"I thought he could die" - Max Verstappen reveals father's condition after F1 season finale win over Lewis Hamilton

Max Verstappen has revealed that he thought his father Jos could “die from a heart attack” after his triumph at last season’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. The Dutchman overtook title rival Lewis Hamilton on the very last lap of the race to clinch his maiden F1 title.

Speaking in a post-season interview with The Guardian, Verstappen said:

“I thought he could die because it looked like he was about to have a heart attack. He was so pale, it was incredible. His skin colour was definitely not healthy.”

Claiming the swing in emotions he felt after the race as hard to process, he said:

“Suddenly your emotions swing 100% the other way. So crazy. Once you cross the line you realise you finally have it. I jumped out of the car and all the mechanics, and my dad were running towards me.”

The reigning world champion says he can only remember saying “We did it!” to his father right after jumping from the car but doesn’t remember much from his conversation with Hamilton.

The last few laps of the season finale in Abu Dhabi were one of the most dramatic and highly controversial moments of the 2021 season. Despite his dominant performances throughout the race, Hamilton was powerless to stop a charging Verstappen from snatching the title away from him on the very last lap.

The controversial safety car restart altered the course of the 2021 season and potentially handed Max Verstappen a lasting advantage. Nevertheless, the 24-year-old had to work extra hard to make the most out of his opportunity, battling severe cramps throughout the last few minutes of the race.

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Max Verstappen disappointed after “binning” chance to wing virtual Le Mans 24H

Early last month, Max Verstappen participated in the virtual Le Mans 24H with Team Redline, driving the #123 LMP car. The newly crowned F1 world champion was comfortably leading the race when he ran wide on the Ford chicane after overtaking a lapped car, bounced off the kerb and hit the barriers.

Speaking to The Guardian, Verstappen expressed his disappointment at throwing away the chance at victory, saying:

“I binned the car! But luckily my team’s other car won. Of course, I was very disappointed I crashed but it was also a big satisfaction to see how dominant we were.”

After his Le Mans disappointment, Verstappen also participated in another high-profile sim racing event, the iRacing Daytona 24. While the Dutchman was expecting redemption for his earlier misfortune, his team failed to get going following severe technical issues.

After trying for several hours to get back into the race, they finally gave up, leaving his second competitive racing event after becoming world champion in discontent.