How Max Verstappen’s Second F1 Title Became A Historic Cruise

• After a modest start to the season, Verstappen has won 11 of the 16 Grands Prix to bring his season tally to 12, finishing off the podium just twice.

• Red Bull team principal Christian Horner, design guru Adrian Newey, technical director Pierre Wache, team manager Jonathan Wheatley, principal strategy engineer Hannah Schmitz, Verstappen’s race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase are an exceptional unit that has barely made a misstep this season.

• The absence of a consistent and credible opponent has also been of benefit to Verstappen and Red Bull.

Max Verstappen’s first Formula 1 championship was decided on the last lap of the last race in hugely controversial circumstances. Title two has been quite a bit more comfortable. Autoweek assesses how a close fight swiftly became a one-man procession.

It is easy to forget, as Verstappen basks in a dominant and potentially record-breaking championship season, that his title defense looked gloomy after three events.

Red Bull’s RB18 had its strengths, but its understeer traits frustrated Verstappen, who was struggling to unearth the optimum balance. Separate mechanical failures meant he trailed Ferrari's Charles Leclerc by 46 points in the championship.

Verstappen joked he needed 45 races to catch up, and that “there is no reason to believe” in winning the title. He told media afterward that Red Bull “needs to be quicker, which we are not at the moment, and we need to be reliable, which we are also not.” Viewed in the aftermath of a 2021 title fight, in which every single point was gold dust, it was a reasonable conclusion to make.

Since then Verstappen has won 11 of the 16 Grands Prix to bring his season tally to 12. He's finished off the podium just twice (caused by a massive chunk of another car getting lodged in his floor at Silverstone and an atypically messy weekend in Singapore)and turned a grim situation into title number two, with an enormous points margin.

In a season which has featured revised technical regulations, Red Bull has made strides with its RB18. Weight-saving exercises as it introduced upgrades naturally brought more lap time while the added bonus of a lighter car was that it dialed out the understeer, bringing it more toward Verstappen’s liking. Further set-up windows were also discovered in which the car performed strongly.

“The car was very heavily overweight initially, and that doesn’t help with the balance of the car because it just becomes lazy,” said Verstappen. “The car was overweight and that’s why it made it understeer, and more prone to front locking.”

As Red Bull technical director Pierre Wache said, “at the beginning of the season, we didn't have the possibility to move the weight, then it's part of the set-up. I think it’s everything together and after (that) you find your performance somewhere. It went in the favor of Max.”

Formula 1

Most Wins in Single Season

• Michael Schumacher, 13, 2004 (18 races)

• Sebastian Vettel, 13, 2013 (19 races)

• Max Verstappen, 12, 2022, (18 races, 4 remaining)

• Michael Schumacher, 11, 2002 (17 races)

• Sebastian Vettel, 11, 2011 (19 races)

• Lewis Hamilton, 11, 2014 (19 races)

• Lewis Hamilton, 11, 2018 (21 races)

• Lewis Hamilton, 11, 2019 (21 races)

• Lewis Hamilton, 11, 2020 (17 races)

Red Bull’s development has also shone through, with its RB18 particularly rapid at aero efficient circuits, such as Spa-Francorchamps, where Verstappen flew to first from 14th on the grid. After winning the crown he labelled that performance as the finest of the season.

Having a strong car is always crucial for any champion, but in Verstappen’s hands it was brutally exploited. Now age 25, Verstappen has blended maturity with his vast experience—more than 150 races—and natural talent.

“Max since winning that championship last year has taken another step,” said team principal Christian Horner. “It’s in many ways released him and he is driving at an incredible level.”

Verstappen’s teammate Sergio Perez conceded the talent operating on the other side of the garage.