After 50 laps under the Las Vegas nightlights, Max Verstappen from Red Bull Racing won his fourth consecutive world title on round 22 of this year’s Formula One season, which took place Saturday night in the Las Vegas Strip Circuit.
Verstappen finished the race P5 ahead of his title challenger, McLaren’s Lando Norris, winning the title with a 63-point difference. The race victory went to Mercedes’ George Russell, with his teammate Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz rounding out the podium.
“What a season,” Verstappen said on the radio after his victory, “It was a little bit more difficult than last year, but we pulled through and we gave it all. Thank you so much, guys.”
“It’s been a very challenging year,” Verstappen said after the race. “I think as a team we stuck together. We stayed calm, and I think that’s the best way. We had a lot of pressure, but it seems that the team works very well under pressure. We maximized a lot of results.”
Verstappen finished the race in the same position as he started, having qualified P5 and losing a podium finish to Sainz and Charles Leclerc in the last few laps after making his way forward throughout the race. Verstappen lost position at the end of the race when he was unable to defend due to tire degradation, which was higher than expected at the beginning of the weekend and troubled all 10 teams.
Red Bull Racing started the weekend with problems that almost pushed back Verstappen’s title-deciding finish. In the cold of Las Vegas’ desert nights, heating up the tires and maintaining a good grip on the track was very difficult for the Austrian team, with Verstappen calling the car “undrivable” during Free Practice 2. Furthermore, the team had no rear wings suited to the style of the track and manually sawed down their cars’ wings to help reduce drag.
Verstappen’s victory this season makes him one of only six F1 drivers to have more than three world titles and one of three drivers to have four. He is the fifth man to win four consecutive titles, all with the same team.
“He’s won it with two races to go,” Team Principal Christian Horner said of his driver. “He’s been head and shoulders the best driver on the grid in Formula 1 and I think what he’s really done this year is absolutely cement his position amongst the greats in the sport.”
Round 23 of the 2024 season will take place at 10 a.m. Sunday, Dec. 1, at the Lusail International Circuit in Qatar.
