Max Verstappen Joins Lionel Messi as Historic Feat Registers Dutch Lion’s Name in Coveted List

Max Verstappen broke Ayrton Senna’s win record this season and was already compared with the greatest F1 drivers of all time. But being compared to Lionel Messi? That doesn’t make sense, does it? Well, it actually does if you look at where Verstappen took his 3rd championship home. As the Dutchman registers a historic feat to register his name in a coveted list, he also joins Lionel Messi in an uncanny comparison.

Max Verstappen was expected to be crowned the World Champion at the Qatar GP weekend. And the Dutchman made sure it happened, however, not in the most spectacular fashion. After Sergio Perez crashed mid-race, Verstappen was ensured to become the champion. However, the Red Bull man would’ve ideally wanted to win the Qatar Sprint to take the championship home. But nonetheless, he finished P2 and was crowned the world champion. 

But what about the Lionel Messi comparison? Remember how Messi had won everything except for the World Cup? And how did it all change during the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar when Argentina took the win? Well, Max Verstappen joins Lionel Messi in the list of athletes crowned world champions in Qatar. Not only that, but Max Verstappen also joins the likes of Jack Brabham, Jackie Stewart, Niki Lauda, Nelson Piquet, and Ayrton Senna as 3X champions of the world. 

Read More: Max Verstappen Wins the 2023 World Championship & Creates History at the Qatar Sprint Race

And just like Lionel Messi, Max Verstappen has been in the form of his life during the current championship season. But unlike Messi, the Dutch Lion has been the sole dominant force this season breaking multiple records on his way to becoming a 3X champion. Let’s look at some of the records broken by Verstappen.

Record broken by Max Verstappen during his 3rd World championship triumph

The Red Bull dominance was evident from the very start of the season. However, Max Verstappen’s dominance started showing its true colors at the Miami GP, which marked the start of the consecutive win record set by Max Verstappen (10 wins) that came to an end at the Singapore GP. Verstappen also surpassed Ayrton Senna’s win record as he equaled his championship record with the P2 in the Qatar Sprint. He also helped Red Bull break McLaren’s record of consecutive race wins by a constructor.

However, Verstappen can still break many records, one of them being surpassing his own record of most points scored in an F1 season, a record broken only last year. Max can also break the record of winning a championship by the most points, a record currently held by Sebastian Vettel, who won the 2013 title with 155 points. 

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An impeccable championship season is perhaps an understatement for Max in 2023! Just the sheer class & dominance in his 3rd consecutive title triumph emulates several legends of the sport. What do you think, how many more titles can the Dutch Lion get?