13 August 2025 marked the beginning of one of the best title charges in Formula 1. Before the Dutch Grand Prix, Max Verstappen was third in the standings and 97 points behind first place. In the final 10 rounds of the 2025 season Verstappen gained 234 points, finishing the season just two points behind first place — Lando Norris. The question on everyone’s lips is: can he do even better this year?
The problem for Max in 2025 was that Norris and Piastri kept performing, Norris in particular to an exceptional level, not allowing Verstappen to gain any traction in the championship. We can only assume a similar thing would occur this year, with Russell so keen for a championship, and Hamilton chasing his eighth. They wouldn’t let Max steal it from under them, especially not from over 100 points back.
Following the Singapore Grand Prix, Verstappen sits fourth in the championship, 119 points behind leader Antonelli. To come back from such a large deficit would be making history, as the current record stands at only 46 points, achieved by Verstappen in 2022. For Verstappen to win, he would have to capitalise on every mistake from Mercedes, relying on DNFs from Antonelli and a lack of performance from Russell.
Mathematically, there are a maximum of 150 points left for the taking in the last six races of the season. So theoretically, Verstappen could win the championship by 31 points if all his competitors fail to perform in the remaining races, and Antonelli scored a maximum of five points per race. Unfortunately, this just isn’t that realistic despite the technical problems Mercedes have faced this season.
Red Bull have improved their performance since the beginning of the season, with engine upgrades and adjustments to the car, and Verstappen has certainly taken advantage of this. He finished on the podium in the last five races, and won the last two, but is his consistency enough when compared to that of young upstart talent Antonelli? Can he best Russell, who is no doubt fuelled by the misfortunes he has faced this season?
There’s only one driver truly in contention for the championship and it is Kimi Antonelli, who has taken every opportunity he could to further his lead since the beginning.
While Verstappen has come back into the battle, Mercedes never left it.
“Max Verstappen during Hungarian Formula 1 GP” by Michał Obrochta is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
