Verstappen tops reader poll to finish F1 runner-up

Max Verstappen has been backed by 80.8% of RacingNews365 readers to finish second in the drivers' championship, with three rounds remaining in the season.

Since retiring on the opening lap in Monaco, Verstappen has finished on the podium 11 times in 14 races and once in fourth. Red Bull has recovered from a slow start to the season, its first with its own in-house engine. Verstappen scored the first pole and race win for the new engine in Bahrain and Malaysia, and ended his hoodoo in Singapore with a dominant weekend that included the Sprint. He took a third win of the season in Mexico City and now sits second in the standings.

Verstappen is part of a five-way fight for runner-up behind Kimi Antonelli. No other candidate in the reader poll received more than 10.8% of votes.