Max Verstappen and Kelly Piquet welcome baby girl ahead of Miami Grand Prix

Max Verstappen, the Formula 1 champion from Red Bull Racing, and his partner, Kelly Piquet, have announced the birth of their baby girl, Lily, just ahead of the 2025 Miami Grand Prix.

Verstappen’s absence during media day on Thursday was confirmed by Red Bull Racing, explaining that he was expecting a child and would return to the track the following day to prepare for the race weekend.

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Verstappen’s family announcement: baby girl Lily

Max Verstappen and Kelly Piquet had previously announced they were expecting a baby in Abu Dhabi 2024, just before the season finale. Lily, the new baby girl, will be a younger sibling to Piquet's daughter, Penelope, and turns Verstappen into the second father on the Formula 1 grid, along with Nico Hulkenberg.

When asked whether he had any words of advice for Verstappen as a father, Hulkenberg said he hopes his daughter is a good sleeper. Additionally, Lewis Hamilton and George Russell also wished Verstappen the best in his new role as a parent.

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Verstappen’s next steps: balancing family and racing

Lewis Hamilton and George Russell were also quizzed on whether they expected fatherhood to change Verstappen, both personally and professionally, and they had nothing but good things to say to him.

Hamilton was happy for him as he said: "It's such an amazing, special thing. I spoke to him briefly in Saudi and saw how excited he was. Big congrats to him.” Russell, on his part, added that while they are all professionals, fatherhood is a big part of your personal life, "I guess for anyone who's had a kid, it’s a pretty special moment. So yeah, all the best to him. As Nico says, I think for many people, it probably brings things to your life."