Max Verstappen will return to his karting roots in September to take on 100 rivals in what is being pitched as the biggest go-kart race ever staged. The four-time Formula 1 world champion will headline a one-off event called Max vs 100 at Silverstone on September 16.
Rather than racing from the front, Verstappen will start behind a field of 100 other racers, made up of athletes, streamers, personalities and fans, with the objective of overtaking every kart ahead of him. The event will be broadcast live globally on Disney+, while viewers in the United States can watch via the ESPN App before a delayed ESPN2 broadcast later in the day.
For Max Verstappen, this is a nostalgic and enjoyable opportunity. "For me, it's always nice to return," he said. "In go-karts you learn all the basics: starts, defending, overtaking. I spent a long period of my life go-karting, so it's always nice to come back and drive them again."
Verstappen began karting at four years old and rose rapidly through national and international competition, winning multiple European and world titles before making his F1 debut in 2015. Although he has spent more than a decade racing single-seaters, he believes reverting back to karting will come naturally. "It's about understanding the grip of the go-kart," he said. "I've done so many years in go-karting that you quite naturally get back into things."
The circuit layout has been designed by French driver and kart designer David Terrien, who said accommodating 101 competitors in a single race required an entirely new approach. "Creating a track for 101 drivers at the same time has never been done, never been seen," Terrien said. He expects the event to place a premium on racecraft rather than outright speed. "You're going to have Max showcasing all these skills of [working] through the traffic, trying to prepare and plan where he can overtake people."
The field will include a range of Red Bull athletes and creators, including ultrarunner Arda Saatci, basketball coach Chris Matthews, freestyle mountain biker Matt Jones, and streamers TheGrefg, Caedrel and TheDonato. Whether Verstappen can actually pass all 100 rivals remains the question. Red Bull sim racing driver Sebastian Job, who helped test the format during development, said even simulations involving half the intended field proved challenging. "I think to overtake 100 cars is going to be extremely difficult," Job said. "Today we did it with 50, and even that was a challenge to do it in the allotted time. He's got his work cut out for him."
Verstappen, however, appears more intrigued by the unpredictability than concerned by the difficulty. Asked what he was looking forward to most, his answer reflected the chaotic nature of the concept. "Just seeing the carnage unfold in front of me," he said.
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Max Verstappen akan menghadapi 100 pembalap di balap kart 'Max vs 100' di Silverstone pada 16 September. Tantangan menyalip semua rival sebelum waktu habis, disiarkan langsung di Disney+.
Max Verstappen akan turun dalam balap gokart raksasa 'Max vs 100' di Silverstone, menantang 100 pebalap lain dalam ajang rekor dunia. Akankah ia mampu menyalip semuanya?
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