Max Verstappen has announced that he will not miss any races to be present at the birth of his first child. In December, the reigning world champion revealed that his girlfriend, model Kelly Piquet, is expecting. The baby is due to be born during the Formula 1 season. With twenty-four Grands Prix per year, there is a chance that father Max will be abroad during the birth.
“I could, of course, skip a race, but I won’t,” Max Verstappen declared on Tuesday ahead of the F1 75 event in London. “That’s not part of being a driver. So, it could be that I’m not there. But we’ll see when the birth gets closer.” The 27-year-old Dutchman further explained that the pregnancy is progressing without any issues. Despite Verstappen becoming a father for the first time, he is relaxed about it. “I’m pretty relaxed about it,” he assured. “Everything will be fine.”
Verstappen previously explained that he has already had practice as a ‘bonus dad’. Together with Piquet, he takes care of Penelope, her daughter from a previous relationship with former Formula 1 driver Daniil Kvyat. The blended family lives in Monaco. In addition, his sister Victoria Verstappen has children, and father Jos Verstappen had a son in 2019. “So it does help that I’ve had a bit of experience with this,” concluded the Red Bull driver. “But it’s still, of course, exciting.“
