Jos Verstappen has cleared up his side of a story that he once abandoned Max Verstappen at a gas station, adamant he didn’t leave him there, he just didn’t speak to him for a week.

Max Verstappen made history in Formula 1 when he became the youngest driver to start an F1 championship race when he lined up on the Australian Grand Prix grid with Red Bull’s junior team, then known as Toro Rosso, in 2015.

Jos Verstappen: I think it’s time to clear up that story…

The 27-year-old has since gone on to win 63 Grands Prix and four World titles while amassing 40 pole positions.

And his father Jos Verstappen played a big role in helping to create the racer that Max has become, often through tough words and tougher actions.

The Red Bull driver recalled in 2022 that his father once left him at a gas station on the back of a disappointing go-karting race.

“My dad said, ‘Stop talking, I don’t want to hear anything, just sit in the back, I don’t want to hear anything about it’,” he said as per ESPN.

“But of course, I kept on trying to have a conversation until at one point he pulled off at a fuel station and said: ‘Get out. Get out and I do not want to hear you anymore.’

“So he kicked me out and he drove off… and this is in the south of Italy.”

Continuing with the story in which he then called his mother to fetch him, Verstappen added: “My dad returned with the van and was like: ‘Get in, but I do not want to hear a word’.”

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But according to the 52-year-old, who has in the past admitted he treated Verstappen “hard”, he never left his son at the gas station.

“I think it’s time to clear up that story,” he told F1 Insider. “The truth is: I didn’t leave him there. I just didn’t speak to him for a week.

“Was that too harsh? Not according to Max. He felt that my attitude had prepared him better for Formula 1.

“That’s why dealing with Helmut Marko, who is also known as an extremely tough guy, didn’t bother him anymore.

“He also appreciates the fact that we kept training with the kart on dry tyres on a wet track. I only sense gratitude from him when it comes to his childhood with me.”

Jos Verstappen believes his son’s childhood also played a role in the man he is today, someone who stands up for himself and isn’t afraid to voice his opinion even if it doesn’t sit well with others.

“He is not arrogant, but direct,” he said of his son being a polarising figure in F1. “Yes, always standing up for yourself was part of my upbringing.

“We always talk about role models for young people. I ask now: What is more of a role model? If you act behind people’s backs or openly say what you think and always stand by your personal values?

“I can only say: How Max behaves in public, how he bluntly says his opinion – that makes me just as extremely proud of my son as his sporting successes. Many people don’t know the real Max. On the track, he is unconditionally aggressive, and he has to be.

“But in private he is a calm, extremely balanced, friendly soul. Someone who wants harmony and who listens carefully and then draws his conclusions.”

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