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The arrival of Verstappen’s baby girl did not stop him from securing pole in Miami.
Days after welcoming his baby daughter Lily into the world, Max Verstappen flew into Miami with fire in his veins.
The 27-year-old Red Bull driver silenced any whispers that fatherhood might slow him down by securing P1 for Sunday’s Grand Prix, beating McLaren’s Lando Norris by just 0.065 seconds.
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“Clearly, it didn’t make me slower as well being a dad, so that’s a positive,” Verstappen said directly in a post-match interview after qualifying.
“We can throw that out of the window as well for people mentioning it.”
There’s a long-standing belief in motorsport circles that drivers lose a competitive edge once they become parents.
However, Max isn’t having it.
“Yeah, I don’t really listen to these kind of silly things, you know, just do my thing.”
Verstappen opens up on life as a dad
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Verstappen may have skipped Thursday’s media duties to stay an extra day in Monaco with partner Kelly Piquet and their newborn, but the four-time world champ clearly brought the speed with him.
Despite a penalty in Saturday’s sprint race that dropped him from fourth to 17th, the Dutch star showed up when it mattered most.
His new life as a father hasn’t distanced him from racing or from his family.
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“I anyway, am in contact a lot with my girlfriend anyway, throughout the day,” he explained.
“So, you know, getting pictures and FaceTime a bit here and there. It’s always there, but now one more member in the family.”
Verstappen’s rival Lando Norris even joked post-qualifying that he hoped the new baby would slow Max down.
It didn’t. And with Andrea Kimi Antonelli a mere 0.002 seconds behind Norris in third, the pressure up front is white-hot.
Verstappen will begin in pole at the main race of the Miami Grand Prix later today, with the Red Bull driver aiming to close the gap on championship leaders McLaren.
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