Max Verstappen completed the most dominant season in Formula One history with victory in Abu Dhabi. After a 19th win in 22 races, the PA news agency looks at how the triple world champion compares to the sport’s all-time stars. Among the greats Verstappen’s third world championship win put him in elite company as only the 11th driver with a hat-trick of titles to his name. Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton share the record of seven crowns apiece, with Juan Manuel Fangio their nearest challenger on five. Alain Prost and Sebastian Vettel won four apiece, with Verstappen alongside Sir Jack Brabham, Sir Jackie Stewart, Niki Lauda, Nelson Piquet Sr and Ayrton Senna on three. Only five drivers – Schumacher, Hamilton, Fangio, Vettel and now Verstappen – have won three in consecutive years. He has the chance next season to match all but Schumacher with a fourth straight title, the German having won five in succession from 2000 to 2004. Verstappen has also moved third all-time in terms of race wins. His 53rd, at the season’s penultimate race in Las Vegas, drew him alongside Vettel for that position and in only 184 races compared to the German’s 299. Abu Dhabi made it 54 out of 185 and means only Hamilton and Schumacher have won more races – Hamilton has 103 from 331 starts, despite now having gone two seasons without a win, while Schumacher finished with 91 in 306. Record breaker Verstappen set a notable record during the season with 10 consecutive race wins up to and including September’s Italian Grand Prix. That beat Vettel’s run of nine in a row in 2013, also with Red Bull, while Verstappen’s Abu Dhabi win in 2022’s final race and Sergio Perez’s early-season contributions ensured the team won a record 15 in succession. The Dutchman’s 19 wins broke his own single-season record of 15, set last year. Only 14 F1 seasons have even had 19 or more races in total. While the length of the season and the modern scoring system are both significant factors, his points tally of 575 is a huge record – again, his own 454 last season was the previous best. Unsurprisingly that brought with it a record winning margin, both outright (290 points) and by percentage with more than double the points of second-placed team-mate Perez (285). Verstappen also clinched the title with six grands prix remaining, equalling Schumacher’s record from 2002. His 86.4 per cent win rate was another record, shattering the 75 per cent mark set back in 1952 – F1’s third ever season – when Alberto Ascari won six of the eight races contested. He is the first driver to lead 1,000 or more laps in a season – smashing Vettel’s record of 739 in 2011 and equalling the combined total of McLaren’s dominant 1988 pairing of Senna and Prost. Verstappen was the only driver to complete every lap of this season, adding two second places and fifth in Singapore to his 19 wins.

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There’s no place like home. For most of the Formula 1 grid, a return to familiar comforts at a much-loved circuit is something to behold, thrive and revel in. In fact, it’s only the Haas pairing of Nico Hulkenberg and Kevin Magnussen and the Alfa Romeo team of Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu who have not basked in such an experience in 2023. But all eyes for Zhou – Formula 1’s first Chinese driver in its 73-year history – now point firmly towards 21 April 2024. The sport’s return to one of the world’s powerhouses has, four times, been put on hold due to the pandemic – both the world-altering event itself and the country’s controversial zero-covid policy in the aftermath. Yet next year will see the Shanghai International Circuit host once more; all that was left was for Zhou’s presence to be confirmed. That came on Thursday morning. Ahead of the Singapore Grand Prix, the 24-year-old penned a one-year extension with Alfa Romeo to race with the Sauber-works team for a third-straight year. F1’s worldwide popularity boom has not diverted past China – and next spring we will see the full impact of Zhou’s spot on the grid. “It’s the dream fulfilled – the first Chinese driver in F1, it’s a huge thing for a massive country like us,” Zhou tells The Independent. “So many more Chinese fans are engaged in F1 compared to the past, obviously me getting into the sport means more people follow the races. “The pressure started two to three years ago, so it’s no longer a surprise. I’ve been through that period. I’m fine with the pressure. Now, it’s all about having a good example to set and inspire younger generations.” That pressure, both from the fanbase and within the paddock itself, is inescapable. Just ask Nyck de Vries: a Formula 2 and Formula E champion, he was ruthlessly axed from his AlphaTauri seat in July after just 10 races. For all the riches of the globe-trotting spectacle, F1 remains undeniably cut-throat. Yet you won’t see Zhou having too much sympathy. “There’s a lot of pressure in Formula 1,” he states. “Only winners stay in this sport. If you can’t perform, if you’re outperformed by others, you’re going to lose the seat. That’s the reality. It’s the way everyone lives. The pressure is there, you don’t have a lot of time and you’ve really got to get on with it. “If you can’t do that, then you won’t stay here for long.” Zhou’s performances behind the wheel of a struggling Alfa car this year – languishing ninth in the Constructors’ Standings no less – have clearly impressed enough for a third bite at the cherry. Four points from 14 races would, typically, be a topic of major concern. Yet with experienced team-mate Bottas only two points up the standings, it is difficult to place too much blame on the drivers in the cockpit. With Audi’s takeover looming large for 2026, work is hurriedly being done in the background. “The results have been difficult to take,” he says. “We didn’t expect Aston Martin and McLaren to be so fast this year. It basically means we are fighting for two positions every week. My total points don’t show how much I’ve improved as a driver. I made some mistakes last year, but this year it’s more about the car.” Zhou’s assuredness stems from a childhood of contrasts: his formative years spent in the hustle and bustle of Shanghai, followed by time as a teenager in the Steel City. Learning a new language and new culture, he went by the name of Steven at Westbourne School in Sheffield. “The culture and language are obviously completely different,” he says. “The education system too…” He pauses. He reflects on memories which quickened his acclimatisation process. “While in Sheffield, I really enjoyed playing pool. Not snooker, that’s more difficult! But also I was very surprised at how many Chinese people were going to university in Sheffield and at how many shops and restaurants there are. It’s quite far from London but you don’t feel like you’re too far out! Everyone was very laid back.” His ascension to F1 came as something of a surprise. Three seasons spent with the Alpine Academy in F2 – with a 2021 finish of third his best showing – saw Alfa come calling. He scored a point on his F1 debut in Bahrain last March. His start was impressive. But then came Silverstone. “It definitely set me back,” Zhou says now, recalling the time his Alfa spun upside-down towards a barrier at the start of the British Grand Prix. Miraculous images with a miraculous outcome: Zhou barely had a graze on him. “It happens. I recovered quite quickly mentally. It was just a shame because I had some very good momentum, I’d twice been in Q3, but I had to have a recharge afterwards. It wasn’t too bad.” Zhou is not one to reminisce too much. Everything is possible for the Chinese driver with a slice of Sheffield inside him. Audi’s arrival in less than three years is “still so far away.” However, he does admit: “Hopefully I can stay when Audi come.” But that’s in the distant future. For now, it’s on to this weekend and the twists and turns of Marina Bay. Read More Alfa Romeo confirm driver line-up for 2024 F1 season Max Verstappen breaks new ground with record victory at Italian Grand Prix Max Verstappen tells Toto Wolff to focus on Mercedes after snipe Hamilton labels Marko’s comments about Perez ‘completely unacceptable’ Sebastian Vettel refuses to rule out return to Formula 1

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