Max Verstappen matches Sebastian Vettel with fourth consecutive Suzuka pole, chasing Michael Schumacher. Fourth pole in a row at Suzuka for Max Verstappen .

In the club of ‘four-in-a-row’
The masterpiece delivered in Japanese GP qualifying by Max Verstappen—able, with a clearly inferior car, to get ahead of the two McLarens and snatch pole position by a few thousandths—places the Dutchman ever higher in the elite group of all-time greats in this sport.

Even statistically, today’s result from the four-time world champion is anything but ordinary. For the Red Bull driver, this is his fourth consecutive pole position at the Honda-owned circuit. In the past, a similar feat at Suzuka was achieved only by Sebastian Vettel—on pole from 2009 to 2012—and by Michael Schumacher.

The German “Kaiser” even extended his streak to five, securing the fastest qualifying time uninterrupted from 1998 to 2002. Verstappen will have to wait until next year to try to match that record. In absolute terms at Suzuka, the Hasselt-born champion has now also matched the four poles of his historic rival Lewis Hamilton, obtained in 2014, 2015, 2017, and 2018. However, the Brit can also boast two poles at the Fuji circuit, where the Japanese GP took place in 2007 and 2008.

Chasing Sebastian Vettel
In his career, Max Verstappen has now reached 41 pole positions: in Red Bull history, only Vettel has done better, with 44. If Max maintains this level, despite a car that is far from unbeatable, it’s not out of the question that this particular record could also fall during the course of 2025.