Max Verstappen has finally scored his first win of the 2026 season, and he has done so in a unique way. He has bested 100 other competitors in a hectic event.
The four-time Formula 1 World Drivers’ Champion took part in a special race put on by Red Bull at the Silverstone Circuit in England. He started last in a 101-driver field, but instead of using F1 cars, they all used go-karts.
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This battle, Max vs. 100, took the multi-time champion back to his roots. He grew up racing go-karts, which he clearly showed as he passed every single competitor in a mere 35 minutes.
For context, Verstappen had 75 minutes allotted to pursue this goal.
“This is my first win of the year, so I take this one,” Verstappen said as he accepted his trophy.
This field of competitors did not hail from the racing world. Instead, Red Bull turned to its field of sponsored athletes and influencers.
Some examples included ultrarunner Arda Saatçi, basketball shooting phenomenon Chris “Lethal Shooter” Matthews, British freestyle mountain biker Matt Jones, streamer TheGrefg, streamer Caedrel, and streamer TheDonato.
The differences in experience became quite evident on the opening lap as Verstappen lined up in the 101st position.
As the green flag flew, the competitors began to slowly move off of the line. However, one go-kart quickly drifted between them while moving at a much higher rate of speed. He passed 13 competitors within the first 10 seconds of the race.
He then continued to weave around competitors as he entered the first corner. At this point, he ran wide into the dirt after recognizing that the less experienced drivers were piling into each other.
“Honestly, Lap 1 was crazy,” Verstappen said during his post-race interview. “Like, I was just laughing [at] what was happening. It was like quite a lot of carnage.”
Now that Max vs. 100 is complete, the veteran driver will shift his focus back to the Formula 1 season. The next event on the schedule is the Azerbaijan Grand Prix on Sept. 24-26.
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The Belgian has nine starts in this Grand Prix, and he has celebrated two wins. He captured the Azerbaijan Grand Prix for the first time in 2022 and then he celebrated once again last season.
The Polymarket traders believe that Verstappen could be back in contention for another strong finish in this season’s Grand Prix. They give him favorable odds to at least score a podium finish.
He currently sits at 45% odds to finish on the podium. This puts him fifth among the F1 drivers.
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Kimi Antonelli is the overwhelming favorite at 73%. This is understandable considering that he leads the series with eight wins this season.
Lando Norris is second on the list at 54% while George Russell is third at 48%. Pierre Gasly is fourth at 46%.
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