Why Verstappen is enjoying non-F1 races more this season

Four-time F1 world champion Max Verstappen beat 100 competitors to win the ‘Max vs 100’ karting event at Silverstone on Wednesday, jokingly saying that the victory ranked as "the best one yet" in his career.

It may well have been a subtle dig at his regular pursuit, which is racing in Formula 1 cars, something he isn’t quite enjoying this season, despite back-to-back podium finishes at Monza and Madrid.

Having lost his hold on the world championship last year to McLaren’s Lando Norris and with little hope of challenging the top-runners this season, Verstappen went back to his childhood pursuit, not for the first time directing his energy to a race that is not part of the Formula 1 calendar.

The Dutchman will be buoyed by the fact that he can also take part in both the 24 Hours of Nürburgring and the 24 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps in 2027, following the calendar reveal on Wednesday. Both endurance races fall on a weekend when no Formula 1 Grand Prix is held.

One of the events Verstappen would once again like to do is the 24 Hours of Nürburgring. This year, his team retired while in a winning position. Next year could bring a rematch. The 2027 edition will be held from May 27 to 30.

One week before the 24 Hours of Nürburgring, the Canadian Grand Prix is on the calendar. It will take place from May 21 to 23. The next Formula 1 race after that is the Monaco Grand Prix, from June 4 to 6. That puts the 24 Hours of Nürburgring squarely in the free weekend between those Grands Prix.

The same applies to the 24 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps. That race is scheduled in 2027 from June 24 to 27. The Portuguese Grand Prix will be held a week earlier, from June 18 to 20. The next Formula 1 race after that isn't until July 2 to 4, when the British Grand Prix takes place at Silverstone.

Verstappen’s racing pursuits away from the F1 track have received insane media coverage, showing the star power the 28-year-old brings to motorsport. The new regulations almost made him consider quitting Formula 1, before top F1 officials and his team Red Bull convinced him that things would get better, with the Milton Keynes outfit locking him in until 2030.

For Verstappen, as well as that element of competition, having joked about there being “no mercy” whenever his helmet goes on, Wednesday’s event was another Red Bull exercise that he will keep in mind for a long time – having also previously driven an F1 car down a mountain  and raced caravans with his former teammate Daniel Ricciardo.

“Sometimes I get reminded of what I actually did in the past, and I’m like, ‘Oh my God, did I really do that?’” he said.

This season, Reb Bull have been unable to match Mercedes and at times Ferrari’s pace, so Verstappen can understandably be happy coming from the back and picking off 100 drivers. “That was simply lovely,” he chuckled over the radio once he had eliminated the final kart, adding that “it’s my first win of the year, so I’ll take this one!”