Formula 1: Formula One championship: Red Bull’s Max Verstappen won his second successive Formula One world championship with four races to spare at the Japanese Grand Prix on Sunday. The following looks at how the Dutch 25-year-old’s season unfolded: Follow Formula 1 Japanese GP LIVE Updates on InsideSport.IN
Japanese GP Highlights: Max Verstappen clinches Driver’s Championship, Perez, Leclerc finish on the podium; Hamilton 5th – Watch Japan GP Highlights
Formula 1: Max Verstappen’s road to his second Formula One championship
- BAHRAIN
Ferrari began the season with a one-two, Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc starting on pole position and taking a bonus point for fastest lap. Both Red Bulls retired, Verstappen from second place three laps from the end.
Championship: Leclerc 26, Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) 18, Verstappen 0
- SAUDI ARABIA
Verstappen won from fourth on the grid, beating Leclerc by half a second. Red Bull’s Sergio Perez started on pole but finished fourth.
Leclerc 45, Sainz 33, Verstappen 25
- AUSTRALIA
Leclerc led every lap, through two safety car periods, after starting on pole. He also took fastest lap for his first F1 Grand Slam. Verstappen ran in second place until he retired on lap 39 with a smoking car.
Leclerc 71, George Russell (Mercedes) 37, Verstappen 25
- EMILIA-ROMAGNA (IMOLA)
Verstappen won the first Saturday Sprint of the season and led a Red Bull one-two from pole on Sunday with a bonus for fastest lap. Leclerc spun from third and finished sixth.
Leclerc 86, Verstappen 59, Perez 54
- MIAMI
Verstappen’s third win of the season after starting third on the grid, with Leclerc on pole in a Ferrari front-row lockout. Verstappen led from lap nine and set fastest lap.
Leclerc 104, Verstappen 85, Perez 66
- SPAIN
Third win in a row for Verstappen, who took the championship lead. Leclerc led from pole but retired when he lost power on lap 29.
Verstappen 110, Leclerc 104, Perez 85
- MONACO
Perez took his third win in F1. Verstappen finished third after starting fourth. Leclerc was on pole but Ferrari made strategic mistakes in the pitstops and he finished fourth.
Verstappen 125, Leclerc 116, Perez 110
- AZERBAIJAN
Red Bull’s fifth win in a row, with Verstappen leading the one-two finish. Leclerc started on pole but lost out to Perez at the start and stopped on lap 21 with a power unit problem.
Verstappen 150, Perez 129, Leclerc 116
- CANADA
Verstappen started on pole and won, despite a broken radio. Perez retired on lap eight with a gearbox failure. Leclerc started 19th after engine penalties, finishing fifth.
Verstappen 175, Perez 129, Leclerc 126
- BRITAIN
Verstappen led from second on the grid but the race was halted due to Alfa Romeo’s Guanyu Zhou crashing. He led again but suffered a puncture and car-damaging debris, finishing seventh. Sainz won, with Perez second and Leclerc fourth.
Verstappen 181, Perez 147, Leclerc 138
- AUSTRIA
Leclerc won, not from pole for the first time. Verstappen won the Saturday Sprint and finished second on Sunday, with bonus point for fastest lap. Perez retired after colliding with Mercedes’ George Russell on lap one.
Verstappen 208, Leclerc 170, Perez 151
- FRANCE
Verstappen’s seventh win of the season sent him 63 points clear. Leclerc led from pole and was pulling away before he made a mistake and crashed on lap 18. Lewis Hamilton was second for Mercedes.
Verstappen 233, Leclerc 170, Perez 163
- HUNGARY
Verstappen won after starting 10th following a power unit problem in the final phase of qualifying, with Russell on pole for the first time. Leclerc took the lead on lap 31 but pitted on lap 40 for hard tyres, which cost him the race. He pitted a third time for softs on lap 55 and ended up sixth.
Verstappen 258, Leclerc 178, Perez 173
- BELGIUM
Verstappen won from 14th on the grid, due to engine penalties, and set the fastest lap. Sainz started on pole, with Leclerc lining up 15th due to grid drops and finishing sixth.
Verstappen 284, Perez 191, Leclerc 186
- NETHERLANDS
Verstappen won his home race from pole for the second year in a row, and with fastest lap. His 10th win of the season equalled last year’s haul. Leclerc started on the front row and finished third, with Russell second.
Verstappen 310, Leclerc 201, Perez 201
- ITALY (MONZA)
Verstappen’s fifth win in a row came from seventh on the grid after engine penalties. He was third after lap one and led on lap 12. Leclerc started on pole but did two stops to Verstappen’s one and finished second. Perez took fastest lap.
Verstappen 335, Leclerc 219, Perez 210
- SINGAPORE
Perez took his second win of the season from second on the grid. Verstappen started eighth, was 12th after lap one and finished seventh. Leclerc started on pole for the ninth time this season and finished second.
Verstappen 341, Leclerc 237, Perez 235
- JAPAN
Verstappen won a rain-hit and shortened race from pole position, taking the chequered flag 27 seconds ahead of Perez, with Leclerc demoted from second to third by a five second post-race penalty.
Verstappen 366, Perez 253, Leclerc 252
Formula 1: Max Verstappen’s road to his second Formula One championship
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