Max Verstappen is one of the most decorated drivers in the history of Formula 1. Only Lewis Hamilton (105) and Michael Schumacher (91) have won more races than the Dutchman (65).
Verstappen has won the last four world championships, one of the most dominant streaks ever. Schumacher holds the all-time record of five in a row, and McLaren’s 2025 superiority means he’s likely to hold onto it.
Still, almost everyone in F1 will expect Verstappen to win at least one more title during his career. And that would be enough to match Juan Manuel Fangio for third all-time.
RANKDRIVERWINS1Lewis Hamilton1052Michael Schumacher913Max Verstappen654Sebastian Vettel535Alain Prost51The most successful F1 drivers ever
2015 debutant Verstappen is hugely respected among his fellow drivers. But he’s been a controversial figure from the outset, with the FIA introducing a minimum age limit in response to his arrival.
Max Verstappen is considered too divisive to be the face of F1
According to FUnoAnalisiTecnica, ‘most insiders’ agree that Verstappen is still the best driver in F1 even though his title streak is set to come to an end. Despite that, Liberty Media will ‘never’ cast him as the ‘beloved’ face of the sport.
Verstappen is a ‘very divisive figure’, not least because of his extremely aggressive driving style. What’s more, he will only ever be ‘interested in racing’.
The consensus is that he ‘expresses himself best when the cameras and microphones are off’. His reluctance to embrace the celebrity life means Liberty may need an alternative poster boy when Lewis Hamilton retires.
Hamilton is the most successful and most famous driver in F1, but at the age of 40, he’s clearly coming to the end of his career. Verstappen is ‘beloved by engineers and mechanics’, but Liberty will prioritise commercial interests.
Chris Harris has filmed with Max Verstappen – here’s what he thought of the Red Bull star
Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri are vying for the championship this year, while George Russell and Charles Leclerc have also become superstars in recent years. Perhaps one of those drivers will become the Liberty Media darling instead.
Tom Coronel reckons Piastri isn’t the ‘champion we want to see’ because he’s not necessarily flamboyant, but equally, he doesn’t seem to split opinion.
Alex Albon thinks Verstappen is the most ‘misunderstood’ driver on the grid, but as is his prerogative, he likes to maintain his privacy. He didn’t attend the premiere of the F1 movie and expressed a dislike for the glitzy season launch ceremony in London.
Presenter Chris Harris recently filmed with Verstappen and described him as ‘one of us’, even though he’s ‘aware of his talent’. Harris called him a ‘very, very uncomplicated man’.