(Motorsport-Total.com) – Max Verstappen stormed from the last place in a field of 101 karts to victory in a turbulent race at Silverstone – and that in impressively short time: The four-time world champion needed only 14 laps or 37 minutes to overtake 100 karts driven by content creators, athletes, and ordinary motorsport fans as part of the “Max vs 100” challenge organized by Red Bull.
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Verstappen only realized how difficult the task really would be just before the start: “When I went to the starting grid and saw where I had to start, I thought: ‘Uff, that’s pretty far back.’ But after my first lap, I thought: ‘I think this is going to work. I think we’re doing well.'” Ultimately, he mastered the challenge confidently.
Race director David Terrien praised Verstappen for his performance: “Working through the traffic of such a large field – no one has done that before. There has never been a kart race with so many karts.”
“If you watch the replay, you can see that he always chose the right spots. As soon as a gap appeared, he dove in. If there was an accident on one side of the track, he was on the right side.”
For Terrien, this driving style was proof of Verstappen’s racing intelligence: “Even though it was just a fun race, he showed his skills in all areas.”
Terrien said he was particularly impressed by the start phase. “Max sees something we don’t see. He recognizes a gap that will open up, even though it isn’t there at that moment. That’s something he has and most other drivers don’t.”
How the special kart race with Max Verstappen went
The event took place on a specially designed track in Silverstone. This connected the local kart track with parts of the Grand Prix circuit, including “Brooklands.” One lap took about two minutes with the kart.
Verstappen’s task was to overtake all 100 competitors from the last starting position within 30 laps. Once an opponent was overtaken, they were eliminated from the competition.
All participants received identical karts. However, Verstappen’s opponents had an additional advantage: In the first half of the race, they were allowed to use a “Fast Lap,” where they could increase their lead via a shortcut.
Verstappen snatches 64 opponents – in the first lap!
But it quickly became clear that Verstappen would have little difficulty mastering the task. He overtook 64 karts in the first lap alone. He skillfully weaved through the chaos in the field.
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The Dutchman even resorted to cutting corners for some overtaking maneuvers. This gave the competition a ruthless character, as there were very few rules about how the drivers could compete against each other.
But even with all allowed means, the participants could hardly have stopped Verstappen: Against the Formula 1 driver, who steadily closed in during the first laps, they had little to oppose.
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By the fourth lap, Verstappen had overtaken 75 drivers; one lap later, it was already 84. This at least in principle reminded of his comeback at the 2024 Brazilian Grand Prix – only this time his opponents were not professionals.
Verstappen seemed to be having a lot of fun at this point. Once he even flew over an inner curb, leaving some debris on the track. He was not stopped by that.
“I’ll get you,” Verstappen said once to a competitor. He could communicate with the other participants via radio.
Even the last opponents have no chance against Verstappen
Verstappen kept going and had already worked his way into the top four by lap seven. From that point on, the chaos decreased as the Dutchman set out to catch the last remaining opponents.
They even received an additional “Fast Lap” to keep the competition open longer. But Verstappen still caught up with the three leaders: content creator Zac Alsop, journalist Jacky Martens, and Red Bull employee Lewis Osler.
Verstappen overtook the last three competitors within two immediately consecutive maneuvers: He took Alsop and Osler simultaneously with a move on the inside of the penultimate corner. Then he overtook in the last corner, completing his comeback.
“It was great to just sit in a kart again and get back to basics. It reminded me of how we used to race,” said Verstappen. “I had a great day, and it was nice to come out as the winner in the end.”
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