Mother insists Verstappen is Belgian

Max Verstappen’s mother says the 17-year-old is in fact Belgian.

The Toro Rosso rookie, now making waves as the youngest ever driver and points-scorer in F1 history, is the son of former grand prix star Jos Verstappen.

Jos is Dutch, and Max now competes with a Dutch racing licence.

But the youngster was, in fact, born in Belgium, the native country of his mother Sophie Kumpen.

Kumpen is a famous female kart star, who fell out badly with Jos some years ago.

Their dispute involved the police and went all the way to court, with Verstappen snr said to have been threatened with jail at one point for alleged harassment and assault.

Now, Kumpen has told Het Laatste Nieuws, a Dutch-language Belgian newspaper, that her son is in fact Belgian.

"The only identification that Max has is Belgian," she claimed.

"He turns 18 on September 30, and on that date, and not before, he can opt for Dutch nationality.

"In the meantime, he is Belgian and nothing else," Kumpen insisted.