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MAX VERSTAPPEN
Fotografije / Photos: Red Bull Content Pool / Getty Images
MADMAX
Još kao dječak Max Verstappen sanjao je o naslovu prvaka u Formuli 1. Želja mu se ostvarila na Velikoj nagradi Abu Dhabija gdje je dramatičnom pobjedom u posljednjem krugu prekinuo dugogodišnju dominaciju Lewisa Hamiltona
While still a kid, Max Verstappen dreamed of being a Formula One champion. His wish was fulfilled at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, where he ended Lewis Hamilton's long-standing dominance with a dramatic victory in the final lap
Ayrton Senna, Jim Clark i Emerson Fittipaldi, višestruki prvaci i legende Formule 1, imaju zajednički detalj u karijeri. Sva trojica su na svjetskom prvenstvu F1 debitirali u dobi od 24 godine. Max Verstappen na najboljem je putu ulaska u to elitno društvo jer s 24 na leđima iza sebe u Formuli 1 već ima 141 utrku, 20 pobjeda i jedan naslov prvaka. Poput nadarenog učenika koji u školi preskače razrede i Max je preskakao automobilističke klase i discipline. Sa 17 godina i 166 dana nastupom na Velikoj nagradi Australije 2015. postao je najmlađi vozač Formule 1. Ayrton Senna, Jim Clark and Emerson Fittipaldi, multiple Formula One champions and legends, have one thing in their careers in common: all three made their F1 world championships debut at the age of 24. Max Verstappen is well on the way to joining this elite company; at 24, he had already had 141 Formula One races, 20 wins and one championship. Like a gifted student skipping years at school, Max skipped motorsport categories and disciplines. At the age of 17 years and 166 days he became Formula One's youngest driver, debuting in the 2015 Australian Grand Prix.
„Osvajanje naslova bio je cilj s kojim sam došao u F1, a sve što slijedi nakon toga bit će bonus. U novoj sezoni utrkivat ću se s brojem 1 na bolidu i dat ću sve od sebe kako bih obranio naslov.”
- Neki su, naravno, rekli da sam premlad. U to vrijeme nisam imao ni vozačku dozvolu, prisjeća se Max. – Bilo je zanimljivo kada sam tijekom sezone išao polagati. Znali su svi da sam u Formuli 1, ali instruktor vožnje bio je vrlo strog, što je bilo dobro, ali no bio sam malo zabrinut i imao sam spremne kape, majice ako nekoga treba podmititi, ali on to nije uzeo. Put do Formule 1 bio je strelovit. S nepunih pet Max je sjeo u karting, a već sa sedam pojavio se na startu jedne službene utrke i protiv suparnika koji su imali devet ili deset odmah upisao pobjedu. Ono što je slijedilo postavilo je temelje današnjem svjetskom prvaku. Otac Jos Verstappen, bivši vozač Formule 1 čija se karijera protezala veći dio devedesetih, vrlo brzo je shvatio da sin ima nešto više od onoga što je on imao. Uostalom dijelio je momčad s Michaelom Schumacherom i iz prve ruke svjedočio kako se postaje prvak. No Max nije samo od oca naslijedio DNK za utrke. I njegova - Some, of course, said I was too young. I didn't even have a driving license at the time, Max recalls. – It was interesting when I went to take the test during the season. Everyone knew I was in Formula One, but the driving instructor – he was very strict. Which was good, but I was a bit concerned, so I had caps and T-shirts ready in case someone needed to be bribed, but he didn't take it. The track to Formula One was a fast one. Barely five, Max started driving go-karts, and he was only seven when he showedup at the start of an official race and, racing against opponents who were nine or ten, immediately recorded a victory. What followed laid the path for the world champion of today. Father Jos Verstappen, a former Formula One driver whose career spanned most of the 1990s, realised very quickly that his son had something more than what he himself had. After all, he had been in a team with Michael Schumacher
majka, Sophie Kumpen, izgradila je uspješnu karijeru u kartingu u kojoj se izdvaja osvajanje prestižnog trofeja Andrea Margutti 1995. godine. - Odrastao sam s oktanima u krvi. Bio sam okružen bolidima od mlađih dana, ali nikada me roditelji nisu tjerali da vozim. To je bila isključivo moja odluka. U desetljeću koje je slijedilo otac i sin putovali su od utrke do utrke nižući pobjedu za pobjedom. U kombiju s kartingom, alatom i rezervnim dijelovima godišnje bi prevalili i do 100.000 kilometara, ali sve je bilo protkano uspjesima. Do 2013. Max je osvojio više od dvadeset naslova na raznim prvenstvima u kratingu i došlo je vrijeme za prelazak u ozbiljnije društvo. Winter Series koji je 2014. na Floridi organizirala vozačka akademija Ferrarija Max je završio s dvije pobjede i ukupnim trećim mjestom, a iste godine sudjelovao je na Europskom prvenstvu Formule 3 s timom Van Amersfoort Racing. Završio je treći u ukupnom poretku s deset pobjeda, uključujući i finalnu utrku Formula 3 Masters na Zandvoortu. Još u vremenima natjecanja u kartingu privukao je pozornost skauta Mercedesa, ali Red Bull je bio konkretniji. Austrijska momčad talentiranom Nizozemcu rođenom u Belgiji mogla je jamčiti program koji je izravno vodio do and witnessed firsthand how one becomes a champion. But