Can anyone stop Max Verstappen in 2023?

Ali Khaled says: No chance

The short answer is no. And so is the long one.

In 2023, nobody will, or can, stop Max Verstappen. The reigning two-time F1 world champion is quite simply racing on his own.

Last year, after an initial challenge from Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, the 25-year-old Dutchman blew the opposition away, coasting to a second consecutive championship with four races left in the season.

There was no need for the drama and controversy that surrounded his maiden title a year earlier in Abu Dhabi.

Having seized that opportunity at Yas Marina Circuit in 2021 to overcome habitual winner Lewis Hamilton, Verstappen has since gone from strength to strength, showing little inclination in letting any of his rivals get so much as a glimpse of the Formula One championship.

The best driver, in the best, car, is a devastating proposition, as Hamilton and Mercedes will attest after years of dominance.

In Bahrain two weeks ago, Verstappen ignored any drama going on behind him and raced confidently to his first ever win in Sakhir. With Ferrari and Mercedes seemingly beset by performance issues, it was an ideal start for Red Bull and bodes well for the rest of the season, although an unexpected challenge from Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso could add spice to the fight for the podium places once Leclerc and Carols Sainz, and maybe Hamilton and George Russell, get their act together.

For Verstappen, it has been more of the same so far at the second Grand Prix of the season in Saudi Arabia.

At Jeddah Corniche Circuit over the last two days, it has been business as usual as he notched up the fastest time in the first, second and third practice sessions.

He had arrived a day a day late on Friday, having suffered from a