Max Verstappen had a disappointing start in the 2022 season, retiring from the season-opener in Bahrain. However, he redeemed his disappointing loss with a win in the Jeddah race. Later, Dutchman spent his one-week-long vacation playing a sim racing game.
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The first two weeks were tiring for the reigning champion this season. So, a vacation is what the Dutchman was longing for. He finally got a week-long break ahead of the Australian Grand Prix. However, the Red Bull driver didn’t go to any travel destination to relax. Instead, Verstappen opted to spend most of his holiday grinding Daytona GT3 in the online sim racing game, iRacing. Also, many F1 fans spotted the Red Bull driver in the video game.
There are many F1 drivers who love video games like Charles Leclerc, George Russell, Lando Norris and Alex Albon. Further, some of these drivers even started streaming on twitch during the pandemic. However, the young Norris took it further and started his own Esports team, Quadrant. Further, Meanwhile, Verstappen is also into video games, but he didn’t become a streamer like his peers. However, he still enjoys playing and can also spend hours playing video games when he gets time.
Exit clause for Max Verstappen
The 24-year-old driver signed a new contract with his Austrian F1 team. The new contract will keep the 2021 world champion until the end of 2028. However, Verstappen can leave Red Bull before the contract’s expiry date. And this is due to the fact that his contract has got an exit clause that will allow Max to leave if the team struggle against rival F1 teams.
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Helmut Marko revealed, “Of course. If we experience a ‘crash’ like in 2014, when we had absolutely no chance against Mercedes on the engine side, then it’s clear there is an escape clause.”
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Smile! 😃 It's 𝙍𝙖𝙘𝙚 𝙒𝙚𝙚𝙠 down under 🤙🇦🇺 pic.twitter.com/CDZQD1j42O
— Oracle Red Bull Racing (@redbullracing) April 4, 2022
Red Bull had a similar clause for Sebastian Vettel. The German had a phenomenal run with the Austrian F1 team and even won four consecutive world championships. However, Red Bull struggled against Mercedes in 2014, which led Seb to join Ferrari the subsequent year. The Milton Keynes base is hoping that story doesn’t repeat with Verstappen.
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WATCH THIS STORY: Top 5 wins of Max Verstappen’s F1 career
The Milton Keynes base looks strong this season and is among the favorites. They are fighting against Ferrari at the front of the grid for the championship. That battle is neck-to-neck, as seen in the first two races. Let’s see how Max Verstappen and Red Bull will perform in the Melbourne race next week.