Max Verstappen reaches ‘perfection’ to eclipse Michael Schumacher record that Lewis Hamilton couldn’t

No one had ever reached four-straight wins at Suzuka before, and it took everything for Max Verstappen to hit the mark with an imperious display.

The four-time champion converted pole position to the win and 25 points with one of the greatest weekends of his already legendary career.

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Verstappen held off McLaren duo Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri for the win – one that was completely unexpected before the weekend with Red Bull having arguably the third or fourth fastest car in Formula 1.

In doing so he’s now won four on the bounce in Japan, eclipsing Michael Schumacher’s record of three-straight from 2000 to 2002.

The mark is not only one to savour as Japan’s Suzuka is one of F1’s greatest events, but also because of Red Bull Racing’s connection with Honda.

The Japanese brand will be leaving the Austrian-British squad in 2026, moving over to Aston Martin on a full-time basis, something that clearly meant a lot to Verstappen, who has shown rare glimpses of emotion throughout the weekend.

On his cooldown lap he was told by race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase: “That’s perfection, just perfection Max, fantastic.”

The Dutchman replied: “Wow! Thank you guys! Wow! What a great weekend, what an unbelievable turnaround after the difficult start, you see, we never give up, we just keep pushing together.”

Team principal and CEO Christian Horner then added: “Max, that was one of your finest weekends ever.

“That was a truly inspirational performance, as you said we never give up, well done mate.”

Having already showed plenty of emotion after his stunning pole position lap on Saturday, Verstappen was clearly still taken aback after getting out of the car.

“I’m incredibly happy, it started off quite tough this weekend but we didn’t give up, we kept improving the car and it’s in its best form,” he began before discussing Honda, who have powered much of his career.

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He continued: “It means a lot to me, it was in the back of my mind the last few laps thinking ‘wow I need to stay ahead, it would be a great story’. 

“A final farewell race here with Honda in Japan and I’m incredibly proud of what we’ve achieved over all those years together and this is a perfect send off.”

Schumacher’s three in a row was also never bettered by Lewis Hamilton or Sebastian Vettel despite their periods of complete dominance with Mercedes and Red Bull.

Both of the world champions, who consider the Suzuka circuit the best on the calendar, have only reached two in a row, showing just how impressive Verstappen’s latest record is – before you even consider the pace of his Red Bull for the record-breaking fourth.

Later adding to the praise, Red Bull head of driver development Helmut Marko said: “Not a single mistake, driving absolutely on the limit.

“Only he can do that, of course, that was clear to see. Actually, the other car was faster, but he stayed in control the whole time, managed the gap, masterfully done.”