2023 Formula One World Championship — The Year of Perfection
By 2023, Formula One had entered the age of inevitability.
The rule changes of 2022 had settled; the field had learned to live within their limits.
But one team, and one man, were no longer bound by them.
Red Bull Racing, wielding Adrian Newey’s RB19, built a machine of impossible balance — lightweight, stable, and efficient at every speed.
And at its center, Max Verstappen, serene and surgical, executed one of the most complete seasons in the sport’s history.
Across twenty-two races, he transcended rivalry.
Ferrari floundered in strategy, Mercedes searched for identity, Aston Martin rose briefly and fell quietly, and McLaren rediscovered life.
But nothing — and no one — could disrupt the rhythm of Red Bull’s perfection.
Round 1 — Bahrain Grand Prix (Sakhir, 5 March 2023)
A new season, same conclusion.
Verstappen led from pole to flag, while Pérez secured a dominant one–two.
Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso stole the spotlight with a defiant podium in his first race for the team, overtaking both Mercedes with old-world fury.
Winner: Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
Fastest Lap: Zhou Guanyu (Alfa Romeo)
Championship Lead: Verstappen (+7 over Pérez)
Round 2 — Saudi Arabian Grand Prix (Jeddah, 19 March 2023)
Even a driveshaft failure in qualifying couldn’t stop Red Bull.
Starting fifteenth, Verstappen carved through the field to finish second behind Pérez — only a Safety Car spared his teammate’s lead.
The rest of the grid looked helpless; the RB19’s pace was supernatural.
Winner: Sergio Pérez (Red Bull)
Fastest Lap: Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
Championship Lead: Verstappen (+1 over Pérez)
Round 3 — Australian Grand Prix (Melbourne, 2 April 2023)
A race of chaos, red flags, and shattered nerves.
Verstappen lost the lead to both Mercedes early, then retook control before a late series of restarts turned the grid upside down.
Three red flags, multiple crashes — yet Max emerged untouched.
Dominance amid debris.
Winner: Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
Fastest Lap: Sergio Pérez (Red Bull)
Championship Lead: Verstappen (+15 over Pérez)
Round 4 — Azerbaijan Grand Prix (Baku, 30 April 2023)
A weekend of precision.
Pérez outsmarted Verstappen during a Safety Car phase and took victory, earning his title as “the king of the streets.”
Leclerc returned to form with pole — Ferrari’s brief smile amid Red Bull’s supremacy.
Winner: Sergio Pérez (Red Bull)
Fastest Lap: George Russell (Mercedes)
Championship Lead: Verstappen (+6 over Pérez)
Round 5 — Miami Grand Prix (Miami Gardens, 7 May 2023)
Verstappen’s statement of superiority.
Starting ninth, he sliced through the field with brutal efficiency, passing Pérez with nine laps to go and finishing nearly six seconds ahead.
There would be no doubt who the lead driver was.
Winner: Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
Fastest Lap: Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
Championship Lead: Verstappen (+14 over Pérez)
Round 6 — Monaco Grand Prix (Monte Carlo, 28 May 2023)
In torrential rain, Verstappen flirted with perfection.
His qualifying lap — brushing walls within millimeters — was called “one of the greatest ever seen at Monaco.”
Even the changing weather couldn’t break his rhythm.
Pérez, meanwhile, crashed in Q1 and finished sixteenth.
Winner: Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
Fastest Lap: Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)
Championship Lead: Verstappen (+39 over Pérez)
Round 7 — Spanish Grand Prix (Barcelona, 4 June 2023)
A grand slam — pole, win, fastest lap, every lap led.
The race served as a mechanical autopsy for the rest of the field.
Verstappen and the RB19 were in another category entirely.
Winner: Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
Fastest Lap: Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
Championship Lead: Verstappen (+53 over Pérez)
Round 8 — Canadian Grand Prix (Montréal, 18 June 2023)
Victory number 41 — tying Ayrton Senna’s career total.
Verstappen managed pace effortlessly, while Alonso and Hamilton fought behind him in a nostalgic duel.
A reminder of eras past — and the gulf between them.
