The 2021 Formula One season will be remembered as one of the most intense, controversial, and thrilling championship duels in history. At the heart of it was the titanic rivalry between Max Verstappen and seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton—a battle where every fraction of a second, every decision, and every preparation mattered. But behind the headlines and the dramatic clashes on the track, a quiet secret helped the Dutchman tip the scales: relentless preparation powered by ingenuity, including a simulator nobody else had.

Former Red Bull trainer Bradley Scanes recently shed light on a little-known aspect of Verstappen’s preparation leading into the Jeddah Corniche Circuit, Saudi Arabia, in the final stretch of the season. “Max often gets branded as this natural talent,” Scanes explained on the High Performance Podcast, “but there’s a reason why he goes out in FP1 and sets purple after purple after purple while other drivers are still finding their pace. It’s because he’s been practicing the track for hours and hours in the week leading up to the race.”

Jeddah, a brand-new street circuit, was one of the most challenging venues on the calendar. Its high-speed corners, unforgiving walls, and unfamiliar layout meant that even seasoned teams had limited data. Red Bull didn’t even have a complete simulator version of the track—an astonishing gap in preparation for a championship-deciding race.

Yet Verstappen found a workaround that perfectly illustrated his determination. According to Scanes, the Dutchman “found someone online” to build a simulation of Jeddah’s layout, which he could load into his personal simulator at home. This wasn’t just technical ingenuity; it was a testament to his work ethic and obsession with mastering every variable before arriving at the track.

“The differences that make champions aren’t always visible on TV,” Scanes said. “Every little detail counts. In a title fight, every fraction of a second matters.” Verstappen’s simulator hours allowed him to attack FP1 with unprecedented precision. Lap after lap, sector after sector, he set the pace, leaving rivals scrambling to match his knowledge of corners they had never driven before.

The Jeddah race itself was nothing short of chaotic. After multiple red flag restarts, Verstappen made an overtake on Hamilton that broke the rules. The two collided, and the Dutchman was handed a 10-second time penalty. Drama unfolded lap after lap, with the crowd, commentators, and fans watching in awe and disbelief. Despite the setback, the seeds of victory had already been sown in the countless hours Verstappen spent behind the simulator screens, rehearsing every line, apex, and braking point.

Ultimately, while Hamilton took the checkered flag in Jeddah, Verstappen’s meticulous preparation paid off in the season finale at Abu Dhabi. In a controversial, edge-of-your-seat finish, Verstappen executed a decisive overtake on the final lap after a safety car restart, clinching his first Formula One Drivers’ Championship. Every corner he had memorized, every lap he had simulated, every sacrifice he had made culminated in that moment—a career-defining triumph over one of the greatest drivers in history.

Verstappen’s journey to the title was not just about raw talent, although few drivers have the skill or courage to compete at that level. It was about preparation, attention to detail, and the willingness to go further than anyone else, even if that meant sourcing a custom-built simulator online when the team’s resources weren’t enough. The 2021 season proved that in Formula One, mental preparation is as critical as physical skill and mechanical performance.

In hindsight, the Jeddah Corniche Circuit became a symbol of the championship itself: complex, unforgiving, and full of hidden challenges. Verstappen’s ability to embrace those challenges head-on, using every tool available—technology, determination, and sheer persistence—distinguished him as a champion. It was a season where genius met hard work, strategy met courage, and a young driver carved his name into the history of motorsport.

Today, Verstappen’s 2021 season is studied not only for its on-track drama but also for the off-track discipline that drove it. The story behind his simulator sessions, the countless hours in preparation, and the meticulous focus serve as a reminder: championships are not won by speed alone. They are won by those who think ahead, innovate, and are willing to do whatever it takes to master every detail before the green light even drops.

Max Verstappen may have won the Drivers’ Championship in Abu Dhabi, but it was a victory decades in the making—shaped not only by the battles on the asphalt but by unseen hours of planning, dedication, and relentless pursuit of perfection. Every corner he navigated that season tells a story of preparation, resilience, and the making of a modern F1 champion.