How can Max Verstappen still win the F1 world championship? Maths and required results explained
McLaren’s disqualification from the Las Vegas Grand Prix means Max Verstappen can still win the F1 world championship.
Although the papaya-clad team has already won the constructors’ title this season, the drivers’ championship is still up for grabs.
McLaren lead a one-two in the standings, with Lando Norris on 390 points and Oscar Piastri on 366. Red Bull driver Verstappen is level with the Australian, who is ahead on account of winning more races this season.
The two championship leaders were disqualified from the Las Vegas GP, which was won by Verstappen, due to excessive wear on the skid plank on the underside of their McLaren cars.
Over the final pair of Grand Prix weekends - one of which also has a sprint race - there are a total of 58 points up for grabs, meaning the title can go in any direction.
Norris is still the favourite for the title; he has been the in-form driver as of late, and the final two circuits are thought to suit McLaren’s car more than Red Bull’s, with the latter struggling in medium-speed corners - which are plentiful at both Qatar and Abu Dhabi.
But it is still mathematically possible for Verstappen to now win the drivers’ championship, so long as the following results pan out his way. It’s worth noting that, as they are level on points, the same maths will apply for Piastri too.
In F1, 25 points are given for a Grand Prix win, 18 points for second, 15 for third and 12 for fourth.
Sprint races have eight points for the winner, dropping sequentially to one point for finishing in eighth place.
So, if Verstappen won both GPs in Qatar and Abu Dhabi, as well as the Qatar sprint, he would get 58 points for doing so, taking his tally to 424 points. In that scenario, all Lando Norris has to do is finish third in each Grand Prix and fourth in the sprint to outscore the Dutchman.
If Norris finishes fourth in one of the Grand Prix, he will need to win the Qatar sprint to make up that points deficit.
For those who have scrolled past all of that, Max Verstappen will win the 2025 F1 world championship if the following parameters are met:
1) He wins both remaining Grand Prix, and the sprint in Qatar
2) Lando Norris scores fewer than 34 points over the final two race weekends