Winner: Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
Fastest Lap: Sergio Pérez (Red Bull)
Championship Lead: Verstappen (+69 over Pérez)
Round 9 — Austrian Grand Prix (Spielberg, 2 July 2023)
At Red Bull’s home race, Verstappen turned domination into art.
He even pitted on the final lap — with a full pit stop in hand — just to take fastest lap.
The RB19 was a masterpiece, and Verstappen its brushstroke.
Winner: Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
Fastest Lap: Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
Championship Lead: Verstappen (+81 over Pérez)
Round 10 — British Grand Prix (Silverstone, 9 July 2023)
McLaren reborn.
Lando Norris led early before Verstappen inevitably reeled him in.
Norris still finished second — a signal that Woking had reawakened.
But the weekend was defined by the routine: Max first, everyone else in orbit.
Winner: Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
Fastest Lap: Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
Championship Lead: Verstappen (+99 over Pérez)
Round 11 — Hungarian Grand Prix (Budapest, 23 July 2023)
Red Bull achieved what no team had before: twelve consecutive race wins, breaking McLaren’s 1988 record.
Verstappen’s margin of victory — 33 seconds.
No drama, no rivals, just relentless excellence.
Winner: Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
Fastest Lap: Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
Championship Lead: Verstappen (+110 over Pérez)
Round 12 — Belgian Grand Prix (Spa-Francorchamps, 30 July 2023)
Starting sixth after grid penalties, Verstappen overtook every car in front by Lap 17.
He even joked on the radio: “Don’t touch the car, please. Everything’s perfect.”
And it was.
His eighth straight win, Red Bull’s twelfth.
Winner: Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
Fastest Lap: Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)
Championship Lead: Verstappen (+125 over Pérez)
Round 13 — Dutch Grand Prix (Zandvoort, 27 August 2023)
Home soil, torrential rain — same story.
Verstappen weathered everything, literally, to tie Sebastian Vettel’s record of nine consecutive wins.
The orange smoke rose like incense; the Dutch crowd chanted as if in worship.
Winner: Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
Fastest Lap: Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)
Championship Lead: Verstappen (+138 over Pérez)
Round 14 — Italian Grand Prix (Monza, 3 September 2023)
History, sealed.
Verstappen broke Vettel’s consecutive win record with his tenth straight victory.
Ferrari fought valiantly — Sainz leading briefly — but the home crowd could only applaud the inevitable.
Winner: Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
Fastest Lap: Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
Championship Lead: Verstappen (+145 over Pérez)
Round 15 — Singapore Grand Prix (Marina Bay, 17 September 2023)
Finally, perfection cracked.
Red Bull struggled with setup; Verstappen could manage only fifth.
Carlos Sainz led Ferrari to its first win of the year — a tactical masterclass, slowing the field deliberately to hold off Norris and Hamilton.
A rare human moment in a robotic season.
Winner: Carlos Sainz (Ferrari)
Fastest Lap: Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)
Championship Lead: Verstappen (+151 over Pérez)
Round 16 — Japanese Grand Prix (Suzuka, 24 September 2023)
Revenge in style.
Verstappen crushed the field by nearly 20 seconds to seal Red Bull’s sixth Constructors’ Championship.
Ferrari and Mercedes were left in his wake; McLaren claimed a double podium.
Winner: Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
Fastest Lap: Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
Championship Lead: Verstappen (+177 over Pérez)
Round 17 — Qatar Grand Prix (Lusail, 8 October 2023)
Sprint weekend, same outcome.
Verstappen clinched his third World Drivers’ Championship on Saturday — before the Grand Prix had even begun.
He won the Sprint, then the race, completing a weekend of perfection under desert lights.
Winner: Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
Fastest Lap: Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
World Champion: Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
Round 18 — United States Grand Prix (Austin, 22 October 2023)
Verstappen battled brake issues but still triumphed from sixth.
Hamilton and Leclerc were disqualified post-race for floor wear violations — symbolic of the gap between Red Bull’s precision and others’ desperation.
Winner: Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
Fastest Lap: Yuki Tsunoda (AlphaTauri)
Championship Lead: Verstappen (+247 over Pérez)
Round 19 — Mexican Grand Prix (Mexico City, 29 October 2023)
A subdued yet decisive performance — Verstappen’s sixteenth win, a new single-season record.
