MAX VERSTAPPEN’S anxious mum Sophie Kumpen asked the driver on the telephone what the result of Mercedes’ appeals would be.
Verstappen snatched the F1 world title from Lewis Hamilton following a dramatic overtake with just one lap left of the Abu Dhabi GP.
But the Dutchman had to survive TWO appeals from Mercedes, who fought a four-hour battle to have the result overturned.
A nervous Kumpen spoke to her son in the meantime, questioning what the decision would be.
She said, as reported by HLN: “What do you think they are going to do with that complaint …?”
The 46-year-old was also asked by her son how many worried trips to the toilet she had to make while Verstappen was on the track.
She said: “He asked how often I went to the toilet during the race.
“Oh well, it’s nice to get him on the phone, of course you want to grab him, but I’m glad I heard him already.”
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Hamilton seemed to be cruising towards victory until the safety car was called onto the track with five laps left to race after Nicholas Latifi’s crash.
That cued the barely believable action to unfold, as race stewards allowed five cars in between Hamilton and Verstappen to pass the Brit and unlap themselves.
Verstappen then used his fresher tyres to edge ahead, although replays looked like he had done so before the safety car had left the track.
Protests on both counts were eventually rejected, although Mercedes intend to appeal against the decision.
And Verstappen’s mum also revealed that Hamilton was in fact the better performer on the day.
Kumpen told Dutch newspaper AD: “Let’s face it, Hamilton was stronger today.
“It didn’t look too good until the end, but then my daughter texted me – ‘Safety car! Call on the angels’. And behold, they helped me.
“I can’t count all the candles I lit this week.”
