Max Verstappen has agreed to split a $250,000 charity donation with Formula E CEO Jeff Dodds, after the all-electric championship boss bet against the Dutchman winning this year's Formula 1 title.
The Red Bull driver clinched his fourth world title on the bounce in Las Vegas last month, having taken nine outright victories this season despite the Milton Keynes-based team not having the best car for most of the campaign.
After Verstappen dominated in 2023, which consisted of 19 wins from 22 grand prix starts, Dodds made a public statement ahead of this year that he would pay $250,000 to charity if any other driver than the Dutchman won the 2024 drivers' title.
Despite the wager being lost after Verstappen clinched the crown again, albeit not as convincingly as many people expected at the start of the season, the 27-year-old had a video call with Dodds ahead of Formula E's Sao Paulo E-Prix season-opener last weekend to discuss the bet.
Verstappen pledged to pay $125,000 to Wings For Life, Red Bull's partner charity, which aims to find a cure for spinal cord injury, while Dodds would pay the remaining $125,000 to More than Equal, a new fund supporting initiatives dedicated to providing greater opportunities for women in motorsport.
“The charity closest to me is Wings For Life and I’m sure they’ll be very grateful; and to support any kind of motorsport and young talent is amazing, so I think it’s a great shout from you," said Verstappen on his video call with Dodds.
"Thank you very much Jeff, I wish you all the best of course, and I’ll be watching the championship [Formula E] during my time off!”
Formula E held a first all-female test during pre-season testing in October, with each of the 11 teams required to run at least one driver in the new Gen3 Evo car which will be raced by the championship's regular drivers this season.
The work undertaken by More Than Equal will look at how to create better pathways and what are the potential barriers that still prevent female drivers from competing on the grid full-time.
“What started as a very tongue-in-cheek ‘bet’ at the start of the season has evolved into a serious commitment to support gender equity within our championship, with the ultimate goal of seeing women competing full-time in Formula E," added Dodds.
“As a first step, the research we have commissioned in partnership with More Than Equal will help us better understand the barriers to entry that women currently face, and how specifically Formula E and our teams can provide greater parity, opportunities and inclusion at the top level of our championship.
“My thanks also go to Max and Red Bul for committing half of the money from my original wager to Wings For Life to support the important work they do around spinal cord research.
"Congratulations to Max on his fourth consecutive world drivers' championship and we look forward to even more competitive racing next season."
