With his perfect score in Imola, Verstappen sets a record in the history of F1
By scoring 34 points during the same race weekend, Max Verstappen becomes the driver with the highest number of points scored during an event in the Formula 1 World Championship since its inception in 1950.
Max Verstappen has already made several entries into Formula 1’s grand history. Holder of nearly all the records for precocity, the Red Bull driver also became last year the first Dutch world champion in the premier category of motorsport.
In Imola, the Dutch driver simply achieved a perfect score in terms of points. Winner of the Sprint Race on Saturday, Verstappen entered the grid for the Grand Prix on Sunday with already 8 points in his pocket. By winning the race ahead of his teammate Sergio Pérez, he added 25 more points. Finally, the point for the fastest lap brought his total to 34 units.
This new record for the reigning world champion would not have been possible without the new points system implemented this season for Sprint Races. Last year, only the top three scored points according to the following scale:
1st place: 3 points
2nd place: 2 points
3rd place: 1 point.
This year, points are awarded to the top eight finishers in the Saturday race according to a decreasing scale, with 8 points for the winner and 1 point for the eighth. There are still two opportunities for drivers this season to equal Verstappen, in Austria and Brazil, where the two other Sprint Races of the year will take place.
Thanks to this harvest, the one who is not a fan of this Saturday’s mini race comes back to 27 points in the championship of his rival at Ferrari, the Monegasque Charles Leclerc.
