Is Max Verstappen the first driver to win F1 world championship on a Saturday?

Max Verstappen is the sixth driver to win an F1 world title on a Saturday.

Is Max Verstappen the first driver to win F1 world championship on a Saturday?

Max Verstappen (Via IMAGO)

Max Verstappen, the Red Bull star driver, has proved to be a world-beater at the pinnacle of motor racing this year. He has bashed his competition left and right, and it comes as no surprise that with his 2023 world championship triumph in the Sprint race in Qatar, he has joined an elite list of drivers who won the coveted title on a Saturday. Verstappen started the race at P3 and scored a P2 to clinch the title eventually.

For starters, the former 3-time world champion, Nelson Piquet Sr, won two F1 world championships on a Saturday. Piquet is the father of Verstappen’s girlfriend, Kelly Piquet. Argentina’s Juan Manuel Fangio was the first driver to do it. The first superstar of F1 won the 1995 world title on a Saturday during the British GP.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=orLmAK6ylZ8

Australian legend Jack Brabham was the second to do it, winning the title on Saturday during the US GP in 1959. Britain’s Graham Hill won the title on a Saturday in South Africa in 1962, and Finland’s Keke Rosberg, the father of 2016 F1 world champion Nico Rosberg, did it in Las Vegas in 1982.

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His dominant run at the Lusail International Circuit kicked off yesterday when he put his car in P1 for the Sunday race. He was able to back it up with a third-place finish during today’s Sprint shootout, and his triumph just a short while ago in the Sprint race was the perfect icing that has handed him a much-deserved third consecutive F1 title.

During the Sprint event, Verstappen had a poor start that saw a drop behind George Russell and the two Ferraris. Just on lap one, he was dropped to P7. But he gradually returned to P4, then P3, after Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc lost the soft tire advantage. Three safety car incidents made it one of the most chaotic sprint events in F1.

On the third safety car incident, championship runner-up Perez got in a crash involving Nico Hulkenberg, crowned Verstappen as the champion. Verstappen went on to finish the race at P2 behind rookie Oscar Piastri.

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Max Verstappen can put an additional charm on his Saturday’s triumph during the main Qatar GP

While Max Verstappen has become a 3-time F1 world champion with his outing during the Sprint race, He has another chance tomorrow to add a few more stars to his cap by winning the main Qatar GP. Moreover, keeping in mind his qualifying performance on Friday, he is once again going to be the favorite to secure his fourteenth Grand Prix win of the 2023 season.

Lando Norris, Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez (Via IMAGO)
Lando Norris, Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez (Via IMAGO)

No one has been able to touch Verstappen this year, and after facing some initial resistance from his teammate, Sergio Perez, he has decimated his competition. He has been sensational since landing in Qatar, and his dominant outing during the Sprint race was a taste of what’s to come during tomorrow’s main race at the free-flowing Lusail International Circuit.

Max Verstappen, with his third consecutive world championship triumph, has put the whole F1 grid on notice. He has made it known that he is coming after everyone and will not give even an inch of breathing space to his rivals. With the 2023 title in his pocket, he will drive more freely during the remaining races of the year.

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