Ten Years Since Verstappen's First Win, Räikkönen Still Calls It the Moment He Knew a Star Was Born

Van der Garde ziet waar Verstappen pole heeft verloren in kwalificatie GP Monaco — Photo: © IMAGO

Ten Years Since Verstappen's First Win, Räikkönen Still Calls It the Moment He Knew a Star Was Born

Team GPFans

Monday 8 June 2026 04:10

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Max Verstappen is now one of the most recognisable names in motorsport, a driver who dominates races, collects championships, and makes the extraordinary look routine. His racecraft is sharp, his decision-making under pressure is elite, and his ability to extract pace from a car in almost any condition separates him from the rest of the grid.

Whenever he lines up on the starting grid, Formula 1 odds consistently place him among the top favourites, and that has been true season after season, a clear reflection of just how dominant and reliable he has become at the highest level of the sport. Looking back at the very race where all of this began, Kimi Räikkönen recently reflected on Verstappen's first Formula 1 victory and said, without hesitation, that he knew right then and there that a star had been born.

A Debut Win That Rewrote the Record Books

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The 2016 Spanish Grand Prix was supposed to be a straightforward race weekend. Instead, it became one of the most talked-about moments in modern Formula 1 history.

Verstappen had just been promoted from Toro Rosso to Red Bull Racing, a bold move by the team, and one that raised plenty of eyebrows at the time. He was 18 years old, stepping into a top-tier seat mid-season, with no prior race experience in that car.

What followed left the paddock stunned. Verstappen won the race. Not just finished on the podium; he won it outright, crossing the line first and becoming the youngest race winner in Formula 1 history.

Räikkönen's Reaction: Immediate Recognition of Something Special

Kimi Räikkönen was on the grid that day, racing for Ferrari. He watched Verstappen win that race from close quarters, and the impression it left never faded. Decades in Formula 1 give a driver a sharp eye for genuine talent, and Räikkönen, never one to hand out compliments lightly, called Verstappen a phenomenon.

Speaking about that moment recently, Räikkönen said he saw Verstappen arrive in Formula 1 during his time back at Ferrari and that the Spanish Grand Prix win happened right in front of him. His words were direct: he saw the victory unfold, and in that moment, he understood a star had been born.

Coming from a world champion who raced at the top level for nearly two decades, that kind of recognition means something. Räikkönen does not deal in exaggeration, which makes his assessment all the more significant.

There was also an unusual personal angle to his reflection. Räikkönen noted that he had raced against Max's father, Jos Verstappen, earlier in his career. The fact that he was now competing wheel-to-wheel against his son and watching him win a Grand Prix gave the moment an almost surreal quality. As Räikkönen put it, that is simply how it goes in Formula 1. Generations come and go, and occasionally, a new one arrives with enough talent to immediately announce itself.

What That Victory Told Us About Verstappen's Character

Winning a Formula 1 race is difficult under any circumstances. Winning on your debut for a new team at 18, while managing tire strategy, traffic, and race pace against experienced competitors, is something else entirely.

What the Spanish Grand Prix revealed was not just speed; it was composure. Verstappen did not buckle under the pressure of the moment. He managed the race like a veteran, made the right calls, and brought the car home in first place.

Ten Years On, the Legacy Only Gets Bigger

A decade has passed since that afternoon in Barcelona, and the Formula 1 world looks very different now. Verstappen is no longer the teenager shocking the establishment; he is the establishment. Teams build strategies around him, rivals study his data, and rookies enter the sport knowing they are stepping into an era he has defined.

Räikkönen's words carry extra weight because they come from someone who competed at the front of the grid for so long. Recognising a generational talent when you see one is not easy, but Räikkönen had no hesitation in doing so.

Ten years on, that first win in Spain remains the clearest proof that Verstappen was always going to become exactly what he is today. Some drivers take years to find their level. Verstappen announced his arrival on the first lap of his first race for a top team, and the sport has never quite been the same since.