Sao Paulo win earns Verstappen comparisons to Schumacher

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A storming victory in wet conditions last week in Sao Paulo has seen Red Bull's Max Verstappen compared to all-time Formula 1 great Michael Schumacher.

Former Formula 1 driver Timo Glock has told Sky Germany that Verstappen should already be put on a par with Schumacher, who secured seven titles between 1994 and 2004 - two with Benetton and the others for Ferrari.

Only Lewis Hamilton has won as many championships as Schumacher, initially with McLaren and subsequently with Mercedes, the most recent of which was in 2020.

Juan Manuel Fangio took five titles in the 1950s, while Alain Prost and Sebastian Vettel both took four titles during their time in F1.

Verstappen is currently tied with the likes of Jack Brabham, Jackie Stewart, Niki Lauda, Nelson Piquet and Ayrton Senna on three, and now looks certain to move ahead of them with another triumph this season.

Glock - who drove for Jordan, Toyota, Virgin and Marussia during five seasons in F1 between 2008 and 2012 - thinks that Verstappen may prove to be the best of them all by the time he's done.

Read also: Verstappen sums up ‘rollercoaster’ Sao Paulo GP: ‘Unbelievable!’

“It's still a while away from the world championship titles,” he acknowledged.

"But as far as the qualities in the rain are concerned - as far as the qualities as a racing driver are concerned - Max Verstappen can already be put on a par with Michael Schumacher.

“Max is incredibly good, what he always achieves in the race is extraordinary. Unique," he added.

That view is shared by Red Bull motorsports consultant Dr Helmut Marko, who didn't hold back the superlatives when talking about Verstappen's 62nd career victory in imperious fashion last week.

“Max is incredibly good, what he always achieves in the race is extraordinary. Unique," he said. "He was in a world of his own.

“The overtaking manoeuvres were sensational," the Austrian continued. "I said beforehand that he would finish on the podium, but in such a demonstration it blew up everything again.

"It's this incredible control of the car," he added. "Especially in the rain, [Max has] this feeling of exploring the limit more than anyone else."

Prior to Verstappen, only five drivers have won a Formula 1 Grand Prix from 17th or lower on the starting grid.

He has topped the driver standings ever since displacing Charles Leclerc with victory in the 2022 Miami Grand Prix. Surpassing 900 consecutive days at the top means he has broken a long-held spell of dominance by Schumacher with Ferrari.

Verstappen has been uncharacteristically winless since June when he was victorious in Spain. Since then, drivers from Mercedes, McLaren and Ferrari have thwarted his ambitions to top the podium.

But winning in Brazil last week means that he is now 62 points clear of closest rival Lando Norris in the championship standings, and could wrap up the 2024 title in the next race at Las Vegas.

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Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.