Can Max Verstappen Still Win the 2026 Drivers Championship?

Charlie Zschau Published: Jun 29 2026 20:44

Max Verstappen currently sits 7th in the Drivers' Championship standings, behind both Mercedes, Ferrari, and McLaren drivers.

Max Verstappen is sitting far behind the leaders eight races into the season, but Verstappen has proved time and time again that he can never be counted out until the final day race of the season.

The Dutch racing driver is already one of the best in the history of the sport, but the start of the 2026 season has not been memorable.

Verstappen has only stood on the podium twice thus far in 2026, which is the same amount of times he has failed to even finish a race. Red Bull's car is not nearly as fast as the Mercedes or Ferrari, but the Red Bull Racing driver has not let that stop him before.

In Verstappen's career, he has won nearly 30% of the grand prix he has entered, and stood on the podium after 53.5% of them. This season, Verstappen has not won a single race and has stood on the podium just 25% of the time.

The drop in performance from the Red Bull driver could be due to the major changes in Formula 1's rules and regulations which saw a major shift to electric power units withing the cars. Verstappen has not been quiet in his disapproval of the changes, and his performances show just how major the change has been for the drivers.

2026 Drivers' Championship Standings

Driver	Points
Kimi Antonelli	171
George Russell	131
Lewis Hamilton	125
Oscar Piastri	80
Lando Norris	79
Charles Leclerc	79
Max Verstappen	73
Isack Hadjar	42

Verstappen is currently 98 points behind Mercedes youngster Kimi Antonelli, but only seven points behind McLaren's Oscar Piastri in fourth.

Can Max Verstappen Still Win the 2026 Drivers Championship?

Max Verstappen still has the capability to turn things around in 2026.

Last season, Verstappen trailed Piastri by 104 points, 15 rounds into the 2025 season which featured 24 races. That same season, Verstappen made up the ground and finished ahead of Piastri.

Verstappen made up all 104 points in just nine races, but missed out on his fifth Drivers' Championship by two points to Piastri's teammate, Lando Norris, on the final day in Abu Dhabi.

With 14 races to go in 2026, Verstappen definitely has the capability of catching Kimi Antonelli who currently has a 98 point lead over the dutchman. The question for Verstappen and Red Bull is whether the car can compete with the Mercedes.