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Max Verstappen and Kelly Piquet shocked the world on Friday morning when they announced that they were expecting a child.
The couple has been dating since 2020 and shared the news on Instagram through a tender black and white photo with their hands on Piquet’s belly.
‘Mini Verstappen-Piquet on the way. “We couldn’t be happier with our little miracle,” the couple wrote.
It has been a turbulent week for four-time champion Verstappen after George Russell accused him of being a ‘bully’ on the grid and threatening him on track.
Kelly is the daughter of F1 legend Nelson Piquet, who won three drivers’ championships in the 1980s, although he was also involved in a racism scandal with Lewis Hamilton.
With all this in mind, Mail Sport guides you through Kelly’s life, her relationship history (including having a child with a former F1 star) and her family background.
Max Verstappen and his girlfriend Kelly Piquet have announced that they are expecting a baby
Mini Verstappen-Piquet on the way. We couldn’t be happier with our little miracle,’ they wrote.
Who is Kelly Piquet?
Piquet was born in Germany in 1988, the daughter of Brazilian F1 legend Nelson and his mother, Dutch model Sylvia Tamsma.
He spent most of his early childhood in the south of France, but also spent time in Brazil and England. His father, who was in the twilight of his F1 career, traveled often.
She has had a varied career, working as a model, stylist’s assistant, public relations professional, blogger, and Marie Claire columnist. The 35-year-old man has a degree in international relations.
In 2015 he took a big step out of the fashion world and became social media manager for Formula E, the premier motorsports championship featuring electric cars. That job kept her incredibly busy.
“I carry three mobile phones with me at all times, covering everything related to online content and social media,” he said.
‘Fashion has always been in the background, to tell the truth. Although it covers my lifestyle and I receive many invitations, time does not allow me to do so. But I think this topic is not restricted or closed and somehow it shines through in my work with Formula.’
In 2017, she began dating a former F1 star, who we’ll talk about shortly, and had a daughter, Penelope, with him in July 2019, although the couple split in December.
Verstappen has taken over parenting duties and they raise Penelope, nicknamed ‘P’, in Monaco. Penelope turned five over the summer and enjoys ballet, as well as accompanying her parents on the races.
Piquet had had a varied career as a model, stylist’s assistant, public relations professional, blogger, columnist and social media manager.
She spent most of her childhood in the south of France, but she is Brazilian and also spent time there and in England.
What is your relationship with Verstappen like?
Verstappen and Piquet first met in Monaco in 2016, when he was just 19 and she was 28. They had lunch with his brother, Nelson Piquet Jr, and reflecting on the evening with Vogue Netherlands in December 2022, Kelly said: ” something magical.” It happened that night.’
That said, they only got together in 2020 after her relationship with another F1 star.
The couple went public with their romance in 2021 when Verstappen shared a photo of them on New Year’s Day. ‘Let’s make 2021 a year to remember in many ways. I wish you all success, love and happiness just as I found mine,’ he wrote.
Verstappen took on Penelope’s parenting duties and they have both revealed in the past that they would like to grow their family.
“I’m not the father, that’s not the goal,” Verstappen said last year. ‘It is always very important that she has a good relationship with her own father, which is what she has. But I see her every day when I’m at home. We get along very well. She’s very pretty.’
Penelope might one day have siblings. “Personally, I would like to have more children,” Piquet told Vogue.
Piquet and Verstappen are quite public about their relationship, occasionally showing photos of each other on their respective Instagram accounts.
In October they dressed up for a night out, with Piquet in a red dress and Verstappen in a white shirt and black suit. ‘Marry the woman Max now,’ wrote one fan.
Piquet regularly accompanies Verstappen on his tour of the Formula One world.
He has a daughter named Penelope from a previous relationship with a Formula One driver.
What is Piquet’s relationship history?
Her first boyfriend was reportedly Antonio Pedro Marcondes Ferraz, although little is known about him.
They got engaged in 2012, just a year after getting together, but called off the engagement in 2013.
Piquet’s most notable relationship was with former AlphaTauri driver (now RB) Daniil Kvyat. He was actually supposed to be Verstappen’s teammate at Toro Rosso, but was promoted to Red Bull ahead of the Dutchman’s debut season.
In 2016, Kvyat was the man Verstappen replaced at the Spanish Grand Prix with Red Bull, and you know how the story goes on track from there.
Piquet and Kvyat are said to have met at several F1 events in 2017, the same year they entered into a relationship.
In July 2019 they had Penelope, but they separated just five months later.
‘December 18, 2019: Nothing in your life can go without a possible replacement. “The end always has a reason,” Piquet said in a cryptic message.
‘When you can’t understand why, that’s okay, time will always give you more answers. Keep moving forward and believe that the best is yet to come.’
She used to be in a relationship with former AlphaTauri driver Daniil Kvyat and had Penelope with him.
His father is three-time F1 champion Nelson Piquet (left), accused of being racist and homophobic towards Lewis Hamilton.
Who is your father?
Kelly’s father is Nelson Piquet, a three-time Formula One champion in the 1980s.
He won 23 races and is known for his rivalry with English driver Nigel Mansell, coming out on top and restricting the Williams star to one championship in 1992.
However, in 2022 he was banned from the F1 paddock and a year later was forced to pay £780,000 in damages for allegedly racist and homophobic comments towards Lewis Hamilton.
A Brazilian court ruled against him after he was filmed on a podcast using an N-word slur against Hamilton, along with a homophobic slur.
Piquet made these comments against the Mercedes driver during an interview in November 2021, commenting on Hamilton’s crash at the British Grand Prix with Verstappen. He used the derogatory Portuguese phrase ‘neguinho’ to refer to the seven-time world champion.
“What I said was poorly thought out and I do not defend it, but I will clarify that the term used is one that has been used widely and historically colloquially in Brazilian Portuguese as a synonym for ‘boy’ or ‘person’ and “It was never intended to offend “Piquet said.
‘I would never use the word I have been accused of using in some translations. I strongly condemn any suggestion that I have used the word with the aim of disparaging a driver because of their skin colour.
“I sincerely apologize to everyone affected, including Lewis, who is an incredible driver, but the translation in some media now circulating on social media is not correct.”