At first, I found Max's aggressive tactics to be refreshing. A desire to win, and the balls to do it. Now, Max has become entitled. He drives guys off the road and doesn't think they will wreck him. it is time for drivers to start holding position and letting Max crash out almost every freaking race. (I know the driver takes himself out too, but this is just getting old.)
In almost every other instance at Turn 1 of Lap 1, stewards absolutely ALLOW drivers to push other drivers off. It's common, it's expected ... and apparently, it's not even against the rules. This time, in sharp contrast to almost every other race ever, the stewards gave Verstappen the same penalty as a driver causing a collision! They didn't turn a blind eye, they didn't simply demand Max to give the position back .... they penalized him as if he abruptly turned & collided with another driver. My point is this: other drivers don't need to change their behavior ... the stewards are absolutely penalizing Max for over-aggressive behavior.
Though Max does put himself in that position quite often, I genuinely think that in Vegas, the lap 1 wasn't planned like that. It really was a case of zero grip there (look at Alonso practically ice skating into T1, and Russell on the same line as Max but much slower, unable to put any power down to take the lead). Max also apologized to Leclerc straight away. In the end Max was the big loser in that as not only did Leclerc pass him on track, Max still had to serve the 5 second penalty.
Max records are certainly impressive, despite the car he is driving , his consistency, and his ability to drive almost flawlessly for the last couple of years is just mindblowing. I'm not a fan, but he's one of the very best i have seen. I need to watch him against someone like Charles all season, like the first race sof last year, to see if he remains as cool and colected, while being constantly chalenged, but he did very well againts Elton, but it was no easy ride. But congrats to him, he's a ****ing machine, just a perfect winning machine for now, i just hope Ferrari can build a car as good as the BUll. I certanily think he deserves more plaudits as gost than Elton os Seb ever did, i think he's the true successor to Michael's legacy.
Could be that the big oil slick dumped onto the track about an hour before the race, right in front of Verstappen's grid spot, had a little to do with zero traction. Just a guess ...
Max was spot on to voice his discomfort with the NON race activities. I agree completely. The race itself was good, the other off track stuff. Big Zero for me. Verstappen's honesty about F1 Las Vegas GP “refreshing” – Horner Red Bull's Christian Horner said it was “refreshing” to hear Max Verstappen's outspokenness over Formula 1's Las Vegas Grand Prix and praised him for going along with the team's Elvis race suits. Author Filip Cleeren Updated Nov 21, 2023, 9:51 AM 0 Image Unavailable, Please Login Verstappen was a vocal critic of the race's emphasis on the off-track show, holding a passionate two-minute plea to explain why he felt the event was lacking the passion of a traditional track. His comments were appreciated by many fans on social media, not just his own supporters but also who followed Lewis Hamilton and others. While Verstappen wasn't overly comfortable with all the additional activities the drivers were asked to perform, his willingness to don Red Bull's Elvis Presley-themed overalls and sing Viva Las Vegas on the in-lap is something Horner believes commands respect. “Max would’ve thoroughly enjoyed that race because that is what he loves and that is what he is here for,” Horner said. “The fact he won it in an Elvis Presley suit and was singing Viva Las Vegas on an in-lap, whilst you have to respect that it doesn’t sit comfortably with him, some of the razzmatazz that goes around F1, it is quite refreshing that he is prepared to speak and give an honest opinion. “I think he also reflects that it is an important event for F1 and I think the race and the way it delivered today is something you could certainly see he enjoyed. “He wasn’t judging the race. I think he feels a little uncomfortable with the show element, the Super Bowl effect, that has been applied here.”
Max is a sportsman and not a media circus act, and I respect that. All sports have seem to have characters like this. Some footballers say nothing and just go about their work, and some act like David Beckham. Some drivers just show up to race and some behave like Lewis Hamilton. You have Bill Russell’s and Dennis Rodman’s. I think his candor and lack of B.S. is refreshing.
Incredible season from Max. A list of records he's broken or equaled this year: · Most wins in a season (19) · Highest win percentage (86%) · Most wins from pole (12) · Longest win streak (10 races) · Most sprint race wins in a season (4) · Highest number of points (575) · Largest gap to second in the championship (290, 50.4%) · Most podiums in a season (21) · Most hat-tricks in a season - Pole position + Grand Prix win + Fastest Lap (6) · First driver to lead 1,000 racing laps · Most laps led in a season (1,003) · Highest percentage of laps led in a season (75.7%) · Only driver to win 3 races in the same country in a single season (Miami, Austin & Las Vegas ) · Most consecutive races as championship leader (40 - May 2022 to present) · Most consecutive points scored (1,004) · Most consecutive top-two finishes in a season (15 - shared with Michael Schumacher) · Most pitstops by a winning driver in a race (6 - shared with Jenson Button) Image Unavailable, Please Login Incredibly well deserved.
