Oracle Red Bull Racing driver and four-time Formula 1 World Champion Max Verstappen pulled off a spectacular comeback at Silverstone, winning “Max vs 100” the largest go-kart race ever staged after starting from 101st on the grid. Verstappen caught up with every driver ahead of him in just 35 minutes, kicking things off with a stunning opening lap in which he overtook 63 karts as he carved his way through the massive field.
The one-of-a-kind race brought together 100 creators, journalists, athletes and personalities from around the world, with every competitor racing identical karts. A driver was eliminated the moment the rear of Verstappen’s kart drew level with the front of theirs.
India had three representatives in the event Red Bull athletes Jonathan Gaming and Techno Gamerz, along with content creator Shreeman Legend. The trio also took part in a practice race against VISA Cash App Racing Bulls driver Arvid Lindblad a day before the main event. Shreeman Legend (Siddhant Joshi), driving Kart No. 33, finished as the highest-placed Indian, taking 32nd position. BGMI star Jonathan Gaming (Jonathan Amaral), in Kart No. 16, finished 36th, while Techno Gamerz (Ujjwal Chaurasia), driving Kart No. 72, came in 39th.
Max Verstappen on the Epic Race
“When I went to the grid and saw 100 karts in front of me, I was a little bit worried,” Verstappen said. “After my first lap with all the carnage, I thought, ‘Okay, we’ve got this under control!’ It started to become really fun, and once I got into a rhythm, I was able to overtake them one by one and saw the gap closing. That was really exciting.”
“It was great to be back in a go-kart again and go back to basics. It reminded me of racing back in the day. I had a great day and it was good to come out with the win.”
For three of India’s biggest gaming and content creators, racing against a four-time Formula 1 World Champion at Silverstone was an experience worlds apart from anything in the virtual space. Yet for the Indian trio, sharing the track with Verstappen turned out to be the biggest takeaway of the day.
Techno Gamerz, who finished 39th in Kart No. 72, said the shift from gaming to real-world racing was an entirely different experience. “It was completely different. In gaming, you’re used to making quick decisions and staying calm when there’s a lot happening on screen, but here everything was real — the speed, the traffic, the contact and the physical side of driving the kart.”
“Once the race started, that competitive instinct kicked in. I was thinking about how to survive the traffic, where I could find space and how I could move forward. And then you remember that Max Verstappen is coming through the field behind you! Honestly, it was an experience I couldn’t even have imagined. This wasn’t even a dream of mine, because I never thought I’d get an opportunity like this.”
For Techno, the most memorable moment came right after Verstappen caught up to him. “Definitely getting to race with Max,” he said. “After he caught me, there was a yellow flag and I ended up driving with him for more than half a lap. Max’s kart was literally just ahead of mine and I was thinking, ‘This is crazy.’ I feel like I got a little taste of what the other drivers must feel when Max overtakes them! Of course, all three of us from India finishing inside the top 40 made us really proud, but actually sharing a track with Max is something I’ll remember for a very long time.”
Shreeman Legend, the highest-finishing Indian in 32nd place, knew all along that Verstappen would eventually come hunting through the field.
“The first priority was to stay out of trouble. With 100 karts around you, there was so much happening that you couldn’t spend the whole race looking behind and worrying about where Max was,” Shreeman said.
“I actually kept checking behind me and for a while I couldn’t see him, so I thought maybe we were safe! My approach was to stay on the road, avoid the chaos and make as few mistakes as possible. But Max was finding gaps and using parts of the circuit that the more experienced karters understood much better than we did. By the time I realised where he was, he had already found his way through.”