Max Verstappen is a three-time world champion today, but his journey to the top was complicated, largely because of his father Jos Verstappen. While the 52-year-old helped him attain these heights in F1, he has also been accused of treating Verstappen rather harshly as a child, something Pierre Gasly witnessed firsthand.
In a Verstappen documentary titled Né pour gagner, Gasly recalled a race in which he and the current Red Bull driver took part when they were just 12 years old. It was in Spain, and Gasly had won, with Verstappen finishing second.
“His dad lost his sh*t and started screaming in Dutch, insult him in English,” Gasly revealed. “Then threw Max’s helmet back at him telling him to f*ck off and leave. That he wasn’t even able to win a race.”
This is from Max docu “né pour gagner” on Canal+ (2022). Pierre is talking about their karting days and how sometimes it was shocking for 12yo kids the way j*s was treating max 1/ https://t.co/HbNlZ9aM80
— Cassie (@maxie1kc) September 28, 2024
Gasly also added that for the other young karting drivers on the circuit, it was shocking to see Jos treat his son like he did.
In hindsight, it seemed as though it was all worth it, but most of the F1 community deemed Verstappen Sr. the villain in Max’s childhood. For the three-time champion, however, Jos was the reason he made it big in F1.
Verstappen had no issues with his father’s behavior
Jos Verstappen was an F1 driver himself, but his success in the sport was limited to just two podium finishes. However, he made sure that his son would reach the absolute pinnacle.
Many saw the way Jos treated Max as wrong, but the latter felt that without his dad being tough on him, there was no way he would have won three world championships — potentially a fourth come the end of the 2024 season. Jos has also always denied accusations that he ‘abused’ his son as a child.
At the same time, Verstappen admitted that if he ever had children of his own, he would never push them to become an F1 driver. He wants his kids to choose whatever they want to be.
“I would never actively push,” he said. “You shouldn’t push your kids into something you like. They might not like it and all the effort is for nothing.”
