The F1 circus visited the Middle East once again, this time for the season’s finale in Abu Dhabi at the Yas Marina circuit. While the last race of the season might not have been the clash of titans that defined 2021— which, let's be honest, will hardly be replicated in the near future — other important battles played out, while the Dutchman sitting at the helm broke yet another record. Join us as we unravel the riveting tale of F1's season curtain call, where records tumbled and the spirit of competition blazed anew.
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The man and the machine
There may never be another season quite as dominant as what we have witnessed at the hands of Max Verstappen and his Red Bull team this year. The 24-year-old Dutchman clenched his third world title with such dominance, even his most passionate critics must tip their hats.
The season ended with another comfortable victory for Max Verstappen this weekend in Abu Dhabi. With his fourth consecutive win at the circuit, Max Verstappen has won his 19th race of the season, the 54th of his career.
Max Verstappen has, therefore, won more races since the beginning of last season (34 Grand Prix victories), than Fernando Alonso, the two-time world champion, has won in his whole career (32 Grand Prix victories). With his latest win, Max Verstappen has also moved to third in the all-time list of most F1 Grand Prix victories right behind Lewis Hamilton and Michael Schumacher.
With Imola cancelled, Max Verstappen has won 19 out of 22 races held in 2023 - that’s 86%.
In total, Max Verstappen led 1003 laps this season and became the first driver in the history of the sport to surpass the 1000 mark. With his new record, Max Verstappen has equalled McLaren’s total led from the 1988 season, with Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost duo behind the wheel.
Throughout the season, Max Verstappen and the Red Bull outfit have obliterated the competition without breaking a sweat, comfortably sealing the drivers’ championship in Qatar on Saturday, with six Grand Prix to go.
Max had an extraordinary machine at his disposal, courtesy of the genius Andrew Newey and the engineering team from Milton Keynes. The RB19 proved to be a force to be reckoned with as its reliability has been virtually bulletproof the entire season, allowing Max Verstappen to finish each and every single racing lap of the season. He was the only one of the twenty drives to do so.
Some might argue that Max’s dominance this year is due to having the best car and the best team in the paddock. However, so does Sergio Perez.
Sergio Perez has won two of the first four races of the season, igniting the talks of a possible title race between the Red Bull pair. Max Verstappen has not hesitated since and has won 17 out of the 18 remaining races, making the talk of a possible rivalry seem ridiculous.
Max Verstappen’s command in his RB19 was nothing short of extraordinary this season, with only his Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez and Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz managing to break into the winner’s circle. Still, as each race weekend unfolded predictably, boring for some, the season has been full of close racing and overtakes through the entire field. Seen most notably in qualifying, when even the top runners occasionally faltered, making the top starting position up for grabs for any determined contender.
"We didn't have a tail-end this year."
- says Martin Brundle describing this year's competitiveness across the field
Other battles
While the Constructors’ Championship win has been sealed since the Japanese Grand Prix by Red Bull, the remaining positions still hold great value and it was not until the last laps that the drivers battled it out on track.
Mercedes came into the weekend with only four points ahead of the Italian Scuderia.
In the closing stages of the Grand Prix, Charles Leclerc let Sergio Perez pass in hopes of holding off George Russell and preventing him from securing second place in the Constructors’ Championship for the Mercedes team. Despite his efforts, George Russell stayed within five seconds of Sergio Perez. And inherited the last podium position from the Mexican driver who needed to serve a penalty for his earlier stunt on Lando Norris.
Despite Lewis Hamilton “only” recovering to ninth, it was Mercedes that came out victorious in the two-way battle with Ferrari.
Lando Norris eventually finished the race in fifth, but it was not enough to secure fourth in the Drivers’ Championship. That honour went to Fernando Alonso who had a stellar start to the season, and by passing Yuki Tsunoda for P7 in the ending moments of the Grad Prix secured the fourth spot in the Championship ahead not only of Lando Norris but Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. The Monegasque finished fifth, despite being equal on 206 points with Alonso.
Lando Norris finished therefore sixth with 205 championship points to his name, ahead of his ex-teammate Carlos Sainz.
Even though the two Williams drivers, Alex Albon and Logan Sargeant, did not score any points, Yuki Tsunoda’s eighth-place finish was not enough to secure AlphaTauri's desired seventh-place position in the Constructors’ Championship.
As the checkered flag falls on the chapters of the 2023 F1 season, one can't help but anticipate the promise of what lies ahead. If the next season unfolds with the same exhilarating displays of close racing, hopefully, free from the shadows of one team or one driver's domination, it sets the stage for a truly thrilling season. Here's to the hope that the future brings us more wheel-to-wheel battles, unpredictable outcomes, and the essence of competition that makes Formula 1 a one-of-a-kind spectacle for fans around the globe.
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