Looking at Max Verstappen’s record-breaking 2023 F1 season

As 2023 comes to an end, we can finally take a step back and appreciate the incredible Formula One season we have witnessed this year.

Multiple records were broken by reigning World Champion Max Verstappen and Red Bull this season. In this article, we take a look at the various records the Dutchman broke on his way to a third World Title. 

Between the Miami and Italian Grands Prix, Verstappen went on an incredible ten-race win streak, breaking in the process former Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel’s record of most consecutive wins in a season, back from when the German won the final nine races of the 2013 season. 

Highest win percentage in a single F1 season:

• Max Verstappen (2023): Won 19 out of 22 races | 86.3%
• Alberto Ascari (1952): Won 6 out of 8 races | 75%
• Michael Schumacher (2004): Won 13 out of 18 races | 72.2%
• Jim Clark (1963): Won 7 out of 10 races | 70%
• Sebastian Vettel (2013): Won 13 out of 19 races | 68.4%

Least points dropped in a single season (new points system introduced in 2010)

• Max Verstappen (2023): 45 points dropped over 22 rounds | 7.3%
• Sebastian Vettel (2013): 68 points dropped over 19 rounds | 14.3%
• Sebastian Vettel (2011): 83 points dropped over 19 rounds | 17.5%

Verstappen’s 54th career win saw him surpass Sebastian Vettel for third in the all-time wins list. He’s now behind only Michael Schumacher (91) and Lewis Hamilton (103).

On the way to securing his third World Title, Verstappen also became the driver to wrap the championship in the quickest time, securing the title with six races left in the season. This record ties him with Michael Schumacher, who in 2002 won the championship with six races left as well. 

Verstappen ends the year with the record for the most single-season wins (19). He broke his own record from the previous year, when he won 15 races. Prior to Verstappen, this record was jointly held by Sebastian Vettel (2013) and Michael Schumacher (2004), each having won 13 races. 

Verstappen also finished the 2023 season with the most number of podiums in a single season — 21 times out of the 22 races — with the Singapore Grand Prix being the only exception.

Verstappen’s 11th hattrick weekend this year (win, pole position and fastest lap) tied him with Jim Clark, with only Hamilton (19) and Schumacher (22) ahead of him on the all-time list. 

This year, Verstappen also became the first driver in F1 history to lead over 1,000 laps in a single season. He led an incredible 1,003 laps, breaking Sebastian Vettel’s 739-lap record from 2013. 

The 2023 season also saw Red Bull take their first ever 1-2 in the Drivers’ Standings. This result also saw the largest-ever gap between the first- and second-place drivers, with Verstappen finishing an astonishing 292 points ahead of his teammate, Sergio Pérez. 

Verstappen also secured the record for the most number of consecutive wins from pole position this season, winning all the 12 races he started from pole. He now has a streak of 16 races he’s won from pole (starting with the 2022 Dutch Grand Prix). This record takes him ahead of Nigel Mansell (1992) and Sebastian Vettel (2011), both of whom jointly held a nine-win record before him. 

Verstappen also beat his own record of most points in a single season from the previous year, scoring 575 points this year. Prior to 2022, it was Lewis Hamilton who held the record with 413 points, which he accrued in the 2019 season. 

Additionally, Verstappen was the only driver to complete every racing lap this season.