© Getty Images

Max’s Double CenturyThis weekend in Hungary, Max Verstappen is set to make his 200th start for Oracle Red Bull Racing.

It’saremarkabletallyforadrivertwomonthsshyofhis28thbirthday.Tocelebrate,wetrawledthroughtherecordbookstochoosewhatwethinkaresomeofhisgreatestraces.Seeifyouagree…

2016SpanishGrandPrix-Grid:P4.Race:P1

2016 Spanish Grand Prix - Grid: P4. Race: P1© Getty Images

Max’s season and a bit at Scuderia Toro Rosso, had confirmed his abundant talent but no one could have predicted the monumental impact he’d make on stepping over to Red Bull Racing. With just a handful of seat-fit and sim days behind him, Max arrived at the Spanish Grand Prix, stuck his RB12 in P4 on the grid and then, after title-contending Mercedes pair Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg took each other out at the start, Max made a two-stop strategy work to take the lead ahead of veteran Ferrari driver Kimi Räikkönen. Rookie against 2007 champion? It should have been no contest but Max expertly kept Kimi at bay for the final third of the race to take a stunning maiden Grand Prix win.

2018USGrandPrix–Grid:P18.Race:P2.

2018 US Grand Prix – Grid: P18. Race: P2.© Getty Images

Max’s Austria win, the Team’s first on home soil and a hugely emotional win for the Team, usually grabs the bulk of the 2018 limelight, but when it comes to his finest drive that season there’s a case to be made for his P2 at the US GP in Austin.

In Q1, the Dutchman smashed a kerb and broke his suspension. That left him 18th on the grid, but in trademark style, the Dutchman refused to see the lowly starting position as an impediment. “The plan is to clear as many cars as quickly as possible and to fight at the front,” he said matter-of-factly.

And on Sunday, he executed the plan to perfection. At the end of lap one he was up to ninth and by lap nine he was fourth. He took third when he smartly undercut Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas and moved to second when Lewis Hamilton pitted from the lead. The Mercedes driver, on fresher tyres, tried to battle back but Max had it all under control and after shrugging off numerous attacks he claimed a superb second place behind Kimi Räikkönen.

2018MexicanGrandPrix–Grid:P2.RaceP1.

2018 Mexican Grand Prix – Grid: P2. Race P1.© Getty Images

Across three seasons together, Max and Daniel Ricciardo were evenly matched and only rarely did their competitive instincts flare into friction. In Mexico that year, their rivalry pushed both to impressive new competitive highs. Daniel pipped Max for Pole.

However, 24 hours later, Max bounced back and after seizing the lead at the start he drove faultlessly to carve out a massive lead to Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel who took over in P2 after Daniel was forced out by a hydraulics problem. If you want a measure of Max’s dominance that day, third-placed Kimi Raikkonen and P4 finisher Lewis Hamilton, who claimed his fifth world title that afternoon, were the only other drivers on the same lap when the chequered flag fell!

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2022 Belgian Grand Prix – Grid: P14. Race: P1.© Getty Images

Throughout his time at the Team, Max has made a habit of delivering stunning recoveries from setbacks and in 2022 he gave us one of his best, at his favorite track, Spa-Francorchamps. A slew of PU-related penalties dropped him from pole to 14th on the grid on Sunday, but when the lights went out Max simply scorched the opposition. After an electrifying start, he scythed through the

Max was on another planet today...Checo Perez

field, rising to a podium spot inside the first 10 laps. On lap 18, he took the lead from Carlos Sainz and marched to a comprehensive victory. “Max was on another planet today,” said team-mate Checo Perez who took second place almost 18 seconds back. Simply sublime.

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2022 Japanese Grand Prix – Grid: 1. Race: 1.© Getty Images

Short, sweet and utterly sublime, the 2022 Japanese Grand Prix demonstrated Max’s wet weather brilliance better than any other race up to that point. Gunning for his second Driver’s title at Suzuka, Max secured Pole just a hundredth of a second ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. On Sunday, the gap between the two and to the rest of the field became a chasm. In filthy wet conditions the Dutchman kept his lead at the start, but incidents elsewhere led to a two-hour delay. And when the race restarted, Max was just untouchable. Lapping over a second quicker than anyone else he powered to an almost 30-second lead before the race was red-flagged for good after 28 laps, and his second crown was sealed.

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2023 Miami Grand Prix – Grid: P9. Race: P1.© Getty Images

2023 was a hugely dominant season but at the start it was Checo who started strongest out of the blocks as Max had a tougher time finding a sweet spot with the RB19. That all changed at the Miami Grand Prix.

On Saturday, Checo took Pole, while Max only managed ninth having failed to set a time due to a red flag caused by a crash for Charles Leclerc. The setback irked the Dutchman and on Sunday he set about erasing the hurt. He stormed through to P3 and a podium position within 15 laps of the start. Checo pitted for new tyres, but Max kept going on old rubber. After his own stop Max emerged just 1.6s behind Checo, eased past his team-mate and powered to a stunning win. Max had at last unlocked the RB19 and from then on, he was unstoppable.

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2024 São Paulo Grand Prix. Grid: P17. Race: P1© Getty Images

Another incredible comeback and this time thanks to what must go down as one F1’s greatest wet weather drives – right up there with Ayrton Senna’s 1993 Donnington performance. A difficult start to the weekend saw Max start from 17th on the grid but on race day, in increasingly treacherous wet conditions, Max defied a red flag, two safety car periods and a series of crashes and incidents to power through to a win for the ages.

It felt really good to drive and was fast, so I felt unstoppable.Max Verstappen

“I always feel confident in the wet and driving in these kinds of conditions, but today the car gave me confidence to go for it,” said the champion afterwards. “It felt really good to drive and was fast, so I felt unstoppable.”

Max Verstappen and Oracle Red Bull Racing – 199 races, 65 wins, 117 podiums, 44 pole positions and 3,159.6 points. Unstoppable, untouchable, unforgettable…. Simply lovely.