Verstappen could be the first F1 champion since Lauda not to have done this

If Max Verstappen becomes world champion this year he will set a special record. If he manages to beat Lewis Hamilton in the title fight, he will become the first world champion since Niki Lauda who has never competed against Michael Schumacher.

Michael Schumacher represents more than a generation of Formula 1. As a young driver he shared the grid with racing legends like Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost, but also competed against the likes of Fernando Alonso.

After the 2006 season, the German left Ferrari and Formula 1, causing Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton to miss him on their debut. However, Schumacher returned to Mercedes in 2010, so Vettel and Hamilton have also competed against the racing legend.

Verstappen would therefore be the first world champion since Lauda who hasn't competed against Schumacher. His father Jos Verstappen did, and that legacy continues: this year Verstappen shares the grid with Mick Schumacher, making a future duel between the two big names still a possibility.