Oracle Red Bull Racing driver Max Verstappen clinches his second World Drivers’ Championship (WDC) in Formula One after a commanding win in Japan.
2022 F1 Champion Max Verstappen
Part of the Dutch driver’s successful 2022 F1 season is Honda Racing Corporation’s (HRC) technical support that propels the two Red Bull cars. The season opener in Bahrain may have brought the team to a bad start as it ran into double DNFs (did not finish) due to power unit issues, but Verstappen carried on to win 12 races including at the Japanese Grand Prix at the Suzuka Circuit.
In an Instagram post, Verstappen thanked the Japanese automaker for its support all year round, saying, “To win it here in Japan makes it extra special, thank you for everything @honda. I hope you enjoy this as much as I do.”
Verstappen taking the checkered flag at the Suzuka Circuit
But the season isn’t over yet as F1 still has the last four races ahead: Circuit of the Americas in the United States, Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez in Mexico, Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace in Brazil, and Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi. Teammate Sergio Perez will look to beat Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc for P2 in the 2022 Driver Standings.
“Max, congratulations on your consecutive Drivers’ World Championship wins! I was super excited to see the moment you clinched the title in Suzuka with [an] overwhelming performance which represents your 2022 season,” said HRC President Koji Watanabe.
“I am sure that fans are very pleased with this remarkable accomplishment. On behalf of Honda, I would like to thank everyone who worked so hard to provide technical support for RBPT (Red Bull Powertrains), contributing to this great victory,” added Watanabe.
Red Bull clinched the 2022 WDC with four races to go
With the championship-winning partnership between Red Bull Racing F1 and Honda, the two decided to extend the latter’s technical support until 2025 earlier this year. This means that Red Bull’s junior team, Scuderia AlphaTauri, will also continue receiving technical support from the automaker.
Get the latest motorsports updates at Philkotse.com.