Max Verstappen is the son of former F1 driver Jos Verstappen and that has been one of the main reasons he got into racing. Being the son of a driver in the top tier motorsport can lead to parents influencing their children and once Jos saw that Max Verstappen had a passion for racing, he pushed him to pursue it.

Currently, Max Verstappen does not have any children of his own. Penelope, the daughter of his girlfriend, looks up to him as a father figure, but he is still to plan children for himself. Following the Chinese Grand Prix, during an interview with the Red Bull driver, the 3-time world champion was asked if he would put his child into racing. And his answer had everyone shocked.

Max Verstappen’s take on his child

In the interview, Max Verstappen was asked if he would ask his child to pursue a career in motorsports. In response to this, the 3-time world champion said, “No, I’d advise them not to be a driver. Of course, if he or she wants to race, and I see the potential, I would go for it, like my dad did. But I would never actively push [them].”

Displaying maturity, Verstappen stated, “You shouldn’t push your kids into something you like, they need to come to you.” Explaining how children fight against being forced to do things he said, “If you push your child into something, eventually they might not like it as much and maybe doesn’t become determined enough to make it, and all the effort is for nothing.”

With this, he is ready to embrace any profession his future child might decide to take on as long as they enjoy what they are doing. Max Verstappen is an overachiever and putting that kind of pressure on a child might have a negative impact on their growth. Although there is no news of him planning a child soon, there is a lot that Max Verstappen wants to achieve.

Currently, he is already taking care of Penelope and is learning the ropes of parenting through that, but that being said, having his own child will be an experience of its own. Although Penelope is not Verstappen’s daughter, she is extremely close to him and cares about him deeply. This was observed after the Australian Grand Prix.

Max Verstappen’s DNF got Penelope Kvyatt worried

During the Australian Grand Prix, Max Verstappen couldn’t finish his race due to his rear right brake catching fire. The brake caliper overheated and caught fire leading to him retiring. When Penelope asked him what happened during the race, he simply told her, “Well the car was on fire!”

At the time, Max Verstappen did not realize the impact those words might have on Penelope. Later on, he understood that those words must have scared the child and gotten her worried about the Dutchman. That being said, he made it a mission to complete a race when Penelope is at the paddocks so she does not feel like she is a bad luck charm for Max Verstappen.

With that said, do you think Max Verstappen will be a great father? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.