Max Verstappen joined Sebastian Vettel and Alain Prost when he became a four-time Formula 1 World Champion in 2024.
The Dutchman put together an impressive season even though Red Bull had the third-best car on the grid, with him looking to add to that tally with a fifth title in 2025. Verstappen faces a tough challenge to equal Michael Schumacher’s record of five championships in a row, given the advantage that McLaren has over them, which could see tensions boil over.
Last year he made controversial comments to his Red Bull engineers over team radio after they lost the Hungarian GP, while Verstappen and Lando Norris had their fair share of on-track incidents.
Prost believes there is an element of Niki Lauda in Verstappen, in that he can be very ‘direct’ and ‘honest’ about a situation. Damon Hill agreed when highlighting his fellow world champion’s comments on Instagram.
Damon Hill agrees with Alain Prost’s comparison between Niki Lauda and Max Verstappen
The 1996 World Champion has been one of the leading critics of Verstappen in the past, having said that the Dutchman ‘let himself down’ when he forced Norris off track in the Mexican GP.
Hill urged Christian Horner to publically criticise Verstappen in the aftermath of the Mexico incidents after the Red Bull team boss brought Norris’ telemetry to his media briefings.
Hill agrees that Lauda’s traits are similar to Verstappen’s, but also points out one flaw in the Dutchman: “I agree with that he never misses a beat. But Lauda drove with his mind not his fists.”
Johnny Herbert has previously criticised Verstappen, which was pertinent given he was a steward at the Mexican GP. The FIA has since said they will not continue with him for future races.
How Niki Lauda and Max Verstappen compare in F1
Lauda was a remarkable driver in F1 given he had the raw talent to beat some of the best drivers in his era including Prost, Keke Rosberg, Ayrton Senna, and Nelson Piquet.
The Austrian also came back from a life-threatening crash at the Nurburgring in 1976, going on to win his second title in 1977 and a third in 1984.
| Max Verstappen | Niki Lauda | |
| Grand Prix starts | 209 | 171 |
| Pole Positions | 40 | 24 |
| Podiums | 112 | 54 |
| Wins | 63 | 25 |
| World Championships | 4 (2021, 2022, 2023, 2024) | 3 (1975, 1977, 1984) |
His impact on F1 would remain with roles at Jaguar and latterly Mercedes as a non-executive advisor, playing a crucial role in signing Lewis Hamilton in 2012. Mercedes still pay tribute to Lauda during race weekends, as a testament to his impact.
Verstappen has nearly completed the same amount of seasons as Lauda and effectively doubled his stats, showing just how much he ranks among drivers considered to be legends of F1.
