At the top of the Formula 1 world, there is nothing Max Verstappen has not achieved in this sport. The Dutchman is already part of F1 royalty, with his third back-to-back championship, a mere formality. To think the Red Bull man has achieved so much at such a young age baffles everyone. In fact, Max Verstappen celebrated his 26th birthday on 30t September. Let that sink in! The 26-year-old took his closest family members and friends for a special outing on a yacht to celebrate his birthday. However, we could not help but notice the absence of one notable name on the guest list.

The entire world is aware of the difficult and unconventional relationship Max Verstappen has had with his father, Jos. The Red Bull man’s father has even admitted to putting him in highly stressful situations during his upbringing. Jos Verstappen raised his son with the old, perhaps obsolete, diamonds are made in the rough mentality. However, with Max’s 26th birthday guest list as proof, this approach from the former F1 driver might’ve driven a wedge between the two.

As seen on an F1 gossip column Instagram page, we see a photo of all the party guests. We clearly see the leading ladies in Verstappen’s life with his mother and sister in the frame and Kelly Piquet right next to the Dutchman. However, there is no sign of Jos in anywhere.

We are not sure if there was a commitment that Jos could not avoid or if he has started to keep his distance and lead his own life.

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We make that assessment based on the events of the Japanese GP, which are an extension of Jos Verstappen’s absence in general compared to just a couple of seasons ago.

Jos Verstappen remains absent as Max secures the constructor’s title for Red Bull in Japan

The Dutchman was incredible during the entire Japanese GP weekend. The resistance of Max clinched the championship for his team and partners on a historic day for Honda.

However, the statistical probability of this scenario was high and most, if not everyone, were aware the constructor’s championship would be wrapped up in Japan. Despite this, Jos Verstappen was nowhere to be seen the entire race weekend.

However, we can excuse the absence as Jos Verstappen was taking care of his own duties as a rally driver. During the Japanese GP weekend, Jos Verstappen was racing on his turf and competing in the East Belgian Rally. In fact, the Jos made it a historic day for the Verstappen’s by winning the race as well. It was a double Verstappen win for the weekend.

So we can definitely excuse Jos for his absence.

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However, we still can’t ignore Jos Verstappen’s general absence from Max’s life after the 2021 season. Has the first championship win made Jos have complete faith in his son?