Checo’s home race ended on Lap 1 after contact with Leclerc.
Red Bull celebrated efficiency, not emotion.
Winner: Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
Fastest Lap: Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)
Championship Lead: Verstappen (+266 over Pérez)
Round 20 — São Paulo Grand Prix (Interlagos, 5 November 2023)
A reminder that the gap remained cosmic.
Verstappen beat Norris by ten seconds; Red Bull’s pit work was flawless; and Mercedes imploded with double DNFs.
Hamilton’s body language told the story — the empire was gone.
Winner: Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
Fastest Lap: Lando Norris (McLaren)
Championship Lead: Verstappen (+296 over Pérez)
Round 21 — Las Vegas Grand Prix (Las Vegas, 18 November 2023)
The show met the sport.
Glittering lights, chaos at Turn 1, and controversy over a loose manhole cover in practice — yet the race delivered.
Verstappen won again, ahead of Leclerc and Pérez, amid neon and noise.
A spectacle both absurd and electric.
Winner: Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
Fastest Lap: Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
Championship Lead: Verstappen (+321 over Pérez)
Round 22 — Abu Dhabi Grand Prix (Yas Marina, 26 November 2023)
The curtain closed as it began — Verstappen in complete command.
Nineteenth win of the year, twelfth for Red Bull’s Constructors’, and total supremacy from lights to flag.
Hamilton, Leclerc, and Norris watched in resigned awe.
Winner: Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
Fastest Lap: Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
World Champion: Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
Epilogue — The Art of Inevitability
In 2023, Formula One ceased to be a contest and became a study in perfection.
Verstappen won 19 of 22 races, led 1,003 laps, and finished the year with 575 points — more than the entire Mercedes team combined.
Red Bull’s RB19 stands among the greatest cars ever built, its harmony of power, aero, and tire control near-supernatural.
But domination brings isolation.
Fans admired, but seldom cheered. Rivals respected, but quietly despaired.
As Verstappen crossed the final finish line in Abu Dhabi, the paddock clapped not in rivalry, but in reverence.
World Drivers’ Champion: Max Verstappen 🇳🇱 (Red Bull RB19)
Constructors’ Champion: Red Bull Racing 🇦🇹 (RB19)
📚 Sources & References — 2023 Formula One World Championship
Primary Historical Records
Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) — Official Results Archive: 2023 Formula One World Championship.
Race classifications, technical bulletins, and updated regulation addenda.Formula One Management (FOM) — 2023 Season Archive.
Lap data, pit stop times, DRS activations, and radio transcripts.Red Bull Racing Technical Briefs (Milton Keynes, UK) — RB19 aerodynamic design, energy deployment mapping, and race development reports.
Contemporary & Period Publications
Motor Sport Magazine (2023 Issues) — “Verstappen: The Year of Perfection,” “The RB19: Machine of the Gods,” “Ferrari’s Fading Flame.”
Autosport / Motorsport.com (2023) — technical analyses on ground-effect refinements, Red Bull’s aero secrets, and Verstappen’s consistency.
BBC Sport (UK) — “Nineteen Wins, One Machine,” “Red Bull’s Unreachable Perfection.”
The Guardian (UK) — “Verstappen’s Year of Supremacy,” “F1’s Crisis of Competition.”
La Gazzetta dello Sport (Italy) — “Leclerc, il Prigioniero di Maranello,” “Ferrari e la Sconfitta Perfetta.”
L’Équipe (France) — “RB19: La Formule du Divin.”
Books & Longform Analyses
Mark Hughes. Dominion: Red Bull and the Age of Verstappen. Haynes, 2024.
Adrian Newey. Blueprints of Victory: The RB19 Story. Red Bull Media Press, 2024.
Ross Brawn. Formula One: The Balance of Power. Simon & Schuster, 2024.
Documentaries & Audio-Visual Sources
Netflix. Drive to Survive, Season 6 (2024). Episodes: “The Machine,” “One Team Above All,” “The Chase That Wasn’t.”
Sky Sports F1. Season Review: The Year of Perfection.
FIA Heritage Series. 2023: The Art of Inevitability.
BBC Archives. Verstappen: Beyond Dominance.
