Max Verstappen compared to Hamilton and Schumacher by Nico Rosberg

Lewis Hamilton and Michael Schumacher still share the joint-record of F1 titles but this is now the era belonging to Verstappen and Red Bull, who have been imperious in 2023.

Verstappen sealed his latest success in the sprint race at this weekend’s F1 Qatar Grand Prix.

"It's really historic," Rosberg said.

"It's unbelievable, the run of form he's had. And the level that he's driving at, the records he's beating - unreal!

"He's even getting close to those five greatest of all time now. 

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“It's spectacular. With the way he's driving, he's getting close to the Fangios, Schumachers, Sennas and Hamiltons.

"It's so motivating for those within team Red Bull to know that they have got one of the greatest drivers of all time driving their machine."It's such an uplifting thing and that's what is driving them."

Verstappen has won 13 grands prix this year, with six left to go, so is likely to beat his own all-time record (set last season) of 15 race wins.

His brilliance is further underlined by teammate Sergio Perez’s struggles.

Naomi Schiff said: "If you look at Checo's season so far and the gap between him and Max, yes it's a competitive car, but the question is: how much is Max able to extract out of that car that maybe another driver wouldn't have been able to do?

"So as much as it is a strong car, I think he's doing fantastic things in it."