MAX VERSTAPPEN and Lando Norris are going head-to-head in the F1 Drivers’ World Championship.
This weekend, the motorheads face off against each other at the United States Grand Prix.
Young pretender Norris, 24, trails the current world champion by 52 points with just six rounds remaining.
The Bristol-born driver can’t afford any slips as he aims to close the gap at the top.
Away from the track, the pair live glam lives you would expect from two of the world’s best boy racers.
Verstappen, worth a reported £165million, has splashed his cash on a £5million car collection and boasts a stunning partner in Brazilian beauty, Kelly Piquet.
While playboy Norris, the heir to a £205million fortune, enjoys a jet-set life and has dated a string of the world’s most beautiful women.
SunSport compares the champ and the challenger’s lifestyles.
Money, money, money
One thing the two aren’t short of is money.
Since making his debut in F1 in 2015, Verstappen has established himself as the highest paid driver on the circuit.
In 2022, he signed a five-year deal with Red Bull, described as one of the most lucrative in the history of the sport.
According to reports his contract is worth £45million a year, and is likely to increase if his winning streak continues.
Max also benefits from endorsement deals from brands like G-Star RAW, Red Bull and EA Sports.
The Dutch driver also has his own MV merchandise company, selling caps, clothing and accessories.
Back in 2022, Norris inked a longterm deal with McLaren that will keep him with the team till 2026.
It is believed to be worth around £15million-per-year, which puts him behind Verstappen by some way.
However, he was born into wealth as the second child of businessman Adam Norris, who boasts a £205million fortune.
He grew up in Glastonbury, Somerset with his older brother Oliver and younger sisters Flo and Cisca, and went to nearby Millfield public school, where boarding fees cost more than £40,000 a year.
Fast cars
F1 drivers are renowned for their incredible car collections.
And Max Verstappen’s garage would leave some with envy.
After becoming the youngest ever racer to score a podium finish at the Spanish Grand Prix, aged just 18, Max splashed out on a Porsche 911 GTS R3 worth around £190,000.
His car collection has been heavily inspired by James Bond – he owns a 007-type Aston Martin DB11, a follow-up to the DB10, driven in the movie Spectre that cost around £200,000.
Alongside a 2018 Vantage and a DBS Superleggerais, Verstappen also reportedly bought an Aston Martin Valkyrie that carries a price tag of £2.2million.
Astonishingly, various reports say that Norris doesn’t own a car.
As is one of the perks of the job, McLaren has loaned him several over the years.
Speaking to Scott Mills and Chris Stark on their BBC Sounds podcast, however, he confessed he is not materialistic.
Lando said: “I don’t own many things. I’ve not really treated myself.”
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Ladies’ men
Notoriously, F1 drivers are linked to the world’s most beautiful women.
Verstappen is in a longterm romance with Brazilian model Kelly Piquet.
They began dating in 2020, and have been inseparable since – reportedly living in Monte Carlo together.
She is the daughter of Nelson Piquet, who won three world titles in the 1980s with Brabham.
Kelly was previously in a romance with former Russian F1 star Daniil Kvyat, who she shares a daughter with.
Norris is currently single, after splitting with Portuguese supermodel Margarida Corceiro.
The break-up came months after he joked he had “many girlfriends” during a lie detector test for a Sky Sports segment.
A source told The Sun: “”Lando and Margarida had a fun time together and hung out a lot. But it wasn’t working out so they cooled off. He’s free and single and just wants to focus on his sport.”
Before Margarida, he dated another Portuguese beauty Luisinha Oliveira.
However, she suffered death threats, forcing Lando to say: “Whether it’s about my personal life, me and my girlfriend, especially the amount of hate pages dedicated to Luisa now, it is pretty horrific.
“They are on Instagram and Twitter, they are the main ones.”
Jet set
According to reports, Verstappen lives in a £13million apartment overlooking the Mediterranean sea.
Norris also moved to Monaco, admittedly for financial reasons, where many of his F1 rivals call home.
Verstappen shared glimpses of his home during the coronavirus pandemic, which he and Kelly also share with their two Bengal cats, Jimmy and Sass.
In his spare time he likes to take the water on a Red Bull-branded jet ski, said to be worth around £16,000.
For all his travels around the world, Max is said to have bought a Falcon-900EX private jet from Sir Richard Branson, worth £12million, which costs over £830,000 to maintain.
Norris also loves to fly privately, sometimes bringing along his DJ decks – his favourite pastime – along for the ride.
His need for speed is also fuelled by watersports like water-skiing.
While both boast similarities in their lives, only one can be the next world champion. So, who will it be?
