Max Verstappen has been a blessing for Red Bull ever since he joined the team. Who thought during the Mercedes Era that a driver could come along to challenge all the records in Formula One while driving a non-Mercedes car? The Silver Arrows dominated the grid for eight straight years. They had dethroned the Austrian outfit in 2014. From 2010 to 2013, thanks to Sebastian Vettel, Christian Horner’s team was at the top of the F1 world. But then their domination faded away when Toto Wolff and Lewis Hamilton joined the German outfit. Moreover, with the introduction of the turbo-hybrid engines in 2014, the Brackley team started enjoying complete hegemony in Formula 1.
Then, after eight years, a Dutch racer named Max Verstappen dethroned Lewis Hamilton and eventually helped Red Bull get back on top once again. Since Verstappen won his maiden title in 2021, he never had to look back again. The 26-year-old racer has been the best Dutch F1 racer ever. Moreover, he has become an all-time great in the F1 world. Last year, he joined the elite list of three-time champions. This season, Max is on his way to win his fourth consecutive world championship. After Vettel, Verstappen will be the next Red Bull driver to achieve that feat. Lately, however, the Dutchman has helped the Red Bull team get to the mark of 100 pole positions.
Max Verstappen Helped Red Bull Join An Elite List
Like Lewis Hamilton in the turbo-hybrid era, Max Verstappen is clearly the most dominant racer in the era of ground-effect regulations. Mercedes has been struggling to understand their car design and capabilities in the cost-cap era. On the other hand, the Austrian outfit has been developing superior cars one after another. In 2022, Red Bull had won 17 races, Max alone won 15. Last year, the Dutch racer broke his own record, winning an unbelievable 19 Grands Prix. Moreover, Red Bull ended up winning 21 races as Sergio Perez added two more like in the previous season.
Coming to 2024, Max Verstappen has already won three races out of the first four races. Along with these race wins, Max has taken his tally of pole positions to 36. Moreover, he helped Red Bull join the elite list of teams with 100 pole positions. Last year, Max Verstappen helped the Austrian outfit get to 100 race wins. In the latest Chinese Grand Prix, Max got pole position again. It was Red Bull’s 100 pole positions overall. Moreover, Sebastian Vettel won the first pole position for Red Bull in 2009. Lately, Max Verstappen is only eight pole positions away from the German great to become Red Bull’s most successful racer in terms of pole positions.
Only Six Teams With 100 Pole Positions
Thanks to Max Verstappen, Red Bull is finally part of the elite list of F1 teams with 100 or more pole positions. Before the Austrian outfit became part of the iconic list, there were five more teams with 100 or more pole positions. For instance, Lotus has 107 pole positions. Then, Williams has as many as 128. On the other hand, Red Bull’s biggest rival, Mercedes, is in the top three of that list. The Silver Arrows have 137 pole positions.
After all, Lewis Hamilton, the driver with the most poles (104), has been part of the German outfit since 2014. He played a major role in turning Mercedes into a powerhouse. But the top two teams on the list of most pole positions are McLaren in second place and Ferrari at the top, as expected. McLaren has 156 pole positions so far. But the Prancing Horse has the most pole positions with an epic 249 times.
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