Max Verstappen is understood to have been grounded by his Red Bull overlords after they found out he’d been simulating all night instead of sleeping before their races this season.
The world championship winning driver, who has previously irked his bosses by spending hours in the bathroom, declining vegetables at tea-time and leaving his room looking like a bomb site, is said to be annoyed by Red Bull’s decision to not only keep him indoors for the next two weeks with no iPad or phone, but also take away his Playstation 5, it’s simulator steering wheel and all his driving games which he plays every night before bed.
BUDAPEST, HUNGARY – JULY 20: Third placed qualifier Max Verstappen of the Netherlands and Oracle Red Bull Racing attends the press conference after qualifying ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Hungary at Hungaroring on July 20, 2024 in Budapest, Hungary. (Photo by Bryn Lennon/Getty Images)
“It’s really unfair. Charles Leclerc’s mum let’s him stay up til half ten,” an outraged source close to the 26-year-old fumed on hearing of the the measure to curtail his late-night racing.
“And Fernando Alonso’s even gets to eat his dinner in the sitting room whenever he wants!”
“Max is one of the most successful F1 drivers of his generation, yet Red Bull are acting far too strict with him. It wouldn’t surprise me if he moved to Ferrari next year as, according to TikTok, they’re allowed to stay up late and have house parties if they like.”
While the Belgian-Dutch driver has expressed his disappointment about losing his driving simulator, all is not lost as Paddy Power News understands it has given the 26-year-old an opportunity to revisit some retro gaming favourites on a dodgy mini PC from Temu.
“He’s the dogs b*llocks on Mario Kart when he plays as Yoshi and does the Leaf Cup. Wins on 200cc every single time,” confirmed the PR team at Red Bull.
“Although he finds himself in hot water now, we are more than happy for him to dodge banana skins left by Toad and avoid red shells thrown at him by Princess Peach because this sets him up well for when Lewis Hamilton tries to crash into him on a real track.”
“It might not be too long before you see Max throw squid ink over the helmet of another racer, or race delegates leaving stars in various places around the track allowing drivers to turn rainbow coloured and drive twice as fast for 10 second periods. Watch this space.”
*Paddy Power’s breaking news coverage is 100% fiction, don’t believe it for a second
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