This is how Max Verstappen wins historic 2023 Formula 1 title at the Qatar Grand Prix
The 2023 Formula 1 season's been the year of Max Verstappen and Red Bull Racing. The tandem's won an incredible 13 of 16 races so far, including a record 10 consecutive victories. Carlos Sainz became the only non-Red Bull Racing driver to win in 2023 with his victory in Singapore.
With that level of dominance, Verstappen's totaled 400 championship points with six races left. His teammate Sergio Pérez is second in the standings at 223 points. Verstappen's outscoring every other team on the grid by himself. This weekend's Qatar Grand Prix marks the earliest chance he has to win his third consecutive Formula 1 world championship.
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How Verstappen can win the 2023 F1 title this weekend
The Qatar Grand Prix at the Lusail International Circuit is one of Formula 1's sprint race weekends in 2023. Here's how the weekend format looks:
Friday: Free practice session and qualifying for Sunday's race
Saturday: Sprint qualifying and the sprint race
Sunday: Grand Prix race
The sprint race awards points to the top eight drivers in an 8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 format. The Grand Prix race awards points to the top 10 drivers in a 25-18-15-12-10-8-6-4-2-1 format, plus one point for the fastest lap of the race if the driver finishes in the top 10.
Verstappen holds a 177-point lead over teammate Pérez ahead of the Qatar Grand Prix. To secure the title, he needs to score at least three points this weekend. Three points means even if Pérez manages to get the maximum points in every event, Verstappen will still take home his third title.
He secured pole position for Sunday's race already and looks likely to get the three points he needs barring unusual reliability problems or crashes in both races.
How a third title impacts Verstappen's legacy
The 2023 Formula 1 season is the 74th championship year. In those 74 years, only 34 drivers have won the world championship. Only 17 of those drivers have won multiple titles over more than seven decades of racing.
Three world championships is widely considered the bar for becoming an icon of the sport. The 17 drivers who have won three or more include some of the greatest in history. Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton both have seven titles. Juan Manuel Fangio, arguably the first Formula 1 icon, won five championships in the 1950s. Drivers like Ayrton Senna, Niki Lauda, and Jackie Stewart solidified their status with three titles each.
Verstappen will almost certainly join that select group, likely this weekend, thanks to one of the most dominant Formula 1 seasons in recent memory. He'll be the second-youngest driver to reach three titles behind former Red Bull star Sebastian Vettel.
Verstappen's already set the record for consecutive victories in a season with 10. He set the record for most wins last season with 15 but, with six races to go in 2023, he can easily break that again.
He can also re-set the record for highest win percentage in a season. The current record is 75% set in 1952 by Alberto Ascari. With four more wins in six races, he'll take that crown.
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How to watch the Qatar Grand Prix
Qatar Grand Prix coverage will be broadcast on ESPN channels. Due to college football on Saturday, the channels look a little different than earlier in the season.
Sprint qualifying: 8:55 a.m., ET, ESPN2
Sprint race: 1:30 p.m., ET, ESPNEWS
Grand Prix race: 12:55 p.m., ET, ESPN
Watch: Max Verstappen continues to climb the F1 record books
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Max Verstappen can win the 2023 Formula 1 title in Qatar this weekend
