Max Verstappen has become a father – but his daughter Lily won’t be visiting the paddock for the time being: Why he thinks the Formula 1 environment is unsuitable
Max Verstappen is looking forward to spending some more time with his family during the summer break, which grew even larger on May 1. His partner Kelly Piquet and stepdaughter Penelope were joined by daughter Lily, Verstappen’s first child.
However, the 27-year-old does not want to spend more time with his daughter at the race track. He still has time before he shows up at the track with Lily: “I don’t know,” he says when asked when he will take his daughter to work with him. “I’m not really in a hurry about it.”
Verstappen knows that the Formula 1 paddock can be very overwhelming for a small child – especially when their father is one of the most sought-after people around. “I want her to have a little peace and quiet. So I don’t necessarily want her to be here.”
The four-time world champion isn’t the only driver who brings his kids to the race track. In the recent past, the daughters of Nico Hülkenberg and Kevin Magnussen, among others, have been seen in the garage.
If you want to take it even further, you could also say that Lewis Hamilton always brings his dog Roscoe with him – not a child in the traditional sense, but a kind of family for the Ferrari driver.
However, there are not many fathers in Formula 1 these days. Apart from Verstappen, Nico Hülkenberg is currently the only driver’s father in the field. Last year, Kevin Magnussen and Sergio Perez would also have been included in the list, but the two are no longer part of the elite circle of Formula 1 drivers.
Verstappen is now also the only driver in the field whose father was himself a Formula 1 driver. There have been more of these in recent years, if you think of Nico Rosberg (Keke Rosberg), Mick Schumacher (Michael Schumacher) and Kevin Magnussen (Jan Magnussen).
However, the fathers of other drivers do have motorsport experience, including world rally champion Carlos Sainz Sr. and Herve Leclerc, father of Ferrari driver Charles, who made it to Formula 3 during his active career.
