How peerless Max Verstappen broke Sergio Perez and F1 records in 2023 - ESPN

DOHA, Qatar — Max Verstappen's 2023 championship will go down as one of Formula One's greatest ever.

The sheer dominance the Dutchman has displayed this year has made the outcome of the championship seem like a foregone conclusion months before even the summer break. It's seen him break one record for consecutive wins — he will likely break his own for most in a season before the year is out.

After a even start, Verstappen's has crushed his only likely challenger, Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez.

Looking back over it, there have been several standout moments. There's only been three occasions when the Dutch national anthem has not played after a race this season.

One of those turned out to be a significant moment in defining the season which followed.

After F1's preseason, it was clear Red Bull had created something special in its car. Mercedes driver George Russell predicted after the first qualifying session of the year the reigning world champions would win every race. Red Bull's drivers were both 2-2 after four races, with Verstappen winning in Bahrain and Australia and Perez winning in Saudi Arabia and Azerbaijan.

The latter, at Baku's popular street circuit, also featured a sprint race, which Perez won, while Verstappen narrowly avoided a brush with the wall after being forced wide by Russell.

Perez would win the grand prix which followed, while Verstappen's chances of winning were hurt by the timing of a Safety Car. Leaving Baku, there was a feeling that Perez might just be able to squeeze some kind of challenge out of Verstappen. This was before the crashes and spiralling form which would come to define the Mexican driver's season.

While Perez had been cruising home to first place, Verstappen was doing some