Max didn't inherit the racing DNA just from his father. His mother, Sophie Kumpen, also had a successful karting career, which saw her winning the prestigious Andrea Margutti Trophy in 1995. - I grew up with octane in my veins. I'd been surrounded by racing cars since I was very young, but my parents never made me drive. That was exclusively my own decision. In the decade that followed, father and son went from one race to another, stringing together victory after victory. In a van with a go-kart, tools and spare parts, they would travel up to 100,000 kilometres a year, success following them on their journey. Until 2013. By then, Max had won over twenty titles in various karting championships and the time came to join a more serious company. Max completed the Winter Series, organised by the Ferrari Driving Academy in Florida in 2014, with two wins and a third place overall. In the same year, he participated in the Formula 3 European Championship with the Van Amersfoort racing team, finishing in the third place overall with ten wins, including the Masters of Formula 3 final race at Zandvoort. Back in the days of the go-kart competitions, he caught the attention of Mercedes scouts, but Red Bull had a more con-
mjesta na startnoj rešetki F1 i već 2014. Max je stekao prva iskustva na slobodnim treninzima u Japanu, SAD-u i Brazilu u bolidu Toro Rosso. Ako si dovoljno dobar, dovoljno si i star, bila je mantra koju su ponavljali u Red Bullu najavljujući Maxa u postavi koja će 2015. braniti boje momčadi Toro Rosso. Sve kritike koje su pratile najave koje su odjeknule svijetom vrlo brzo su nestale nakon što je Max tituli najmlađeg vozača koji se pojavio u F1 već na drugoj utrci sezone pridodao naslov najmlađeg osvajača bodova. U Maleziji je završio na sedmom mjestu, a do kraja prvenstva bodove je osvajao na još devet utrka. Najbolji rezultat bilo je četvrto mjesto u Mađarskoj, a isto je ponovio u SAD-u na utrci na kojoj se borio za mjesto na podiju. Iznimna prva sezona donijela je ne samo obilje prvenstvenih bodova nego i nagrade za novaka godine, osobnost godine i akciju godine za njegovo fenomenalno pretjecanje na belgijskoj stazi Spa. Max je prvenstvo 2016. započeo u momčadi iz Faenze, ali nakon četvrte utrke sezone naprasno je promoviran u redove A momčadi Red Bulla. Helmut Marko, siva eminencija austrijskog konstruktora, odlučio je baciti sve karte na vozača kojeg je uspoređivao sa Sennom i u kojem je vidio nasljednika Sebastiana Vettela. Uoči utrke u Barceloni, prve za Red Bull, Max je negirao dodatni pritisak. - Iskreno, nemam neka očekivanja. Samo se želim prilagoditi bolidu, razumjeti ga, proučiti podatke i vidjeti što moj suparnici rade jer najvažnije je osvojiti bodove. Što se mene tiče, ne osjećam veći pritisak. Naravno da sada vozim za vrhunski tim, ali na kraju uvijek nastojiš dati sve od sebe. crete offer. The Austrian team could guarantee the talented Belgian-born Dutchman a programme that led directly to a place on the F1 starting grid and, as early as 2014, Max gained his first experience in free practice in Japan, the USA and Brazil in the Toro Rosso car. If you're good enough, then you're old enough was a mantra repeatedly said by Red Bull when announcing Max in the line-up that would be defending the colours of the Toro Rosso team in 2015. All the criticism coming with the announcements that resounded around the world quickly disappeared after Max added another title to the one of the youngest driver to run in a F1 race – in the second race of the season, he had already become the youngest driver to score F1 points. He finished seventh in Malaysia, and by the end of the championship he had won points in nine more races. His best result was finishing fourth in Hungary, which he equalled in the USA, in a race where he fought for a place on the podium. His remarkable first season brought not only plenty of championship points, but also the "Rookie of the Year" and the "Personality of the Year" awards, as well as the "Action of the Year" award for his sensational overtake on the Spa race track in Belgium. Max started the 2016 championship on the team from Faenza, but after the fourth race of the season he was suddenly promoted to the ranks of the Red Bull's A team. Helmut Marko, the grey eminence of the Austrian constructor, decided to stake everything on the driver he compared to Senna and in whom he saw Sebastian Vettel's successor. On the eve of the Barcelona race, the first he was running for Red Bull, Max denied any additional pressure. - Honestly, my expectations are not high. I just want to adapt to the car, understand it, study the data and see what my rivals are doing because the most important thing is to score points. As far as I'm concerned, I don't feel any extra pressure. Of course I'm driving for a top team now, but in the end you're always trying to do your best.
Poput nadarenog učenika koji u školi preskače razrede i Max je preskakao automobilističke klase i discipline. U karting je prvi put sjeo kao petogodišnjak, a s malo više od 17 godina već je vozio bolid Formule 1.
