Max Verstappen

Max Verstappen is the current Formula 1 world champion, having won each of the last three drivers' titles competing for Red Bull Racing.

The son of former F1 racer Jos Verstappen, Max is both Belgian and Dutch but races under the flag of the Netherlands. He infamously won his first title by beating Lewis Hamilton to the 2021 championship in a controversial climax at that season's Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

In 2024, his biggest rival is McLaren driver Lando Norris who is challenging him for the drivers' title. Verstappen is contracted to Christian Horner's Red Bull team until 2028 but has said he may retire young from F1, having grown dissatisfied at the FIA's governance of the sport.