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Max Verstappen of the Netherlands in the RB 8 and Franz Zorn of Austria on an ice racing bike perform during the GP Ice Race in Zell am See, Austria on January 24, 2022. // Predrag Vuckovic / Red Bull Content Pool
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Max Verstappen of the Netherlands in the RB 8 and Franz Zorn of Austria on an ice racing bike perform during the GP Ice Race in Zell am See, Austria on January 24, 2022. // Predrag Vuckovic / Red Bull Content Pool
Red Bull Racing are back with more exciting content, this time from their home country, Austria. Max Verstappen took his F1 challenger on a drive around the GP Ice Race Circuit. Of course, slick and wet tires would have hardly been of any use on such a slippery surface.
Hence, Pirelli joined the party by offering Red Bull a specially designed set of spiked tires with which the 2021 world champion put on a show for the viewers and the fans. What’s more interesting is that, for the very first time in his entire Formula One career, Verstappen sported the #1 on his helmet.
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If you’re wondering what happened to #33, Verstappen chose to utilize the privilege that he earned after beating Lewis Hamilton to the title last year.
Hence, the Red Bull driver will revert to #33 by 2023 unless or until he ends up winning the title this season too, and prefers sticking with #1.
Watch Story: When F1 Drivers Had a Blast on Top Gear Featuring Hamilton, Vettel & Ricciardo
What did Max Verstappen say?
As reported by GrandPrix247, Verstappen opened up about the exhilarating experience of driving an F1 car on ice. “This was my first time on ice with a Formula 1 car and I’ve been really looking forward to it. It was very interesting, and it’s quite slippery, so you have to be careful,” he said.
“Everything is very cold, including the brakes, and racing cars are obviously not designed to drive on the ice, which makes it even more difficult, but it was a lot of fun.”
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Max Verstappen of the Netherlands an Franz Zorn of Austria seen during the GP Ice Race in Zell am See, Austria on January 24, 2022. // Predrag Vuckovic / Red Bull Content Pool
The Dutchman further talked about using #1 for the 2022 season. “How many times do you get the opportunity to swap numbers? And number one is the best number out there, so for me, it was very straightforward to pick it. Hopefully, number 33 doesn’t come back next year,” he added.
Overall, fun time is almost over as Verstappen will soon begin to stare at what could be another season of thrills and spills. So, amidst the ever-growing hype around the regulation changes, can Verstappen retain his #1 by the end of the 2022 season?
Read More: Who Owns the Red Bull F1 Team?
