Max Verstappen will start from the back of a 101-driver field at Silverstone on September 16, attempting to overtake 100 rivals in a unique karting race.

Max Verstappen is taking on one of the most unusual racing challenges of his career.

The four-time Formula 1 world champion will compete against 100 other drivers in a special karting event at Silverstone on September 16.

Dubbed “Max vs 100,” the race will feature a custom-built karting circuit and see Verstappen start at the very back of a 101-driver grid.

Verstappen Must Overtake 100 Rivals

The challenge is simple on paper but extremely difficult in practice.

Verstappen must work his way through the entire field before time runs out, making traffic management and overtaking the biggest challenges of the event.

Max Verstappen will start last in a 101-driver karting race at Silverstone.

The field will include Red Bull athletes, celebrities, content creators, and amateur racers.

Red Bull has already confirmed several participants, including ultramarathon runner Arda Saatçi, basketball player Chris Matthews, freestyle mountain biker Matt Jones, and streamers TheGrefg, Caedrel, and TheDonato.

The complete entry list has not yet been announced.

A Return to Verstappen’s Karting Roots

The event is particularly fitting for Verstappen because karting was where his racing career began.

The Dutchman started karting at just four years old and spent years competing before progressing through the junior categories and eventually reaching Formula 1.

Verstappen began racing karts at four and says the discipline taught him the fundamentals of racing.

Verstappen says karting teaches many of the fundamentals required in motorsport, including starts, defending, overtaking, and understanding available grip.

He also believes that his extensive experience in karting allows him to quickly rediscover the feeling of a kart whenever he returns to one.

A Custom Silverstone Circuit

The karting track has been specifically designed for the event by French driver and race director David Terrien.

Terrien has already tested the layout alongside two-time iRacing world champion Sebastian Job.

David Terrien designed the custom Silverstone karting circuit specifically for Verstappen’s 100-driver challenge.

McLaren says its appeal against the Monaco Grand Prix result is aimed at protecting sporting integrity while also recovering points lost from Oscar Piastri’s penalty.

Why McLaren challenged the Monaco result

Several drivers were penalized during the Monaco Grand Prix for allegedly exceeding the pit-lane speed limit.

Among them were Oscar Piastri and Pierre Gasly.

It was later discovered that the timing loop used to calculate the speed at the entrance to Monaco’s pit lane had produced false positives.

Oscar Piastri was among the drivers penalized for an alleged pit-lane speeding infringement at Monaco.

Most drivers had already served their penalties during the race.

Gasly was different. The Alpine driver received two five-second penalties after the race, dropping him from third to seventh.

Alpine subsequently requested a right of review, and the stewards overturned both penalties, restoring Gasly to the podium.

That decision also changed the positions of Isack Hadjar and Piastri.

McLaren says the process was unfair

McLaren and Red Bull subsequently launched appeals because they questioned why Gasly was able to have his penalties removed while other drivers did not receive the same opportunity.

Stella says this is the central issue behind McLaren’s appeal.

McLaren argues that the treatment of Gasly’s penalties raised broader questions about fairness between competitors.

According to Stella, the team wants the FIA appeal process to clarify the principle that should apply equally to all competitors.

He stressed that the issue goes beyond McLaren’s own interests and concerns the integrity of Formula 1.

The technical question of how the pit-lane speed was calculated is important, but Stella considers the broader procedural issue even more significant.

McLaren also wants its championship points back

There is also a direct competitive reason for McLaren’s appeal.

Piastri had already served his penalty during the Monaco race, meaning McLaren says the team suffered a tangible loss that could not be appealed in the same way as Gasly’s post-race sanctions.

McLaren says Piastri’s penalty had a direct impact on its championship points.

Stella therefore described the appeal as having two objectives.

The first is to establish a fair principle for all competitors. The second is to address the impact the Monaco decision had on McLaren’s own constructors’ championship campaign.

The FIA International Court of Appeal’s decision could therefore have implications beyond the Monaco result itself.

For McLaren Monaco appeal, the team is arguing that the case is about more than recovering lost points. Stella says the outcome should clarify how sporting procedures are applied when an initial penalty is later found to have been based on incorrect data.

Kimi Antonelli is set to take a 20-place grid penalty at Monza, but Mercedes could use his fifth power unit to introduce its latest ADUO engine developments.

Antonelli will take a major grid penalty

Antonelli arrives in Italy leading the drivers’ championship by 59 points over Lewis Hamilton and George Russell.

However, Mercedes has already confirmed that the young Italian will receive a 20-place grid penalty after introducing his fifth power unit at Monza.

Kimi Antonelli is expected to take a 20-place grid penalty at Monza after Mercedes introduces his fifth power unit.

The penalty could make the weekend difficult, but Mercedes may be using the situation strategically.

Because Antonelli is already facing a significant grid drop, introducing the latest engine specification could allow the team to gain performance while minimizing the competitive cost of the new component.

Russell is also expected to receive the updated engine technology.

Mercedes could answer Ferrari’s ADUO upgrade

Ferrari is expected to introduce its 067/6 power unit with the second ADUO evolution at Monza.

The update is reportedly capable of adding around 15 horsepower, helped by a new Shell fuel formulation. Ferrari has already gained around seven horsepower from its first ADUO-related development since the Austrian Grand Prix.

Ferrari is expected to introduce its second ADUO power-unit evolution at Monza, increasing pressure on Mercedes to respond.

That could significantly reduce Ferrari’s performance deficit to Mercedes.

The Scuderia is also arriving with aerodynamic improvements to the SF-26 after introducing changes to the floor, bargeboard, and diffuser at Zandvoort.

Mercedes therefore faces pressure from both Ferrari’s engine development and McLaren’s recent progress.

The fifth Mercedes engine could be the answer

Toto Wolff previously suggested that Mercedes would not introduce a major engine evolution during the 2026 season.

However, reports from Britain indicate that the fifth power unit could feature revised hardware developed at Brixworth.

The changes reportedly include modifications to the management of the large turbocharger, including its blade configuration.

Mercedes could use its fifth power unit to introduce revisions to the M17 E Performance engine.

The updated M17 E Performance could also benefit from new Petronas fuel technology.

If the power unit produces a measurable performance gain without increasing fuel consumption, Mercedes could restore some of the advantage it enjoyed earlier in the season.

The potential significance extends beyond the works team. The updated engine could eventually be supplied to Mercedes customer teams as well, meaning McLaren could also benefit from the development.

Monza could change the championship picture

The Italian Grand Prix could therefore become a critical moment in both championships.

Ferrari will arrive with an important power-unit development, while Mercedes could respond with its own engine evolution.

Monza could reveal whether Mercedes can maintain its advantage over Ferrari and McLaren as the championship enters its decisive phase.

Mercedes has already admitted that its budget limits how many major upgrades it can introduce during the season.

That makes the timing of the engine update especially important.

If the upgraded Mercedes power unit delivers the expected performance, the team could regain some of the advantage it has lost to Ferrari and McLaren.

If it does not, the championship battle could become significantly tighter heading into the final races.

The next major aerodynamic development for the W17 is expected later in the season, with a larger package reportedly planned for Malaysia on October 4.

For Mercedes engine upgrade plans, Monza could therefore be one of the most important weekends of the 2026 season.