(born
4 March ,
1972 ,
Montfort ) is a
Dutch Racing Driver . He is married to the
Belgian ex-kart driver Sophie Kumpen, with who he has two children: Max and Victoria.
Verstappen began
Karting at the age of 8, and was participating in national competitions not long after. In 1984 he became Dutch junior champion. He remained successful, and won two European titles and a large number of international races in 1989.
At the end of 1991 he made the transition to car racing. He drove in Formula
Opel Lotus , a class in which identical cars compete against each other. He won the European championship in his first year, and got an offer to drive in
Formula 3 with Van Amersfoort Racing, who also developed other drivers such as
Christijan Albers ,
Tom Coronel and
Bas Leinders . During that European winter season, he raced in New Zealand Formula Atlantic. Subsequently, in German
Formula 3 , he won several international competitions, including the 1993
Marlboro Masters and the German Formula 3 championship.
at the
1994 British Grand Prix .]]
In 1994 he was hired as a test and backup driver in the
Benetton F1 team. After a crash in testing by
J.J. Lehto (who broke a neck
Vertebra ), he drove in several races from the start of the season, partnering
Michael Schumacher . Verstappen made his Formula One debut at the
1994 Brazilian Grand Prix . During the race he was torpedoed by
Eddie Irvine during an overtake. Verstappen somersaulted, but emerged unharmed.
During a pitstop in the
German Grand Prix at the
Hockenheimring ,
Gasoline was spilt onto heated car parts, setting the car, with Verstappen in it, ablaze for a brief period. As was usual at the time the
Visor of his helmet was open, and he walked away with slight burns to his nose.