Like a gifted student skipping years at school, Max skipped motorsport categories and disciplines. He started driving go-karts was when he was five years old, and at the age of just over 17 he was already driving a Formula One car
Skromnost u riječima pretočila se u fenomenalan trijumf na stazi. U debiju s Red Bullom Max je postao najmlađi pobjednik u povijesti F1. Na najvišu stepenicu pobjedničkog postolja na Montmelou popeo se s 18 godina i 228 dana. - Silno uzbuđenje i koncentraciju pokvarili su mi grčevi koje sam počeo osjećati pet krugova prije kraja, prisjetio se Max iskustva prve pobjede. - Bilo je prilično ludo i doslovno sam brojio krugove do cilja. Pritisak je bio golem, ali ne samo meni. Tata je na kraju postao toliko uzbuđen da mu je iz nosa počela curiti krv. Debitantska pobjeda u Španjolskoj bila je samo najava onog što je slijedilo u sezoni 2017. kada je Max upisao još dvije pobjede (Malezija i Meksiko) i na kraju zauzeo ukupno šesto mjesto u prvenstvu. Beskompromisan, uvijek spreman za borbu, Max je u prvih šest utrka sezone 2018. sudjelovao u najmanje jednom sudaru na svakoj utrci. Uz dva frustrirajuća odustajanja bio je to daleko od očekivanja, ali raspoloženje je podigla pobjeda u Austriji. Slijedilo Modesty in words was translated into a remarkable triumph on the track. In his debut with Red Bull, Max became the youngest winner in F1 history. He made it to the top step of the podium at Montmeló at the age of 18 years and 228 days. - All the excitement and concentration was spoiled by the cramps I started to feel five laps before the end, Max recalled the experience of his first victory. - It was pretty crazy and I was literally counting laps to the finish line. The pressure was immense, but not just for me. Dad eventually got so excited that he got a nosebleed. His debut victory in Spain was just a preview of what was to follow in the 2017 season, in which Max recorded two more wins (Malaysia and Mexico), eventually finishing sixth in the championship. Uncompromising, always ready to fight, Max was involved in at least one crash in each of the first six races of the 2018 season. With two frustrating retirements, it was far from expected, but the mood improved with the Austria win. It was followed by victory in Mexico
je slavlje u Meksiku i solidna druga etapa prvenstva okončana četvrtim mjestom. Uz sve bolji bolid rastao je i Max. Broj pogrešaka bio je sve manji, fokus jednog kruga prenio je na utrku, na prvenstvo, ali njegov stil vožnje, agresivnost zbog koje se često našao na udaru kritičara i sudaca nije otupjela. Završnica pandemijom skraćene 2020. u kojoj se Red Bull u rukama Maxa pokazao ravnopravan takmac moćnom Mercedesu bila je dobra najava za 2021. godinu. Nakon žestoke i neizvjesne borbe s Lewisom Hamiltonom, najtrofejnijim vozačem današnjice, utrka za naslov okončana je u posljednjoj utrci sezone, u posljednjem krugu. U dramatičnoj završnici utrke u Abu Dhabiju Max je upisao pobjedu, prekinuo Hamiltonovu vladavinu i osvojio prvi naslov prvaka F1. Prvi Nizozemac na tronu ujedno je 34. vozač u povijesti koji se uvrstio među prvake F1. Četvrti najmlađi dosad, postao je i vlasnik rekorda broja utrka (18) završenih na postolju u jednoj sezoni. No po svemu sudeći to je samo početak za vozača kojeg je veliki Niki Lauda nazvao talentom stoljeća. - Osvajanje naslova bio je cilj s kojim sam došao u F1, a sve što slijedi nakon toga bit će bonus. U novoj sezoni utrkivat ću se s brojem 1 na bolidu i dat ću sve od sebe kako bih obranio naslov. and a solid second leg of the championship, which he ended in fourth place. Max improved as the car got better and better. The number of mistakes was decreasing, he transferred the focus of one lap to the entire race, the entire championship, but his driving style remained the same: the aggressiveness that often caused him to come under fire by critics and referees did not diminish. The finale of the 2020 season, which was cut short by the pandemic and in which Red Bull, thanks to Max, proved to be an equal to the mighty Mercedes, was a good announcement for 2021. After a fierce and an uncertain battle against Lewis Hamilton, the most successful driver of today, the title race ended in the season's final round, literally in the final lap. In a dramatic finish to the race in Abu Dhabi, Max recorded a victory, ending Hamilton's reign and winning his first F1 championship. The first Dutchman on the throne is also the 34th driver in history to become the F1 champion. The fourth youngest ever, he has also become the holder of a record number of races (18) finished on the podium in one season. But, in all likelihood, this is only the beginning for the driver whom the great Niki Lauda called the talent of the century. - Winning the title was the goal I had when I came to F1, and anything that happens afterwards will be a bonus. In the new season I'll run the No 1 on my car and I'll do my best to defend my title.
