Amidst a season where Max Verstappen is challenging the records of Lewis Hamilton and Michael Schumacher, Gerhard Berger openly rates the Red Bull driver higher than the two seven-time World Champions.
After clinching his first World title in a fierce battle against Hamilton in 2021, Verstappen has been on a remarkable streak with 15 wins last season and an impressive 12 victories this year, including a record-breaking run of 10 consecutive wins.
But that’s just the beginning of the records Verstappen is poised to break this season. The 25-year-old is on track to surpass his own record for the most wins in a single season, set at 15, while also aiming to establish new records for the largest winning margin and the highest number of points scored.
With five more years remaining on his Red Bull contract and no significant regulation changes until 2026, it’s not far-fetched to imagine Verstappen chasing after Hamilton and Schumacher’s seven World titles or Hamilton’s 103 race wins.
This remarkable performance has led Berger to declare that Verstappen ranks alongside triple World Champion Ayrton Senna as one of the best Formula 1 drivers he has ever witnessed.
“Verstappen and Senna are unique in the business – they are the two best I have seen in the last 50 years,” he told Kronen Zeitung.
“Schumacher and Hamilton are also exceptional drivers. Of course, you should always look at the statistics, they are both fantastic.
“But Senna died early – and Verstappen is still young.”
During Ayrton Senna’s remarkable nine-plus years in Formula 1, he secured an impressive tally of 41 race victories, stood on the podium an astounding 80 times, dominated with 65 pole positions, and set 19 fastest laps. Unfortunately, his career was tragically cut short when he lost his life in a devastating crash during the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix.
