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Red Bull Clinch Constructors’ World Championship As Max Verstappen Wins Japanese Grand Prix

By Chris King • Updated: 24 Sep 2023 • 21:27

Image of Red Bull driver Max Verstappen.

Image of Red Bull driver Max Verstappen. Credit: Ev. Safronov/Shutterstock.com

THE reigning Formula One world champion Max Verstappen is on course for a third consecutive crown.

His 13th win of the season in the Japanese Grand Prix in Suzuka this Sunday, September 24, brought the Dutchman level with Michael Schumacher and Sebastian Vettel.

After today’s victory, with six races still to go, the Red Bull team mathematically won its sixth Constructors’ World Championship.

Verstappen meanwhile sits an astonishing 177 points clear at the top of the drivers’ table and will clinch another world title should he take the chequered flag in the next race in Qatar.

Verstappen proved that Singapore was a distant memory

If anybody had doubted his or Red Bull’s ability after a poor showing in Singapore, they were certainly embarrassed in Japan.

Red Bull’s incredible string of winning all 16 races of the season came to an abrupt end at the Marina Bay Street Circuit. Carlos Sainz scored an emphatic victory for Ferrari, leading the race from start to finish.

Up until that point, either Verstappen or his teammate Sergio Perez had crossed the finishing line in first place, with the Dutch driver sealing a record-breaking 10 consecutive victories in the process.

Lando Norris took second place

Britain’s Lando Norris drove another excellent race in the McLaren to take the second position on the podium. In what turned out to be a very one-sided affair, he finished 19 seconds adrift of the Red Bull.

Oscar Piastri gave McLaren another podium spot, the first of his career. Ferrari had to settle for fourth this time out, with Charles LeClerc finishing in the same position that he has occupied for three consecutive outings.

Lewis Hamilton and George Russell clearly had no team orders as the Mercedes pair battled for fifth, going wheel-to-wheel at times. The latter eventually had to concede and he finally settled for seventh, with the other Ferrari of Sainz filling the gap between them.

The Top 10 was rounded out by Fernando Alonso in the Aston Martin, with the Spaniard followed home by the two Alpine drivers Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly. Team orders on the last lap saw them swap positions.

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Written by

Chris King

Originally from Wales, Chris spent years on the Costa del Sol before moving to the Algarve where he is a web reporter for The Euro Weekly News covering international and Spanish national news. Got a news story you want to share? Then get in touch at editorial@euroweeklynews.com

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