Not that anyone could doubt it, but Max Verstappen did what was expected: he won the challenge where he faced 100 kart drivers in Silverstone. This Wednesday (16), at the Max vs 100 event, the four-time Formula 1 champion left all his opponents behind to claim victory.
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The challenge was simple: the Red Bull driver would start from 101st position on the track set up exclusively for the race. For 30 laps, he had to try to overtake all opponents on the track – among athletes, content creators, and celebrities. For them, a qualifying session was held to determine the grid positions.
It so happened that ‘Mad Max’ sprang into action as soon as the start was authorized in England. The four-time F1 champion soon weaved through the pack – and as a good kart driver, used body weight to try to gain some speed – and already on the first lap he had climbed to 36th place.
But a yellow flag was necessary at the start of the race, requiring the entire track to remain in that condition for three laps. When the green flag waved again, Verstappen once again began his overtaking show and had already left more than ten drivers behind, being 26th.
With five laps completed in the Max vs 100 challenge, the Dutchman was already inside the top 15, occupying 13th place, and two laps later, he was knocking on the door of the top five, occupying sixth place in the race.
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After 12 laps and about 30 minutes later, Verstappen was in fourth place and now, with only three drivers ahead of him, overtakes took a little longer to happen. With about 41 minutes until the scheduled end, he was 2 seconds away from catching the top-3 pack.
At once, the Red Bull driver made a double overtake, took the runner-up position and then left the leader behind to take first place and thus secure the victory and overtake 100 kart drivers ahead of him.
Verstappen started in 101st and took 35 minutes and 14 laps to achieve the win. As always, after taking the lead, he said it was ‘simply lovely,’ his trademark in Formula 1.
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