Max Verstappen has now gone 11 consecutive races without a victory in Formula 1, but he's extended a streak that means far more.

Red Bull Racing driver Verstappen gave PEOPLE an exclusive look at his pre-race prep ahead of the F1 Las Vegas Grand Prix, where he was crowned world champ

Verstappen responded with the greatest display of his F1 career. In rainy conditions, he charged through to victory, taking the lead at the same moment Norris slid down the order after a mistake at Turn 1. A symbolic moment of the diverging paths of their title aspirations.