ Poles for One Team

Max Verstappen Oracle Red Bull Racing, Netherlands, 01 celebrates victory at the finish line in Parc Ferme and waves to the fans, USA, Formula 1 World Championship, Pirelli Grand Prix of the United States of America

Despite experiencing several pitfalls, Max Verstappen has tried to maintain his high benchmark of performance which earned him three world championships. His knack for breaking records and climbing up the statistical charts of F1 has carried on in 2024, with Verstappen entering an elite club of F1 pole sitters.

The Dutchman registered his 40th pole position at the Austrian GP this season, which made him only the fifth driver to score 40 or more poles with a single constructor — with all his poles coming for Red Bull.

Per F1 analyst Daniel Valente, the other four drivers in this list include the two seven-time world champions, Lewis Hamilton with 78 poles for Mercedes and Michael Schumacher with 58 poles for Ferrari. Ayrton Senna follows them with 46 poles during his time at McLaren, meanwhile, Sebastian Vettel — the only other Red Bull world champion — with 44 poles.

In fact, these are the only five drivers to have scored 40 or more career pole positions in F1 history. Charles Leclerc is one man — from the active drivers — who could break into this club of pole sitters in the future, as the Monegasque currently has 26 poles to his name.

As for Verstappen, while Red Bull has struggled with the RB20’s gremlins, the #1 driver has kept pushing to eke out every ounce of performance from his car despite being frustrated about its handling issues. He still has the most poles (8) this season, ahead of his title rival, Lando Norris (7).

Speaking about Norris, who was looking to dethrone Verstappen as the world champion, is almost out of contention for the 2024 drivers’ title, owing to the Red Bull driver’s wet weather masterclass in Brazil. 

This means that Verstappen only needs to outscore the Briton by just three points to secure his fourth consecutive world title at the upcoming Las Vegas GP. If he can do so, the Red Bull driver will join the likes of Vettel and Alain Prost as a four-time F1 champion.

Post Edited By: Aishwary Gaonkar
Ayrton Senna Lewis Hamilton Max Verstappen Michael Schumacher Sebastian Vettel

About the author

Anirban Aly Mandal

Anirban Aly Mandal is an F1 writer at The SportsRush, with over 1000 articles under his belt, Anirban's love for F1 started when he discovered a copy of F1 2014 on his computer. With over half a decade's worth of time spent religiously following the sport, he’s dived deep into the world of motorsports. However, Anirban's expertise goes beyond just writing - he has also written several academic papers focused on the domain of motorsports and the law. His passion for the sport is so immense that he aspires to work as a legal advisor in the most prestigious racing series in the world someday. When it comes to Formula 1, Anirban finds great pleasure in re-watching classic races and idolizes the likes of Ayrton Senna, Nigel Mansell, and Sebastian Vettel. His top picks include Brazil '91, Silverstone '92, and Germany '19. Outside of the sport, Anirban is an avid sim racer, often found racing on titles like Assetto Corsa, F1 22, and Automobilista. Apart from his interests in gaming, Anirban has a keen interest in philosophy, literature and music.

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