Every driver has their own way of preparing for a Grand Prix weekend. For some, it might be as simple as relaxing with music, while others may opt for more drastic measures, such as isolating themselves to clear their minds. For four-time World Champion Max Verstappen, however, it means staying immersed in racing right up until the last moment.
Calling Verstappen a sim-racing fan would be an understatement of his passion for the field. He is an avid sim racer, and although he doesn’t participate in the hours leading up to a race, Verstappen has revealed that he watches one if it’s happening.
“I think I’m quite relaxed actually with those kind of things. Most of the time, if there is a sim race on, I’m still watching the sim race until the last moment, before I jump in the car,” he answered during a Team Redline stream on Twitch.
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That’s not to say Verstappen slacks off on his race preparations. He has never compromised on any aspect and has always remained fully involved with his teams and engineers to understand the setup and strategy before stepping into the cockpit.
After an irritated Verstappen lashed out at his team during a frustrating 2024 Hungarian GP outing, some critics attributed it to his staying up before races and participating in sim-races. There were even rumors that Red Bull would ban him from any future activities. Verstappen, however, dismissed those rumors and insisted that no one would be able to stop him from doing what he felt like.
Currently in the off-season, Verstappen is relaxing by participating in sim races, even while traveling. He also streams regularly, which explains his appearance for Team Redline, his virtual racing team, for whom he has competed in several prestigious tournaments to date.
During the same stream, Team Redline also asked him how many race suits he uses in a season.
Verstappen has unlimited supply of race suits
The Red Bull driver revealed that there isn’t any limit or cap on the number of race suits F1 drivers get. It completely depends on the weather conditions and how much one sweats during a race weekend. That said, Verstappen revealed that he takes a new race suit kit after every three or four races.
However, it’s essentially “unlimited” if the 27-year-old wishes to replace his race suit more frequently. Verstappen also mentioned that he likes to keep his race suit when he wins a Grand Prix. But that would become impractical for a driver who has won 43 races over the past three seasons — a luxury problem to have.
F1 drivers often donate their race suits for charity or auction them off for a good cause. Any kit or racing gear used by a driver can fetch a significant amount of money at auctions, as collectors highly value them as F1 memorabilia. If Verstappen were to put his race suits under the hammer, they would surely fetch a substantial amount.
