Max Verstappen: The unstoppable force in Formula One

by Ewan McKenzie

A fully illustrated biography of Max Verstappen from his early days karting with fellow Dutch karter Nick de Vries (who’s finally joined him on the grid) to his crushing third World title at the end of 2023.
 
It’s not a typical journey. Max’s parents are both motorsport talents. He was born in Belgium to mum Sophie Kumpen, a champion Belgian karter, while dad Jos Verstappen was Benetton team-mate to Michael Schumacher and survived perhaps the scariest F1 pitane fire when his car caught fire during a refueling stop. Michael Schumacher and Jos Verstappen became great friends and Max grew up going on family holidays with fellow F1 star Mick Schumacher. The contrast in fortunes between the two sons could hardly be greater.
 
Verstappen broke all the records for youngest driver after he made his debut in 2015, including youngest driver to win an F1 race after he transferred from Red Bull’s junior team Toro Rosso, to Red Bull in 2016. His move was at the expense of Daniil Kvyat who was demoted to Toro Rosso. Verstappen then started dating Kvyat’s girlfriend, Kelly Piquet, and is now step-father to Kvyat’s son. Complicated.
 
This fully illustrated biography features his formative years through to the end of the 2023 season, interspersed with 10 key races, to
Though things are going well right now, the volatility that led him to a physical altercation with Esteban Ocon in the 2020 Brazilian Grand prix still appears from time to time when things don’t go his way. And soon Red Bull want a team-mate who can really push him…
 

Genres: Nonfiction, Sports

240 pages, Hardcover

Published April 16, 2024

Reviews

[Arielle · Rating 5 out of 5]

As someone who follows Formula 1 and knows about the drivers, I feel that this book really just expanded on Max Verstappen. A lot of the information I think most people who closely follow the sport already know however, with that being said, the author does go in a lot more depth, especially about Max’s early childhood. I didn’t know that his mom also was a racer at a point in her life and I thought that was something very interesting because it definitely shows he gets his talent from on both sides of his parents and not just his dad which I feel most people automatically assume it’s his dad. As someone who, I don’t wanna say doesn’t like Max (Forza Ferrari), but isn’t the biggest fan of him just because of his pure dominance I did enjoy this book I always enjoy learning more about the person aside from their ability to race their job at the end of the day, that is what it is. I also enjoyed that of course the book was about Max and his life and coming into Formula One and his time so far in Formula One I enjoyed how the author touched upon the other drivers that are with him in Formula One and how they have impacted his earlier career as well and how they came to be. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who is a Formula One fan and just wants more information about Max and why he is who he is.

[Kelly]

Don’t rate biographies but this was a good read. The pictures were a really nice addition but didn’t distract from the words. Really enjoyed this.
Thanks NetGalley for the ARC.

[Dani Boise · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved getting a deeper dive into Max Verstappen's life. This is incredibly detailed and includes a ton of wonderful photos. I thank the publisher for the copy to read and review via Netgalley. Seeing the stats and comparisons to other drivers was great to put into perspective how much Max has done in his life (and so young!)

[nezgraba · Rating 5 out of 5]

simply lovely

[Gabriela (taylor's version) · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars out of 5.

A little (extra) knowledge is a dangerous thing with Max.

It is undeniable, especially after the record-breaking 2023 season, that Max Verstappen is one of a kind. Difficult, clever, fast, brilliant could be just words to describe him but nothing could capture his talent in full, the way it deserves.

He is breathtakingly good at what he does. And he won't be stopped anytime soon.

Ewan McKenzie gives a very decent rundown on Max's career, how he got an f1 seat, how he got the redbull seat. And eventually, how he won his third world championship without shedding a sweat the whole year.

Pictures were a nice add, a pleasant standout from the other max verstappen biographies out there.

I think the comments about Kelly's daughter, could have been avoided. The child shouldn't be part of a bigger joke to appease certain trolls. Make jokes about the adults, not the child in the middle. This is perhaps my only complaint. Truthfully, I am here for the facts, not the gossip.

