Max Verstappen resurgence backed to swat aside George Russell and Lewis Hamilton

Max Verstappen will finish runner-up in the F1 drivers' championship ahead of George Russell and Lewis Hamilton.

That's the verdict of RacingNews365 fans following a poll asking you who would claim second behind the apparent champion-in-waiting, Kimi Antonelli.

Antonelli stands on the brink of becoming the youngest champion in F1 history. The 20-year-old holds a comfortable 102-point cushion over Mercedes team-mate George Russell, with potentially another 150 points up for grabs if the calendar finishes in Qatar and Abu Dhabi.

The young Italian could even become champion at the next race in the United States should he take the chequered flag, and Russell finishes no higher than ninth.

Behind Antonelli, the battle is far from clear-cut as to who will finish best of the rest.

At present, Russell is nine points ahead of Hamilton, and 17 points clear of Verstappen, whilst Charles Leclerc and Lando Norris cannot be discounted as they sit 23 and 37 points respectively behind Russell.

In our poll, Verstappen received 60.5 per cent of the vote. The four-time F1 champion's nearest challenger was Ferrari driver Hamilton, who collected 21.2 per cent.

That is unsurprising as Verstappen has finished on the podium in seven of the last eight grands prix, winning the last two in Malaysia and Singapore.

Russell polled just under 12 per cent, with Hamilton's team-mate Leclerc collecting just over six per cent. As for reigning champion Norris, of all the votes cast, he collected just one.

As always, thanks for voting!