The world of motorsports is full of family connections. In the paddock you can meet both the heir to an entire motorsport dynasty and a driver whose parents moved to a trailer to follow his career. Even after entering Formula 1, the family does not abandon the driver: we often remember stories in which the father participates in his son’s career as a manager, mentor or simply as an observer. And although fathers have a greater influence on their children’s career paths, mothers are not left out. In honor of Mother’s Day, we’ve compiled five stories about five women, mothers of modern F1 drivers.
Related materials
5 children of Formula 1 champions who never reached the legendary status of their parents
Sophie Kumpen, mother of Max Verstappen
Sophie is the only mother with racing experience. In her youth she was a successful karting driver, competing in Formula A, Formula K and Formula Super A and won the Andrea Margutti Trophy in 1995. Surprisingly, Sophie and future Red Bull boss Christian Horner first met in 1989 at the Junior World Karting Championship. At that time Sophie was among the top 10 in the world and she was competing with future stars such as Giancarlo Fisichella, Jarno Trulli, Dario Franchitti and Jan Magnussen.
Sophie Kumpen with little Max Verstappen
Photo: from Max Verstappen’s personal archive.
Sophie is believed to have had a successful career in the Formula series, but after marrying Jos Verstappen she had to make a difficult decision: she gave up her dream and took care of her children, while supporting her husband. In 2013, Kumpen attempted to return to racing, but after an injury sustained in the Formido Swift Cup touring championship, the path to the sport was completely closed to her. Sophie put a lot of effort into raising her son. Max inherited such a fighting character from her.
Related materials
Horner told how he competed in karting against Verstappen’s mother
Nicole Piastri, mother of Óscar Piastri
While Oscar enjoys a successful debut season in F1, his mother posts hilarious posts on social media. Unlike other parents, Nicole does not behave modestly: she jokes a lot, makes fun of her son and enjoys the status of a modern mother. Now about 60 thousand people have subscribed to Nicole’s account, who liked her attitude towards her son’s career.
After Oscar took pole position in the sprint qualifying in Qatar, he wrote on his account: “I just canceled my Pilates class at 7 in the morning…” Previously, Nicole made headlines for her son’s presentation on the catwalk in Japan. She tried to take advantage of Oscar’s achievement to get rid of his old glasses.
Nicole Piastri in the paddock
Photo: twitter.com/NicolePiastri
Nicole also doesn’t miss the opportunity to leave comments on other people’s posts. After exchanging helmets with Fernando Alonso, Óscar published a group photo with the Spaniard. Below the post, one user wrote: “Great father and great son.” Nicole didn’t let it go and replied, “I’m pretty sure he would remember.” Óscar, in turn, takes his mother’s jokes in stride: “This is normal, she is my mother, she is allowed!”
Related materials
The McLaren leader began to make frequent mistakes. Is Norris really a great driver?
Pascale Leclerc, mother of Charles Leclerc
Charles Leclerc’s family history is closely linked to motor sport: his father, Evre Leclerc, was a racing enthusiast who competed in karting and Formula 3, and his mother cut drivers’ hair in a hair salon near the clue. Now Pasquale has his own beauty salon and cuts the hair of motor racing stars; David Coulthard also visited her on her day. Pascale’s regular clients also include Charles: before every Grand Prix at home, her mother traditionally cuts his hair.
Little is known about Pascale’s life: she always behaves discreetly, rarely appears in public and does not comment to the media. She is very devoted to her family and she is very concerned about her children. She perhaps more than other parents. Her family had to endure two tragedies: in 2014, Charles’s close friend and godfather, Jules Bianchi, suffered a fatal accident at the Japanese Grand Prix; Then, in 2019, due to an accident in Spa, Antoine Hubert, another friend of the Monegasque, died. This has taken its toll on Pascale’s worries, given that her two children are running away.
Related materials
Exclusive
Would Verstappen have won without the safety car and why was Perez so upset? Analysis of the Las Vegas scenario
Claire-Anne Stroll, mother of Lance Stroll
Unlike most moms, Claire-Anne is a true businesswoman. She is a fashion designer and has her own sportswear brand, Callens. Although Lawrence Stroll’s family made a fortune through fashion investments and international distribution, the project is entirely Claire-Anne’s. He literally created comfortable sportswear for her – her love of sports and the outdoors became the inspiration for her brand.
Lance Stroll’s sister, Chloe, and his mother, Claire-Anne.
Photo: from the personal archive of Claire-Ann Stroll.
As the mother of a pilot, she cares deeply for Lance. This year she has been involved in a large number of accidents and has won cars worth several million dollars. No wonder Claire-Anne is rumored to be putting “a lot of pressure” on her son and her husband: she is allegedly persuading Lawrence to sell the Aston Martin team and Lance to end his career at Formula 1.
Related materials
Leave Stroll alone. The son of the Aston owner will leave F1 when he sees fit
Ana María Díaz Martínez, mother of Fernando Alonso
Ana María represents the majority of the mothers in the paddock. When Fernando started karting, she worked at a local shop. While her husband José Luis Alonso rejoiced at her son’s success on the track, she rejoiced at her good grades and achievements in school. Together with her husband, she took Fernando to competitions every weekend, sewed him racing clothes herself, and adjusted the size of his jumpsuit as he grew. Mom supported Fernando in all of her endeavors and he paid her in full. After his first victories in Formula 1, she forbade her mother from working and took charge of the family’s financial support. Already in the 2023 season, Fernando decided to pay tribute to Ana María by adding her maiden name. In official Formula 1 documents he appears as Fernando Alonso Díaz.
Alonso’s car after the accident in Melbourne 2016
Photo: Robert Cianflone/Getty Images
But Ana María went through a lot during her son’s career. In 2016, Fernando was involved in a terrible accident with Esteban Gutiérrez during the Australian Grand Prix. Then Alonso found himself in a “washing machine” that was spinning at a speed of 300 km/h. He later admitted that he was very worried about his mother, because he knew she was watching this race on television. She reacted surprisingly calmly to her call: Nando even thought that her parents were more disturbed by the call itself, distracting them from the race in progress.
Related materials
Video
Phew, it worked! 10 biggest accidents in Formula 1 without serious injuries
THE NAIS IS OFFICIAL EDITOR ON NAIS NEWS