F1 News: How Max Verstappen Can Win The Drivers' Championship At Qatar GP
Max Verstappen is poised to clinch his third Formula One Championship at the Qatar Grand Prix weekend, potentially in the Sprint race itself if he finishes sixth or higher. A 2023 Drivers' Championship victory would mark the Dutch driver's third consecutive championship, having won in both 2021 and 2022.
Following his triumph at Suzuka, Verstappen has extended his lead over teammate Sergio Perez to 177 points in the Drivers' Standings. The last occasion on which Perez outscored Verstappen was in Azerbaijan, where he secured his second win of the season.
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Since the Singapore GP, with the exception of that race, Verstappen has clinched victory in every Grand Prix. This impressive streak enabled him to set a new record for the most consecutive Grand Prix victories, with ten consecutive wins to his name.
At the Suzuka circuit, the 23-year-old Red Bull ace claimed the Japanese Grand Prix title, pushing his championship tally to 400 points. Conversely, the race proved disastrous for Perez, who didn't finish, freezing his point count at 223 for the time being.
With six Grand Prix races left in 2023 offering a total of 180 points, Verstappen's lead over Perez stands at 177 points. By the arithmetic of F1, Verstappen only needs to accumulate three more points to clinch the championship title."
Does Perez stand a chance?
With the addition of a Sprint race in Qatar, 34 points are up for grabs to the driver who wins not only that but, also secures the fastest lap and goes on to win Sunday's Grand Prix.
However, even if Perez had the perfect weekend in Qatar by ticking the mentioned criteria, Verstappen would still become the F1 Champion for 2023, even if he left a 146-point gap between him and Perez.
Leaving aside Perez, if Verstappen secured sixth position in the Sprint Race, he would be declared championship winner. For Perez to push a hopeless championship battle to Sunday's Grand Prix race, he would have to secure third in the Sprint Race.
The Final Outcome
If you consider a worst-case scenario for Verstappen where he fails to score in the race on Saturday that Perez wins, the Dutch driver would still be crowned championship winner on Sunday, even if he finished eighth, regardless of Perez's position.
All Perez can do at the most is push Verstappen's championship by a day. Even if you hypothetically consider Perez to tally Verstappen's points in the future, the latter would win based on the number of victories scored.
In a nutshell, Max Verstappen's Championship Trophy awaits his arrival in Qatar in the first weekend of October.
