Formula One drivers try to finish on top, downhill: Max, Checo, Yuki and Daniel race soapboxes ahead of Canada GP.
Ahead of the highly anticipated Canada Grand Prix, the fastest drivers in the world from Oracle Red Bull Racing and Visa Cash App RB teams competed in F1’s first Soapbox Race. The competition was chaired by Montreal-based Red Bull Cliff Diving athlete Molly Carlson, alongside professional Canadian snowboarder, Craig McMorris. The course, set at the iconic Parc Olympique in Montreal, had a series of challenges for Max Verstappen, Sergio Perez, Daniel Ricciardo and Yuki Tsunoda.
Cheered on by fans from both teams, the drivers had to make it past the great Canadian crossing, go through a snowstorm, survive a chicane and a series of rollers. The teams battled it out for the best qualifying times before embarking on by a one v one race to the finish.
At the end of the race, it seemed height and weight advantage were key deciding factors for soapbox pure performance. Max had flown downhill the quickest, with Daniel in second, and Checo following closely behind.
Max said: “When everyone’s in the same soapbox, there’s not that much difference, the heaviest one usually has a little bit of an advantage and I think I was the heaviest one of the four so you know, when you go downhill, that is a bit of an advantage.”
Checo said: “It was good fun, a bit hectic. Unfortunately, I couldn’t jump enough, I really tried my best, but I just couldn’t leave the ground as much as I wanted. I always knew it was going to be between Max and Daniel, because of the weight and going downhill. I could have always told you the one who was going to lose was Yuki because he’s quite a lot lighter than even myself!”
Daniel said: “I’ve never done a soapbox race before. Zero horsepower was scarier than 700 horsepower! We had the weight discussion at the beginning and said that Max would have the advantage over me, and then Checo and then Yuki – we were right!”
Yuki said: “The main target was to drive fast and not brake at the chicane, in the end I achieved it so I was happy, that was my strategy, but it didn’t work out!”
- Each driver received their own personalised soapbox, complete with their names and race numbers.
- 80 fans from Oracle Red Bull Racing and Visa Cash App RB were invited to watch the racing live and up close, as well as meet Max, Checo, Yuki and Daniel.
- The course was split into a few key challenges: The great Canadian crossing, complete with cut outs of hockey players, maple leafs, and raccoons. A snowstorm that blocked the drivers view as they travelled through near whiteout conditions. A prairies inspired chicane testing their driving skills, with tight turns that forced the drivers to rely heavily on their steering to navigate and finally, a drive through the rocky mountains ramp of rollers to finish off their run.
- For qualifying each driver took one run down the track to put up their fastest time, resulting in pole position for Max, followed by Daniel, Checo, and Yuki.
- The event culminated in one v one racing down the track between Checo and Yuki, and Max versus Daniel.
Soapbox races are not new to Montreal, with the last Red Bull Soapbox in Canada held in 2015 near Victoria Square. Red Bull Soapbox will be coming back this summer to Edmonton on June 22, with 60 teams competing in their homemade soapboxes for a chance to be the hero of the day.
