Kelly Piquet's family: All about Max Verstappen's girlfriend's family and her racing heritage

Max Verstappen's girlfriend, Kelly Piquet, is a notable figure in the F1 paddock. While the Dutchman often appears as her direct lineage into the racing paddock, the Piquet name weighs heavily in the racing leagues and has a vast history with F1.

The Brazilian model was born to three-time F1 world champion Nelson Piquet and Dutch model Sylvia Tamsma. Nelson made his debut on the F1 grid in 1978 and drove for three teams in his maiden year.

He then joined Parmalat Racing, with whom he claimed his first world championship. Piquet achieved success with Fila Sport and Williams in his following championship-winning campaigns as he made his last F1 start in 1991.

With Nelson winning three world championships in the 1980s, his children were bound to have easy access to the world of racing. Nelson Piquet Jr. (born in 1985) and Julia Piquet (born in 1992) are her biologically related siblings.

The former eventually made it into F1 and drove for Renault during the 2008 and 2009 seasons. However, his contributions to the F1 sphere are viewed with a grim eye as he was famously involved in the Crashgate scandal.

Meanwhile, Julia Piquet remained under the radar as she focused on completing her education. But, she soon met revered NASCAR driver Daniel Suarez in 2012 and started dating the Mexican in 2019 before tying the knot with him last year.

On the other hand, Nelson Piquet Sr. also had one more marriage, and Pedro, Geraldo, and Marco are Kelly's step-siblings. Pedro tried to follow in his father's footsteps but ultimately failed as he was unable to leave a mark on any F1 team with his subpar performances in the FIA F3 and F2 championships.

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How has Kelly Piquet's relationship with Max Verstappen evolved over the years?

Kelly Piquet (L) and Max Verstappen (R) at the F1 Grand Prix of Brazil - Source: Getty

Kelly Piquet's most obvious racing connection comes down to Max Verstappen. The Red Bull driver has won four world championships since he began dating the Brazilian model and is in a fight with McLaren drivers for the 2025 title.

However, Piquet was earlier in a relationship with former Red Bull driver Daniil Kvyat, with whom she had a daughter, Penelope, in 2019. But the pair soon split apart, and a year later, she began dating Verstappen.

Since then, she has welcomed another daughter in the form of Lily with the Dutchman a few weeks ago, and Verstappen enjoyed her first Father's Day recently:

"Happy Father’s Day to the best I could ask for."

Talking about her relationship with the reigning world champion, she told TVI:

"I breathe motorsport. It is something that comes very naturally to me. And in the end, I married an F1 driver. Well, not married yet, but I did start a family... It was not consciously planned. I have had several relationships with men who were not, but it was meant to be that way."

Thus, Kelly Piquet has vast lying connections to the racing world with her father, siblings, and partner deeply integrated with the motorsport sphere.