Max Verstappen secures 10th Formula One victory of season

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Runaway Formula One leader Max Verstappen secured a record 10th straight win with victory at the Italian Grand Prix on Sunday, with a Red Bull one-two on Ferrari's home track.

"That's a nice stat," Verstappen said on team radio immediately after the win.

Another flawless performance from the two-time defending champion saw Verstappen beat teammate Sergio Pérez by 6.064 seconds. Carlos Sainz Jr. was third, 11.193 behind Verstappen and less than two tenths of a second ahead of Charles Leclerc as the two Ferrari drivers battled for the final spot on Monza's iconic podium.

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Red Bull driver Max Verstappen of the Netherlands celebrates on the podium after winning the Formula One Italian Grand Prix auto race, at the Monza racetrack, in Monza, Italy, Sunday, Sept. 3, 2023.  (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

"I never would have believed that was possible but we had to work for it today and that made it definitely a lot more fun," Verstappen said.

Verstappen had started second, behind Sainz, but eventually got past him at the start of lap 15 and from then on — just like the rest of the season — no one could match the Red Bull pace.

The record became all but a foregone conclusion as Verstappen began to pull away, swiftly building an advantage of more than five seconds five laps later.

"Very tough, very tough. It can’t get any tougher than it was today," Sainz said. "To keep up with the Red Bulls, I paid the price with the rear tires but I did everything I could to defend."

The victory also saw Verstappen increase his huge championship lead to 145 points in a crushingly dominant season for the 25-year-old