On 11th November 2020, the then-single Kelly Piquet uploaded a stunning picture of herself standing in front of a sea of water. While that was enough to turn heads already, a comment from Max Verstappen changed the course of history. The usually shy Verstappen wrote, “Together we can face challenges as deep as the sea and as high as the sky.” This set in motion the speculations that were confirmed by the duo on the incoming New Year a few weeks later.

That beautiful woman now is the unofficial first lady of Formula 1. To the media’s delight, we often see the fashionista around the paddock walking in to support her double-champion boyfriend. The daughter of the triple-world champion, Nelson Piquet, continues to carry the baton of the famous name. The Piquet, who has always piqued the interests of the F1 world, was a famous individual coming from an even more famous lineage. Apart from being a model, Kelly has worked as a motorsport blogger and a columnist. She managed the social media and the blog writing department of Formula E’s official website.

How did Kelly meet Max Verstappen?

It was a meet-cute that materialized four years later. The Brazilian model told Vogue Magazine that her partner, Verstappen, knew her brother. One day, the group of friends, including her brother, Verstappen, and Kelly, went out for dinner. As the 33-year-old has stated, that was the first time the then-19-year-old Verstappen caught her eye. She went on to describe that rendezvous as magical. But it was only much later that the duo started dating.

Kelly Piquet’s family: A name steeped in racing history

Kelly Piquet has one of the richest environments of motorsport, from dating a double world champion to having a daughter with another F1 driver. The lady is the daughter of Nelson Piquet, who is a Brazilian racing driver with triple world championship crowns to his name. To add to that, she is the sister of Nelson Piquet Jr, who is most famously known for the 2008 crash gate scandal.

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At the Singapore Grand Prix, Piquet Jr. crashed into the wall at the 17th turn on the 14th lap of the race. The location of the accident meant the safety car had to be deployed while the debris was cleared, and Piquet’s teammate Fernando Alonso went on to win. Piquet described his crash as a simple mistake only to later admit that those were the team orders. He later went on to win Formula E. There is another Piquet in the family who races, Pedro Piquet. He is known for his successes in single-seater junior categories, winning F3 championships in 2014 and 2015.

Max Verstappen’s girlfriend is the daughter of Nelson Piquet

The Hall of Fame inductee of Formula 1, Nelson Piquet, is described rather peculiarly. A man who was not a dominant figure, yet a triple world champion. A man full of contradictions who won by stealth.

The official page of F1 describes him as, “He was never a dominant driver but a crafty expert in winning by stealth, according to his detractors. He admitted he was lazy, yet willingly worked hard to improve his car. He could be cold and cruel, but could also be warm and funny. He hated being a celebrity, yet lived the life of a playboy to the hilt. He was never hugely popular, but couldn’t care less. All Nelson Piquet really cared about was driving a racing car, which he loved with a passion, especially when he won, which he did often enough to become a triple World Champion.”

What has Max Verstappen said about Nelson Piquet’s racism storm?

Being someone who did not hold back his words in the day hasn’t changed much now. Around mid-season, in 2022, Nelson’s racist remarks against Lewis Hamilton surfaced, causing a tremendous uproar worldwide.

But the twist to the tale is that Lewis Hamilton, who was also granted honorary citizenship by the Brazilian government, is now the most loved and revered driver of the country after Ayrton Senna. Not just people outside the nation, but thousands from his own motherland called out Piquet. The list of people who weren’t pleased with the insulting racism included some with ministerial designations.

Max and Kelly immediately came in defense of the latter’s father, clearing that the intentions weren’t what was being portrayed by the media, but the damage was done. It couldn’t be undone even with Nelson Piquet issuing a formal public apology to the 7x champion.

Kelly Piquet’s ex is a former F1 driver

While many have only come to know Kelly Piquet as the girlfriend of reigning double-world champion Max Verstappen, the Brazilian model was not an unknown entity in the F1 world. Before Piquet began dating Verstappen, she used to date another from the Red Bull clan. Apart from being a daughter of a three-time world champion and sister to racing drivers, she has a child with an ex-F1 driver, Daniil Kvyat.

Ironically, the ousting of Kvyat from Red Bull was done because of Max Verstappen. Kvyat also has a love child with Kelly. The two started dating at the beginning of 2017 and subsequently, Kelly gave birth to their daughter, Penelope, in 2019.

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However, later that year, the duo parted ways but continued to co-parent together. Penelope is a fan favorite already. The cute daughter of Kelly Piquet even has a special connection with her almost stepdad, Verstappen. In 2019, Kvyat returned to F1 with Toro Rosso, and the highlight was when he got a shock podium, which he dedicated to the birth of his daughter.