I was given an ARC by Netgalley and I give this review voluntarily

[Rebecca Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't read a lot of biographies (or any really) but I wanted to give this one a go because as an F1 fan I thought it would be cool to see how the current best became so good. I've not been following F1 for a super long time because I only started watching when my husband got me into it so I haven't seen Verstappen's rise to the top and didn't know much of it.
When I first flicked through I loved the way it was split up into different sections, and chronologically, from his early life, to his karting days, to his rise through the teams and a bit more about his personal life at the end. Packed with lots of information, some about specific races that were important in his career and lots of quotes from F1 commentators and journalists talking about Max and his racing I really feel like I understand his journey a lot better now, and it is a fascinating one. He's had an incredible career already and broken so many records!
One thing I both loved and didn't like though was some of the stats graphics throughout the book. Throughout the book there were some pages that showed, for example, the top 10 youngest drivers to score points in a GP. I absolutely loved them, the layouts of the pages with the graphics and all the stats, seeing who else was close or sometimes just how far ahead Max is/was. The pages themselves were great, I can't fault them at all. But my issue with them was that they seemed to be placed throughout the book completely at random? Not only was the place where they were placed not necessarily relevant to what was currently being talked about which would be fine, but it would sometimes be mid-story about something that happened in a certain race and a couple of times literally mid-sentence?! You'd be reading a sentence about some of the retirements Max had from races in 2017 and the in the middle of a sentence you'd turn to the page to find a double page spread of cool statistics and info about Max vs. his team-mates in the last couple of years, turn the page again to find the left page covered in pictures and the right page pick up from halfway through that sentence 3 pages ago. So either you'd have to skip past the stats to finish your sentence and go back to them which seems a bit silly or read them and then have to flick back to find the first half of your sentence that you've now forgotten. It was the same with the pages of the Greatest Races where there were 2/3 pages focussing on telling the story of a particular important race. They didn't even seem as separate as the stats pages because they were at least usually placed chronologically with the mention of that particular race, but sometimes they were in the middle of a story about something else so seemed a little jumpy around. Individually, I loved those pages, but they definitely would have been better placed between sections or at least between stories/information within the sections. With the amount of photos used throughout the book (which I also loved), it would have been easy to get the pages laid out so a story ended at the end of a "right" page and you could turn for a double-page of stats graphics without being in the middle of anything.
I did enjoy the book overall though, and apart from the slightly weird layout involved in some of it, the writing and information covered was fantastic.

[Marietere T · Rating 3 out of 5]

As an f1 fan, I love requesting f1 books on NetGalley to see what's coming soon.

I love Max, I love reading about this him and this book had a lot of great facts about him. I do think he's great at what he does, despite his childhood. I've loved to see the growth of this kid who didn't give a fuck and thought he knew more than everyone else to the athlete he is today.

I guess I have to issues with this book, first of all of is the author being a Jos Verstappen apologist. Only glossing over the abuse. Not just to Max but to his ex partners. Like saying that Max is strong because of his abuse, like bro no. You're saying that kids need to suffer from mental and physical abuse to become the best at their sports? Nope. Sorry, bye.

Second thing about this book that really did not rub me the wrong way was mentioning Penelope's birth, and making it seem like Max intentionally became Penelope's step dad like taking Daniil's Red Bull seat. You need to get your head checked.

I got an e-arc of this book on NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

[Lisa Konet · Rating 5 out of 5]

Me and my family are huge Formula 1 racing fans and particularly of Max Verstappen. Verstappen has worked and trained his ass of his whole life and deserves the respect and noteriartey. Max Verstappen is genuine, a class act and a great role model for the F1 industry, and a terrific athelete. I really loved the in-depth look into his career and learning more about the specifics of the horrible crash he was in (my mom cried for weeks when she heard about) and his grueling recovery.

I read this on my large screen kindle and the accompanying photos were great! This is a must read book for any F1 racing fan and especially any Max Verstappen fan. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

We are definitely getting a copy of this at publishing. My mom would love this for a birthday gift.

Thanks to Netgalley, Ewan McKenzie and Quarto Publishing Group Ivy Press for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Available: 4/16/2024

[Eli England · Rating 5 out of 5]

As soon as I saw the title 'Max Verstappen' I was hooked.
Along with my stepdad, I am a massive F1 nerd, I love to read anything about the sport and drivers. This was a great insight into the world of 'Mad Max' Verstappen! from his early childhood days through his teenage years and to his third world champion title, with backstory of his parents. I will be definitely be buying a copy when it comes out, and will proudly display it on either my coffee table or my bookcase (Publication date: 16 Apr 2024). May just also have to buy a copy for my stepdad as a late birthday gift.
My F1 discord group will love this, as there are some very hardcore max fans.

Thanks to Netgalley, Ewan McKenzie and Quarto Publishing Group Ivy Press for an Early digital copy in exchange for an my review.
#netgally #maxverstappen

[Anaoups · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked this book. I really just started to get into Formula One in the middle of the 2023 season because of F1 edits on TikTok so when I saw that there was a book about Max, I was so happy.
I don't really know how to rate it because I don't review biographies a whole lot, but this one was a nice easy read before the 2024 F1 season started.
The pictures are really pretty. They help us understand how young was Max when he achieved some of the best records in F1. The writing was good and made it easier to understand the F1 terms that are sometimes hard to understand as a non english speaker.
I already love Max but this book helped me understand his upcoming!

