The name Max Verstappen is currently rising on Google search. Who is he?
If you are or were a fan of the world’s most expensive sport, Formula 1, the name would sound familiar. Max Verstappen has just won last week’s race in Spain.
Why is it such a big deal to the world? Win or lose is a common thing in a competition. But there is more than winning a trophy to his triumph.
Despite the fact that the two leading drivers, Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton, crashed out on the very first lap on that race, Verstappen still deserves our spotlight.
Here are ten reasons why. Here are ten facts behind Verstappen’s historical win that you may not know or realize. Take a look!
10. He is only 18 years old
Max Verstappen was born on September 30, 1997. That means he is only eighteen years old. This is a very young age to even compete in the world-class competition. Let alone to win it.
This is the Formula 1 Grand Prix we are talking about. It is not a junior competition. This is the real deal where the world’s best drivers compete to be the fastest.
In fact, Max should have joined the Formula 1 main race two years ago. In 2015, the FIA (Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile) raised the age limit for Formula 1 racing from 17 to 18 years old.
What you see on the picture is Max meeting one of the Formula 1 legends, Michael Schumacher. Michael’s last race was in 2012. Just to paint you a picture of how young Max is.
9. He is the youngest Formula 1 race winner ever
As you can guess, being only eighteen years old, he is definitely the youngest winner of Formula 1 Grand Prix race ever. This is a world’s record.
To be exact, he won the race at the age of 18 years and 228 days. He broke the previous record set by the former Formula 1 world champion, Sebastian Vettel.
In 2008, Vettel wrote the youngest race winner record at the age of 21 years and 73 days. It seems like the winners only get younger and younger than ever!
This means Max Verstappen has a lot to come. The previous record holder became the world champion. Max has the same chance. He is a great driver after all.
8. His father was a Formula 1 driver too
So, how did he become this good, this young? It is in his blood. Max’s father, Jos Verstappen, was also a Formula 1 driver. They are not that far apart.
Jos’s last race was in 2003. Max’s first announced that he would join the Formula 1 in 2014. It is only eleven years after his father’s retirement.
In fact, the runner up of the F1 Spanish GP, Kimi Raikkonen, raced Jos. During the post-race interview next to Max, Kimi said, “I raced against his father so that’s actually sounds even more scary.”
Jos Verstappen had never won any F1 race during his career. He only got two podium finishes. But to be fair, he didn’t have the same chance as Max does now: racing in a great team.
7. His mother, grandfather, and uncle are also racers
Or perhaps Max is simply better than Jos? It may be because he got extra gene from his mother, who was also a racer. According to Wikipedia, she competed in Karting.
Max’s grandfather, Paul Kumpen, was Belgian national rally-cross champion. Paul is now the director of the building company Kumpen and president of VOKA Limburg.
His uncle, Anthony Kumpen is currently racing in NASCAR. What a family of speed! Growing up in the middle of great racers definitely gives Max the advantage of becoming what he is today.
Anthony Kumpen is competing in NASCAR Whelen Euro Series with PK Carsport team. They won the overall race in 2014 and came 4th in 2015.
6. 2016 is only his second season in Formula 1
Formula 1 is a tough competition. To win a race, you can’t just be fast. There are a lot of things you need to master. A Formula 1 car is highly sophisticated.
Usually, it takes a lot of time for a professional driver to adapt to the Formula 1 world before they could even shine and be the best of themselves. For Max, he only needs one and a half season.
In 2014 he became the test driver for Toro Rosso team. He had to wait to turn 18 to join the team as the front runner.
His chance came in 2015. It was his first F1 racing season with the same team. His highest achievement was finishing in 4th place twice. And now he is one of the front runners of Red Bull Racing team.
5. He has just got transferred from another Formula 1 team
Another reason why Max’s triumph in Spanish GP was phenomenal is the fact that it was his first race with his new team. He was just swapped from another team.
How did this happen? Well, Toro Rosso and Red Bull Racing are under the same management. So they can do anything they want with their driver compositions.
Max was swapped with Daniil Kvyat. The team made the swapping decision to get better racing result. And apparently they really made the right call.
Of course, the result might be different hadn’t had the Mercedes drivers crashed out. Regardless, Max finished in front of the two Ferrari and that is a great deal.
4. He started racing when he was only 4
Being so good this young is not a magic trick from Jos Verstappen and Sophie Kumpen. It took a lot of hard work and determination. Not just from the parents, but from little Max also.
Max started it all so young. He competed in a Karting competition when he was only four years old. While other kids were busy playing dirt, Max was riding on it.
Max first competed in the Mini Junior championship of his home province of Limburg, Belgium. He might not win, but he definitely has got the better of his skills.
From time to time, little Max visited his father at work. And that is the Formula 1 race track. Now, he is following his footsteps and making him proud.
3. He won his first racing championship when he was 9
Even since his younger age, Max has already had a taste of victory. The first championship he won was the Minimax Championship in Belgium.
It was in 2006, the same year he graduated to the Rotax Max Minimax class. Then again in 2007, he won the same championship in Netherlands.
On the picture you see Max was competing in CRG kart. His father entered him to the competition. He won the Belgian cadet championship.
Even until today, Jos Verstappen is still beside Max. He is guiding his son to be the best. We could only imagine his feeling when he saw his son on top of the podium last week.
2. He has Belgium passport but he competes under the Dutch flag
Max Verstappen grew up in Belgium. He mostly competed in Belgium championship since his younger age. That is because he was born in Belgium. And his mother is a Belgian.
So, officially Max is a Belgian. He has Belgian passport, not Dutch passport. But he is competing in Formula 1 under the Dutch flag, just like his father.
Upon his parents’ divorce, Max spends more time with his father. And he is surrounded by Dutchmen most of the time. As Max pointed out, “I have lived in Belgium my entire life, but I consider myself more Dutch.”
He could not opt out as a Dutch because he was still a minor. But now that he is 18 years old, perhaps he is thinking to also swap his nationality officially.
1. He drives a Formula 1 car even before he got his driving license
Max was only 17 years old when he was a test driver for Toro Rosso. Being a test driver means you get to drive the car for research and development, just not during the official race.
Get this, by that time, Max hadn’t had his road driving license. It means he drove a formula car for work, but he was not allowed to drive a regular car on the street by law.
Funny? Ridiculous! Do you know how fast a formula car can go? Those cars on the street have nothing against it.
Max Verstappen has a long career ahead of him. This teenager is now having a luxurious life that most adult could only dream of. Plus, he has got an awesome job: being paid for speeding on a paid vacation!
