Max Verstappen on Rally risks: F1 champion explains why he won’t follow Jos’s path. Max Verstappen explains why he won’t pursue a career in rallying like his father Jos..

F1 | Verstappen is “afraid” of rallying: why he won’t follow his father’s path

While Jos Verstappen has become a respected rally driver, his son Max will never follow in his footsteps. The Dutch champion explained that although he admires what his father has achieved — and even struggles to beat him in the “private” races they organize — he has no intention of pursuing rallying. Off-road racing is thrilling, but it comes with a much higher risk than Formula 1 cars.

It is not uncommon for F1 champions to seek challenges elsewhere in motorsport, either during or after their careers in the Circus. Many explore Endurance racing or GT competitions, while others turn to rallying. From Kimi Raikkonen to Robert Kubica, several notable F1 drivers have tried their hand at off-road racing. Jos Verstappen, father of the four-time world champion, has also earned a reputation as a skilled rally driver.

Max on Jos’s talent and the dangers of rallying

“I find it incredible that he is 53 years old and still manages to beat drivers twenty years younger than him,” Max Verstappen said on the podcast Up to Speed. “Of course, in rallying, a lot depends on studying the course, and I think after running a track a certain number of times, it becomes partly muscle memory. The more you drive, the more natural it feels. But he is really strong.”

“He’s really difficult to beat, even for me,” the four-time world champion continued. “When we run races between us on private tracks, I really have to push to the limit to try to beat him. What he achieves on official tracks is truly impressive.”

However, Max rules out a future in rallying for himself. “I think rallying is amazing, but if you make just one mistake, you end up in a tree. That’s my limit. It’s something I don’t want to do. It’s simply too risky. I know it sounds a bit silly, but in F1 we almost always have barriers that absorb impacts. In my head, it’s different. It’s not a risk I want to take.”

Max Verstappen’s candid admission about the dangers of rallying highlights the specific psychological boundary between circuit racing and off-road competition. While F1 drivers are often viewed as fearless daredevils, their bravery is usually rooted in a calculated environment where Tecpro barriers and vast runoff areas provide a safety net for error. For Verstappen, the “unfiltered” nature of a rally stage—where a split-second misjudgment can lead to a collision with a tree rather than a tire wall—represents a gamble that simply doesn’t align with his personal risk-reward assessment. As he enters the 2026 Formula 1 season with yet another title defense on his mind, it is clear that his focus remains on the precision of the asphalt, leaving the unpredictable forests to his father.