Max Verstappen, pictured in a white helmet, went from last to first in a Christmas karting race in Brazil.
As part of his festive off-season, Max Verstappen headed to a local go-karting track with his ‘in-laws’ to show them a thing or two…
Enjoying his off-season entirely away from F1 duties or outings on behalf of Red Bull, Verstappen spent his Christmas in Brazil with his girlfriend Kelly Piquet and her family – including fellow three-time F1 World Champion Nelson Piquet, Kelly’s father.
On Christmas Eve, Verstappen headed to Brasilia Kart with the Piquet family, with an impressive roster of drivers including his World Champion ‘father-in-law’, Formula E Champion Nelson Piquet Jnr., and NASCAR Xfinity Champion Daniel Suarez (who is the fiancé of Julia Piquet).
Max Verstappen starts the karting race from last
Verstappen, racing in a blank white helmet, started the race from last and, despite almost colliding with someone recording the race start at the side of the grid, had stormed into the lead by the end of the first lap.
Unsurprisingly, the reigning World Champion came home the winner, although the fastest lap was set by second-place finisher Rodrigo Piquet.
Third place went to Piquet Jnr., with his father coming home in fourth place. Julia Piquet was fifth, while Suarez endured a nightmare outing with a broken kart that resulted in him retiring halfway through the race.
📽️| Max corriendo en karting en Brasilia.pic.twitter.com/avguyIGQFW
— Verstappen LATAM (@verstappenlatam) December 24, 2023
According to Brazilian publication Globo, Verstappen and the Piquets arrived at the karting facility in Piquet’s personalised 1960s Volkswagen Kombi, boasting 470bhp. Verstappen posed for pictures with starstruck fans also in attendance at the karting track, who were no doubt in shock at seeing the reigning F1 World Champion show up out of the blue.
Brasilia Kart has fully leaned into the visit from Verstappen, setting up a new challenge for visitors to beat Verstappen’s 1:05.946 (even though this wasn’t the fastest lap of the race!).
