Max Verstappen wins fourth F1 World Championship in Las Vegas

Max Verstappen won his fourth consecutive championship at the Las Vegas Grand Prix when he finished fifth ahead of title rival Lando Norris.

The result gave Verstappen, 27, an unassailable 63-point lead over McLaren’s Lando Norris with two races to spare.

Mercedes won the Grand Prix with a one-two led by George Russell.

Verstappen has now moved into the elite company and joins Juan Manuel Fangio, Alain Prost, Michael Schumacher, Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton as drivers with four championships.

Verstappen, 27, has won his four in a row – something all but Prost managed at that club.

Verstappen won seven of the first 10 races this season, but a mid-season dip in form for Red Bull coincided with the opposite for McLaren, who have won five since Norris’ first victory at the Miami Grand Prix.

Between the end of June and the end of October, Verstappen managed just three podium finishes, although the healthy championship lead built at the start of the year kept him in good stead.

A defining moment came at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix on 3 November when Verstappen delivered what may well be the best performance of his career, winning from 17th in a rain-soaked event with Norris struggling from the start. in pole position.

Brazil is what gave Verstappen the chance to wrap things up in Las Vegas.

Verstappen now enters 2025 to emulate Schumacher by winning five championships in a row.