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Four-time world champion Max Verstappen's girlfriend, Kelly Piquet, reshared an emotional video on her Instagram handle to celebrate Mother's Day. The post captured Kelly's sweet moments as a mother, and she loved the surprise edit.
Kelly, 36, is a professional model and social media influencer. She has been dating Verstappen for the last few years, and the couple welcomed their first child, Lily, earlier this month. Before giving birth to Lily, Piquet had another daughter, Penelope, from her previous relationship with former Red Bull driver Daniil Kvyat. She first became a mother five years ago.
Moreover, as the world celebrated Mother's Day on May 11, Piquet's fan pages on Instagram put together her beautiful moments as a mother to Penelope and Lily.
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Kelly Piquet was moved by the video edit as she reshared it on her Instagram story and said:
"The sweetest surprise."
![Kelly Piquet's Instagram story [Image Source: @kellypiquet/Instagram]](https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2025/05/351cd-17470524692291-1920.jpg)
Max Verstappen, meanwhile, was thrilled to become a father for the first time as he welcomed Lily into the world. He skipped the media day of the Miami Grand Prix to stay back with Kelly and witness the birth of his first child.
Upon return to Miami on the following day, Verstappen said that holding his own child in his arms was a special feeling. In the short time that he got to spend with Lily, he enjoyed every moment.
However, his race weekend didn't pan out great. He grabbed a pole start in the qualifying session but lost his lead to Oscar Piastri (P1) and Lando Norris (P2) due to RB21's lack of pace and unreliability. Moreover, an ill-timed pit stop further dropped him down to P4, below George Russell.
With that underwhelming weekend, Verstappen slipped to P3 in the title race with 99 points in six races.
Max Verstappen advised to take a sabbatical from F1
After winning four world titles in a row, Max Verstappen has been struggling to match McLaren in 2025. His quest for a fifth title is getting challenging with every race, as Red Bull's performance has dropped. Moreover, rumors suggest that the Dutchman has a performance clause in his contract that could facilitate an early exit.
Amid this, former F1 world champion Damon Hill has advised Verstappen to take a sabbatical in 2026 and choose his next destination wisely. Talking to BBC’s Chequered Flag podcast, Hill said:
“Red Bull is fighting to retain Max. There is a performance clause, and if they don’t give him that, then he’s free to go wherever he wants. It might be a wise thing to do [to take a year out]; then you can see which way the wind is going to blow after these regulation changes. He’s won four World Championships. He’s won goodness knows how many races. He could sit back and take his pick."
Notably, the engine regulations will be overhauled in 2026, which might reset the pecking order. However, Max Verstappen appears committed to serving his contract with Red Bull until 2028.
