LONDON (Reuters) – Max Verstappen’s Formula One championship means one of the unwanted accolades of the sport has returned again to the late British great Stirling Moss.
The Dutch driver had chalked up 19 grand prix wins before Sunday’s in Abu Dhabi, making him the most successful driver without a title.
The 20th meant Moss, who died last year aged 90 and is regarded as the greatest driver never to be champion, is again the record holder with his 16 career victories.
Handing back the record to Moss has become something of a rite of passage for Formula One drivers – Germany’s Nico Rosberg also returned the record when he became champion in 2016 after 23 wins with Mercedes.
Active drivers closest to the record now are Finland’s Valtteri Bottas (10), who left champions Mercedes for Alfa Romeo after Sunday’s race, and McLaren’s Australian Daniel Ricciardo with eight wins.
(Reporting by Alan Baldwin, editing by Ken Ferris)
