Dominant season
Sunday after Sunday it becomes clear to Formula 1 enthusiasts how Max Verstappen stand literally rewriting the history of this sport. His hegemony over the 2023 season is almost total and there are numbers that certify it in an impressive way, giving an idea of how much the combination formed by the Hasselt champion and the RB19 designed by Adrian Newey is totally out of reach for the competition. In Montreal the world champion celebrated the 41st career winequaling Ayrton Senna, and the sixth of the season in just eight races. But there is a fact that makes even more impression.
In Canada, exactly as had also happened in Monaco and Spain, Verstappen led the race from the first to the last lap. Added to this are the last ten laps of the Miami GP on 7 May, which saw him recover and win from the ninth starting position, managing to beat his teammate Sergio Perez. Since that weekend in Florida, the Mexican hasn’t managed to score even one podium while Verstappen has literally never left the lead of the standings. The #1 of Red Bull has in fact completed 224 consecutive laps as leader, equal to 927 kilometres. These are legendary numbers.
In the wake of Ascari, Senna and Mansell
In terms of consecutive lead laps, only three riders have done better than Verstappen – so far – all in very distant and different times from the current ones. The leader of this particular classification remains Alberto Ascari, with 305 laps one in a row lived as leaders in 1952, between the Belgian and Dutch GPs. Behind him he hoists himself Seine, between 1988 and 1989 with two streaks of 264 and 237 laps. Finally tick Nigel Mansell, who in the triumphant 1992 year managed to lead 235 laps in a row. Verstappen’s feat takes on even more value considering how easy it is, in current F1, to lose the lead of the race even for just one lap during the pit stop whirlwind.
In Austria, Verstappen could reach the second position overall in this standings if he were to lead the whole race, thus reaching 295. In terms of kilometers spent in first position, however, the Dutchman is slightly further back, thanks to the circuit types shorter than in the past existing in this historical era: Ascari is once again in command, who with his Ferrari drove in front of all his opponents for 2,075 km always in the 1952 vintage. In this different classification, Verstappen’s next target is Juan Manuel Fangio, who led 937 km consecutively in the lead in 1955. When they say “compete against history“.
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