Updated 22 July 2025 at 18:52 IST

Not Lewis Hamilton or Michael Schumacher - Jenson Button Picks Max Verstappen as F1's Most Rounded Driver Ever

Jenson Button, the 2009 Formula 1 world driver's champion, believes Max Verstappen is head and shoulders above any other F1 driver in history.

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Michael Schumacher (L) and Lewis Hamilton are statistically the greatest F1 drivers in history.
Michael Schumacher (L) and Lewis Hamilton are statistically the greatest F1 drivers in history. | Image: X/@schumacher & AP

The ‘Greatest of All Time’ debate is a tough one in any sport, but is arguably more complicated in a sport like Formula 1 given just how reliant a driver is on the type of car he may have, or how tough the competition is in that particular era.

In modern-day F1 parlance, two drivers are atop the pile when it comes to the conversation - Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton. Both are level on 7 world championships each, but Hamilton edges Schumacher - and indeed anyone else - when it comes to total dominance in terms of statistics. 

However, former F1 world champion Jenson Button believes the most rounded driver in the history of the sport is reigning world champion Max Verstappen. 

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Button Justifies Verstappen Pick

The reason Button gives is simple - he believes Verstappen can get the most out of cars in a way few drivers in history have ever managed. 

"My comments about Max Verstappen (being the best), yeah, I feel he's the most rounded F1 driver that there has ever been, you know? And I know he hasn't won the championships of Lewis [Hamilton]. And I obviously think Lewis is extremely, extremely good and one of the best in the world. But there's just something about Max that he can do something with a car that I don't think anyone else can," Button said on The Chris Moyles Show. 

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It is a logical argument, especially when you consider that Verstappen has scored 165 of the 172 points Red Bull have accumulated this season. 

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No Fifth Title For Verstappen - Yet

However, it is all but certain that the Dutchman will not be lifting a fifth driver's championship in the 2025 season, as he currently 3rd but trailing the lead by 69 points. 

He is way off the pace of the McLaren drivers of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, who have what is easily the fastest car on the grid as of right now. 

Any talk of Verstappen matching the likes of Juan Manuel Fangio, Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton with 5 world titles will have to wait until at least the 2026 season. 

Published By : Shayne Dias

Published On: 22 July 2025 at 18:52 IST