Verstappen overtakes 100 amateurs in 14 laps at Silverstone karting event

Max Verstappen, the four-time Formula 1 world champion, completed Red Bull's "Max vs 100" karting challenge at Silverstone on September 16, 2026, eliminating all 100 competitors in just 14 laps and 35 minutes—well within the 30-lap, 75-minute time limit. Starting from the back of a 101-kart grid, Verstappen reached 37th position after a chaotic opening lap in which several drivers crashed or spun, forcing a brief racing suspension. He then methodically advanced through the field, reaching 10th by lap six and fourth by lap ten.

The final three competitors—Dutch F1 journalist Jacky Martels (pole position), YouTuber Zac Alsop, and Red Bull Ford Powertrains technician Lewis Osler—were given a bonus "fast lap" permitting a track shortcut to extend their challenge, but Verstappen caught and passed them all. His fastest lap was 2 minutes 20.673 seconds, compared to Martels' 2 minutes 23.327 seconds. After the final elimination, Verstappen remarked over the radio: "That was simply lovely" and joked that "it's my first win of the year, so I'll take this one!"

The grid consisted of 100 amateur drivers including Red Bull athletes, content creators, streamers (Pieface, Caedrel, TheDonato), and sports personalities such as ultrarunner Arda Saatçi and basketball shooting phenomenon Chris "Lethal Shooter" Matthews. All karts were identical, with weight regulated to 85 kilograms including driver and equipment. Verstappen had only three to four practice laps on the 2.5-kilometer track, which blended Silverstone's karting venue with sections of its Formula 1 layout. The event was described by Red Bull as "the world's biggest go-kart race" and streamed live globally on Disney+ and ESPN, with coverage beginning at 6 p.m. BST on September 16.

Verstappen, who raced karts competitively from age four to fifteen before progressing through junior motorsport ranks, reflected afterward: "I grew up racing a lot in karts, then because of your Formula 1 career you don't really get a lot of time racing them anymore, so it's always nice to go back and have a go at it." He acknowledged the scale of the challenge, noting that one hundred karts was substantially larger than his previous experience: "I think the most that I've been on a track with is like 40 karts, maybe, so a hundred is a lot!"