A champion and a kid. Nine championships and counting. Michael Schumacher and Max Verstappen captured in one frame. The year is 1994, and Jos Verstappen just took his young boy, Mad Max, as we all know to the tracks where Michael Schumacher is seen holding and playing with the young boy.
This relationship and photo resurfaced thanks to the Netflix show “Drive To Survive“. The show discusses Schumi’s relationship with the Verstappens and how Max had racing in his blood. The show opened the doors to the world of Formula One, and many fans have been in love with it since.
Relation between Jos and F1 GOAT
Racing families often keep in touch and go on holiday together. The Verstappens and the Schumachers were no different from this. As Max Verstappen told the media,
“We used to go on holidays when we were little together, the two families, and these kinds of memories will stay with me, for both of us to be in F1 is amazing, and also for Michael Schumacher, he’s a very proud dad for sure.”
“I remember a few holidays. I was quite small; I didn’t know he [Michael Schumacher] was a seven-time world champion. He was more like Uncle Michael walking around,” he added.
When asked about the media pressure and publicity, He responded, “He was very nice, easygoing. Simple. People think everything is always magic, and there is a lot of glitter and glamour around, but it’s just family people together.”
Michael Schumacher was always known as the star, so we often overlook his teammates, one being Jos Verstappen. Jos and Michael Schumacher had a healthy working relationship and naturally spent a lot of time together. So did their families. Hence the seven-time world champion did leave quite an impression on our Mad Max.
“I chatted with Corinna after his first year in Formula 4, and she asked me which way he should go,” Jos Verstappen told the media when asked about his relationship with the Schumachers. “I told Corinna to switch to the Italian Prema Powerteam because they were the best in Formula 4 and Formula 3 then. And that’s what they did.”
Max Verstappen’s early circuit awareness
The current generation of Formula One drivers started karting between three and sixteen. The four most successful Formula One drivers, including Louis Hamilton, Sebastian Vettel, Fernando Alonso, and Max Verstappen, started racing Go-Karts before six.
In the year 2010, Max Verstappen debuted in the “Junior” KF3 class. He won the WSK World Series, Euro Series, and the Nations Cup in the first year. He came in second at the CIK-FIA World Cup (extensively recouping in the following years), but importantly, he bamboozled spectators and specialists with his crystal-clear driving skills and talent.
His parents thought the age of four was too young for go-karting, but Max Verstappen squashed that fear with raw talent, ensuring his parents that he was racing in his blood. Hence they started taking him to go-karting tournaments all around Europe.
i live for michael schumacher and baby max verstappen pic.twitter.com/BbgqC4xjFL
— ann (@rdbullmax) July 10, 2021
It is well known that everyone gets their inspiration from their parents, and one might think Verstappen senior is Max Verstappen’s only inspiration, but you would be keen to know that his mother, Sophie Kumpen, was also pretty nifty in the cockpit. During her racing days, she beat Christian Horner, who has gone on to become Red Bull team principal – and her son’s boss.
