“She was Top 10 in the World”: Christian Horner Once Recalled Competing Against Max Verstappen’s Mom Sophie Kumpen

Long before Max Verstappen was born, his mother, Sophie Kumpen, was making her name in junior racing. In 1989, she even came head-to-head against the Red Bull boss Christian Horner.

Back then, Horner was also plying his trade in professional racing before he realized he was not good enough to make it. That year, both Kumpen and Horner were in the Junior Kart world championship.

And the future Red Bull boss was amazed by the skillset of Verstappen‘s mother. He even claimed that she was among the top drivers in the world back then.

Christian Horner was full of praises for Sophie Kumpen

That year’s tournament was as stiff as it could be. Horner revealed the grid was shared between some of the drivers who actually made it to F1. And Kumpen was at par with them.

“I raced against Max’s mum in 1989 in the junior kart world championship. In that race, there were some super-talented drivers: Jan Magnussen, Jarno Trulli, Giancarlo Fisichella, Dario Franchitti. She was top 10 in the world, for sure,” said Horner, as per Business F1.

But unfortunately, Kumpen left her racing career and married Jos Verstappen. She left racing before she could achieve something substantial in motorsports. But now her son, as per her own words, has the perfect genes to be a top F1 driver, as both of the Red Bull star’s parents were top racers in their heydays.

The life of Max Verstappen is now in the public

With 37 wins and two titles in his bag already, Verstappen is on the route to cementing his name among the greatest drivers ever. Thus, there is no surprise that with every performance, he is earning more admirers into his fold.

Verstappen, who is known to be very blunt and ruthless on the track, attempts to showcase his other side. Viaplay released a docuseries called ‘Anatomy of a Champion’, dedicated to the life of the 25-year-old F1 star.

In the series, Verstappen and his family give a deep insight into their lives. The show also tries to give the Red Bull star’s inspiring journey to win two world titles in a row.