F1 race winner offers surprising verdict in in GOAT debate

Verstappen celebrating his third championship in Qatar — Photo: © LAT Images

F1 Legends

F1 race winner offers surprising verdict in F1 GOAT debate

The Dutchman has claimed three consecutive world championship titles

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Wednesday 31 January 2024 18:57

Former Formula 1 driver Gerhard Berger has said that three-time world champion Max Verstappen is "probably the best we've ever seen" in F1.

The Dutchman has claimed three consecutive world championship titles, and already has 54 grand prix wins to his name, despite only being 26 years of age.

This number puts him third in the all-time list of F1 race winners, with his domination over the past couple of seasons leaving Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton's numbers in threat, despite the latter still racing in the sport.

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While it has been noted that Red Bull's car was so far ahead of the opposition in 2023 that Verstappen will unlikely manage to break his own record of 19 wins in a single season, the Dutchman still has multiple records in his sights.

Both Schumacher and Hamilton have won seven world championships, the most in F1 history, but 2016 champion Nico Rosberg recently suggested that Verstappen's achievements put him right up there as one of the best of all time.

Max Verstappen is a three-time Formula 1 world champion

Max Verstappen claimed 19 race victories in 2023, including 10 in a row

Lewis Hamilton is a seven-time Formula 1 world champion

Verstappen compares with Schumacher and Hamilton

Now, Berger has gone one better by suggesting that even the likes of Schumacher, Hamilton and the supremely talented Ayrton Senna do not come close to Verstappen's current level.

“Max didn't make a mistake last season," the Austrian told AutoMotorSport.

"At least that happened to Senna every now and then. At the time, Senna and Schumacher benefited from racing karts from an early age and doing nothing else in life other than racing. This applies to all drivers today.

"But Verstappen still drives virtual races on the simulator in his free time. Sometimes three a day. So he is always busy with this topic. He thinks through where you can overtake and where you can't. Neither Senna, Schumacher nor Hamilton had this tool.

"It's just noticeable that Max is always in the right place. At the start, in the first corner, in a duel. I can't think of anything that could be done better than him. That's why Max Verstappen is probably the best we've ever seen in Formula 1.”

Red Bull Max Verstappen Formula 1 Dutchman Gerhard Berger