Verstappen’s Miami F1 Weekend Could Get Tricky as He Awaits New Baby

Red Bull Racing confirmed that Max Verstappen will not be available for Thursday’s media day ahead of the 2025 Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix. The four-time F1 champ and his partner, Kelly Piquet, are awaiting the arrival of their child, which appears to be imminent.

The team did not disclose more information, including Verstappen’s whereabouts or if a contingency plan was in place if its lead driver was held up by the birth or travel logistics. A statement by Red Bull simply said that “all is well” and requested “respect towards the privacy of Max and his family.”

The Dutchman is expected to arrive in Miami on time for Friday practice, though it’s anyone’s guess if he’d opt for skipping that day’s activities should his family’s situation require it. Furthermore, this championship round being a Sprint weekend could further complicate Verstappen’s plans.

Neither Verstappen nor Piquet has revealed where their first child together will be born, but they will likely choose Monaco, considering they both reside there full-time. While the Piquet family has been established in Miami for many years, Kelly’s sister Julia recently said that Kelly was too far along in her pregnancy to travel from Europe to Miami, so that likely rules out the possibility of a U.S.-born Mini Max (or Mini Kelly).

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This is one of those dilemmas we don’t see in F1 too often, as most drivers abstain from having children (or even spouses) while their careers demand them to spend 275-plus days of the year away from home. Last season, just three drivers on the grid were fathers: Nico Hulkenberg, Kevin Magnussen, and Sergio Perez. This year, it’s only Hulkenberg so far, though that’s about to change with the incoming Verstappen-Piquet baby.

While Verstappen probably won’t have to choose between racing in Miami and being at the birth of his child, it’s also impossible to say that he won’t have to choose one or the other. Considering the couple (and Red Bull) have had nine months to draw a strategy, it’s unlikely that anyone will have to make an unplanned, rushed decision.

Perhaps this is why Fernando Alonso said this back in 2021: “There are negative aspects of Formula 1, especially if you are 18 years here. You dedicate your entire life to Formula 1. You have no friends, no family, no free time, no privacy, no wife, no kids, no nothing. It’s just full dedication if you want to succeed.”

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