Max Verstappen gets charged up for the new season

Gareth Herincx

4 days ago
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Max Verstappen with the Honda e:Ny1

Three-time Formula 1 World Champion Max Verstappen has surprised young go-kart racers near Oracle Red Bull Racing’s Milton Keynes HQ.

The 26-year-old got behind the wheel of the all-electric Honda e:Ny1 ahead of 2024 FIA Formula 1 season, which marks 20 years of Red Bull Racing, and 60 years since Honda’s first participation in F1.

Silently whisking him from the Red Bull Technologies Campus to a local indoor go-kart circuit, Verstappen watched the young racers on track, before taking the time to offer his advice and share memories from the early days of his own motorsport career.

“To be here at the kart track to see the younger kids race, and trying to get into the racing world, is really great to see,” said Verstappen. “It was great to see their smiles and it’s always great to interact with race fans.”

Max Verstappen with young racers

“It was so surprising, and just such a good experience,” added Emeli Jordan. “I kind of thought it would be someone from Red Bull, not necessarily a driver, like an engineer or someone, but not Max Verstappen. I was completely speechless; I had no idea what to say!”

Sid Smith added: “It was such a surprise to come round the corner and see Max Verstappen. It’s always been a dream to meet him. It was absolutely awesome. And I got a signed hat as well, so it was definitely a day to remember.”

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Road trips: everything you need to know

The typical road trip lasts just under four hours, covers 150 miles and includes 41 songs to sing-along to, according to a new study by Esso.

More than a third of the of 2,000 adults questioned believe one of the most important aspects of a road trip is who they’re travelling with, while three passengers and the driver was found to be the preferred number.

It also emerged the average year sees Brits go on eight road trips – with 61 per cent currently having one lined up.

Of those, 43 per cent plan to travel with their partner, 20 per cent with their children and 10 per cent with their parents.

Other important aspects for a road trip were good weather (36 per cent), the scenery (31 per cent) and the final destination (31 per cent).

Abba’s ‘Dancing Queen’, Bon Jovi’s ‘Livin’ on a Prayer’ and Pharrell William’s ‘Happy’ were revealed as the go-to songs to singalong to in the car that transcend the generation gap, while The Killers ‘Mr Brightside’ is a firm favourite among millennials.

Esso, which is the technical partner of the Red Bull Racing Honda Formula 1 team, asked drivers Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez, about their road trip memories as children.

“The long rides I remember, were back in the day with my dad,” said Max. “So, we’d be listening to like, 70s, 80s, 90s – it would go from like Elvis Presley, to Michael Jackson, to Barry White, you know all this kind of stuff.”

The research also revealed that one in six Brits also believe regular scheduled stops are vital, with the typical ‘pit stop’ lasting 17 minutes, which usually involves stopping off at a service station (40 per cent), visiting a viewpoint (33 per cent) and enjoying a picnic (25 per cent).

Favourite in-car games were ‘I Spy’ (20 per cent), spotting unusual number plates (10 per cent) and ’20 questions’ (10 per cent). Other popular games are ‘Guess the tune’, ‘Spot the Animal’ and ‘Yellow Car’.