I want to thank NetGalley, Ivy Press and Ewan Mckenzie for this opportunity!

[Tanisha · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received this book as an ARC from Ivy Press  through NetGalley and this review is based on my own opinion.

This book actually suprised me.
I've read some other Max Verstappen biographies before this one and most contained a lot of info which made it boring to me, but this one focused on all the important parts of Max his life and career, for example the formula 3 race where Helmut Marko noticed him, or his first formula 1 win and this makes it way more exciting to read.

It's also quite up to date instead of only reading about his past.
And another bonus point is that it's short, it has loads of lovely graphics and it contains beautiful photo's.

I would really recommend this one if you'd want to read a Max Verstappen biography that's quite up to date.

[Alec ⟠]

This book was a fantastic insight into the life of Max Verstappen, from childhood up to three-time world champion status. I loved looking into what made him who he is and how he worked his way up to F1. The photos were a great touch and really added depth to the book as it was easier to visualise certain people. The way the book was formatted meant that it was a short read, but I imagine the physical copy would be much larger and I am excited to grab a copy as I really enjoyed this.

[Renko Dekker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Something completely different: an informative book about Max Verstappen, Formula One world champion.

It was an informative book with lots of information about his upbringing and youth and up to his third world championship. Most of it is already quite well known, especially in the Netherlands, but still, it was fun to read.

3,5/5 ⭐️

[Daph (Loving Books) · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was nice to read about Max's life and his support up until his third world championship, however the book was formatted weird which resulted it in the writing accompanying the photos and the pictures themselves not being together and the tables unreadable. I had to skip those entirely.

[Volodymyr · Rating 5 out of 5]

Найкращий подарунок від коханої ☺️

Це було дуже цікаво та пізнавально. Макс це жива легенда, і його шлях не простий, але він долає перешкоди дуже гідно.

Йос звісно такий собі тато.

[Lyndsay · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am a big F1 fan and really enjoyed the stories and photos recounting Max's youth and professional racing career. This book compiled public information from interviews, podcasts, and other sources. Several stories felt under developed or under reported (ie. Abu Dhabi 2021) and just skimmed the surface. However, this book does a great job providing a general overview of Max's career.

Sincere thanks to NetGalley & Quarto Publishing Group – Ivy Press for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Angela · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perfect voor de fans

Ik zou willen dat meer schrijvers zo een boek zouden schrijven. Dit is een compleet, compact verhaal over alle zaken rond om Max Verstappen. Het las weg of naar de film versie zat te kijken.

Er werden ook nieuwe dingen verteld. Waar je in andere boeken weleens gek werd gemaakt van herhaling. Tuurlijk komen sommige momenten terug, daar kan je niet om heen. Alleen vond ik wel dat ze beter werden verwoord en verwerkt.

De hoofdstukken zijn goed verteld en niet te lang gemaakt. Ze geven je de informatie die je wilt lezen zonder uitgezogen te worden.

Naast dat de opbouw en inhoud kloppen, lees het makkelijk weg. Je vliegt door het boek heen. De schrijfstijl van Ewan is erg fijn. Hij weet niet te zwaar te beladen.

Al vind ik 1 hoofdstuk, minst boeiend om te lezen. Het boeit Max ook niet, misschien is dat ook wel. Snap zelf wel dat het erin zit, want het hoort erbij. Alles draait erom.

Leuke toevoegingen zijn de vergelijken of andere leuke weetjes. Ze komen voorbij als het onderwerp ook voorbij is gekomen. Het werd er niet random ergens in gegooid.

De mooie foto’s die zijn gebruikt, maken het boek compleet. Met kleine uitleg en goede verwijzingen naar welke foto. Voegen ze ook werkelijk iets toe aan het hele plaatje. Er is goed over nagedacht welke foto’s gebruikt zijn.

Dit is echt een boek die ik een Max Verstappen fan zal aan raden om te lezen. Ook als je alleen nieuwsgierig bent en meer over Max zou willen weten. Heb genoten van dit boek.

[Salem · Rating 3 out of 5]

A complete summary of Max's career from his early karting days to his record-breaking 2023 season. The book was good but the majority of the information in it is already well-known by Verstappen fans/F1 fans in general. I would have liked to see it delve more into Max's driving style and his psychology around racing. While the images were nice, they were also a little gratuitous and could have been trimmed down to make space for more content of substance. And similarly to Unstoppable, the author glazes over Jos Verstappen's treatment of his son and is hesitant to label it as abuse.

Overall, this was a quick easy read and a nice book to have if you're a Max fan, but not the most thorough exploration of his career out there.