Ovom pobedom, Maks Verštapen je stigao do prve titule, ali ujedno sprečio Luisa Hamiltona da dođe do osme, čime bi oborio rekord koji još uvek drži Mihael Šumaher
Max Verstappen claimed his first title with this victory, while at the same time preventing Lewis Hamilton from achieving his eighth, which would break the record that’s still held by Michael Schumacher
MaxVerstappenhadfive and a half kilometres ahead of him in which to secure the title of Formula 1 champion in one of the most controversial races ever. And he succeeded! That final lap in Abu Dhabi could be taught in schools as an example of how not to give up. It’s not over until the referee blows the final whistle! During the last race of the sea- son, on the Abu Dhabi circuit, four laps before the end of the race, reign- ing champion Lewis Hamilton held a seemingly insurmountable lead total- ling over ten seconds. Then Nicholas Latifi caused an incident that result- ed in the safety vehicle appearing on the track. This led to the race entering an uncertain finale, in the style of the entire season, and the Red Bull driv- er succeeded in handling the situa- tion better and overtaking the Brit- ish champion. This young lion from the Netherlands invaded and con- quered territory that had been ruled for years by King Hamilton. The sev- en-time champion eased up on his accelerator for just a moment and, at a speed of 300 kilometres per hour, was only able to see the back end of Verstappen’s car crossing the finish line ahead of him. “At that moment I thought about all the sacrifices, all the hard work of the whole team. I’m grateful to my rival for this breath-taking season. I mean, all of this is probably hurting him, but he still has his seven titles. And I’ve never won,” said Verstap- pen, revealing what he was think- ing about as he began the final lap. Unlike the Brit, about whom practically everything is known,
The new champion is Max Verstappen Pedal to the metal and a finale for the annals He made his debut at 17, before he could even formally take his driving test, so he was brought to races by his parents or other relatives. In December, seven years after that debut, he officially became the world’s fastest driver
24-year-old Max is a mystery to the media. His father, Jos, was also a For- mula 1 driver, while his mother, So- phie Kumpen, competed in karting. It thus comes as no surprise that, even before he could walk, he was destined to one day become the fastest man on the planet. He drove everything that had at least one wheel, and his con- temporaries who competed against him say that he was aggressive and slightly crazy on the track. He never backed down and never allowed an- yone to overtake him. That’s why he often ended races in the crash barri- ers, without wheels and with a bro- ken spoiler ... Born in Belgium, he decided not to stay with his mother after his parents divorced, choosing in- stead to move in with his Dutch fa- ther, Jos. He made his debut at 17, before he could even formally take his driving test, so he was brought to races by his parents or other rel- atives. His love of driving and com- petitions caused Max to missed a lot of school, but he had the full sup- port of his father. He found true love in the form of a Brazilian lady nine years his sen- ior: Kelly Piquet, daughter of three- time F1 champion Nelson Piquet. Kelly was previously in a relation- ship with Verstappen’s Russian col- league, Daniil Kvyat, with whom she has a daughter, and Max says that accepted the role of stepfather with pleasure. He is only 24 and is already the fastest in the world, and his best races are yet to come…
Tekst/Words: Aleksandar Pijevac Fotografije/Photography: Profimedia.rs
točak, a vršnjaci sa kojima se ta- kmičio kažu da je bio agresivan i pomalo lud na stazi. Nikada se nije povlačio i nikome nije dozvoljavao da ga obiđe. Zato se često dešava- lo da trke završi u zaštitnom zidu, bez točka, polomljenog spojlera... Rođen je u Belgiji, ali je po- sle razvoda roditelja odlučio da ne ostane kod majke, već da se pre- seli kod oca Josa, koji je Holan- đanin. Debitovao je sa 17 godina, pre nego što je mogao da polaže za vozačku dozvolu, pa su ga na trke dovozili roditelji ili rodbina. Zbog ljubavi prema vožnji i takmičenji- ma Maks je mnogo izostajao iz škole, ali je imao punu podrš- ku svog oca. Ljubav je pronašao u de- vet godina starijoj Brazilki Keli Pike, ćerki trostrukog šampiona F1 Nelsona Pikea. Keli se zabavljala sa Veršta- penovim kolegom Danilom Kvjatom, sa kojim ima ćer- ku, a Maks kaže da je sa za- dovoljstvom prihvatio ulogu očuha. Tek su mu 24 godine, već je najbrži na svetu, a trke
Luis Hamilton je skinut sa trona najbržeg cirkusa / Lewis Hamilton has been dethroned as the king of the world’s fastest circus
Formula 1 » Formula 1 | 105
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