My personal dislikes for Max aside there is no doubt that his performances this season showed domination on a level never before seen in the sport. In addition, Red Bull executed perfectly all season and Max never looked genuinely challenged and seemed to always have performance in reserve. His consistency, pace, lack of mistakes, and incredible ability on the brakes (especially on cold tires) is extraordinary. Yes he made it boring for the fans but just like when Mercedes dominated I greatly admire how he made something that is incredibly difficult look easy. My compliments to Max as this year he set a new benchmark for performance.
I think he's nearer to 9 figures this year from Red Bull alone...50M as a base, RB pays 1 million per win then on top of that I think he''s on 50K per point. His personal endorsements aren't to be sniffed at, either.
Just realized he scored 44 wins in the last 3 seasons. Averages almost 15 per year. Sebs old 2013 record was 13... We are truly witnessing something really special. As a max fan, I'm just happy to be around. I always was a Jos fan, always felt he did not have the real chance to proof himself. Max just makes up for all of it.
Jos was an honest midfield driver. Max is one of the all time greatest. Nothing really to compare with..
Firstly, congrats to Max on an mega wdc win. A domination that we’ve never seen before. It’s easy to break records when you have the GOAT car and a totally hopeless number 2 teammate (Perez). Max will probably look back on 2023 as his best ever year when he finally hangs up his racing boots - and he should thank Newey for that.
Max concludes the greatest season in F1 history and I hope we never see this kind of domination from a driver again. Many will claim it's all down to the RB19. A dominant car yes, but there have been equally or more dominant cars than that and never has a driver destroyed everyone the same way Max did. Aside from maybe Michael Schumacher in 1994, though will anyone say the combination of Jos Verstappen, Letto, and Herbert were as good as Perez? There are probably 5 other cars he would win 85+% of the races in. Maybe even 100%.
Exactly. If it was easy, something at least close to this would've been replicated before. It hasn't been done. Max has been pretty much faultless all year. Yes he's had a great car, but you still need the consistency, and Max showed it. Some of us have been saying it long before Max was even in contention for a title: "I wonder what he can do with a dominant car". Well, turns out that answer is a season dominance never seen before and then some. I don't think there's a driver around that could replicate an almost robotically faultless season like this, right now or in the past. The car has barely been upgraded this year; other teams have made huge upgrades and got closer and closer. There have been races this year the RB wasn't the fastest and where Max made the difference. Races where he's been under real pressure (Zandvoort in the rain, anyone? He was so much on the backfoot yet a handful of laps later he was back in the lead closing a what, 12 second gap? Or Monaco...staying out that long playing a game of chicken with Alonso then the rain...Alonso bites first and all hell unleashed with the rain leaving Max to drive on slicks, in Monaco, in torrential rain. And he kept it together. My favourite performances of the season!) If the RB20 is as good as it's rumoured to be and no other team has really closed the gap, He'll be at 70 wins this time next year. That's still a pretty big IF. But IF that happens...I don't think there's a team that can turn it around for 2025 enough as there'll be little point in investing in another brand new concept to try and topple the RB21, when for 2026 there's another rule change that'll rule that concept obsolete. If 2024 is as dominant, my money is on 2025 as well. He could be level with Michael already then.. It's make it or break it for Ferrari, Mercedes, Mclaren and Aston Martin next year.
Congrats to Max. The RB is so good, Perez beat everybody else. Stroll drove better than Perez this year. Even Stroll would beat all other teams in the RB.
Max is now 3rd in line with most wins ending 2023 with 54 wins. He's behind Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton.
The scariest thing about the RB19 as a fan of Ferrari isn't just the sheer race pace, it's the durability. Between Max not putting a foot wrong all year, and the car chugging along without issue, what do you even hope for next year? Max to get super bored and start trying risky moves? The car didn't work at one race, whereas MB, Ferrari, McLaren all had many tracks where the car wouldn't work, and some tracks where a car wouldn't work for half the race then get into it's operating window mid-race, or fall out mid-race. Leclerc's first stint where he passed Max clean on track, then fell off comes to mind. For anyone to compete with them next year they need to nail like 3 fully distinct components of racing over the winter break. Ferrari needs a larger operating window that eats less tire, better strategy, better reliability.
