Draft:Sophie Kumpen


Sophie Kumpen
Born
Marie-Sophie Kumpen

(1975-10-30) 30 October 1975 (age 48)
Hasselt, Belgium
Occupations
  • Racing driver
  • kart racer
  • social worker
Spouse
(m. 1996; div. 2008)
Children2, including Max
NationalityBelgium Belgian
Karting World Championship career
Debut season1991
Former teamsCRG
Starts4
Wins0
Podiums0
Poles0
Fastest laps0
Best finish9th in 1991 (FA)
Championship titles
1995Trofeo Andrea Margutti

Marie-Sophie Kumpen (born 30 October 1975) is a Belgian former racing driver and kart racer. She is the former wife of Dutch Formula One driver Jos Verstappen, and mother to three-time World Drivers' Champion Max Verstappen.

Born and raised in Hasselt, Kumpen is the daughter of Robert Kumpen, former chairman of KRC Genk, and the cousin of racing driver Anthony. Kumpen began her career in kart racing, competing at four Karting World Championships and winning the prestigious Trofeo Andrea Margutti in 1995, becoming the third woman in history to win a major international karting title after Susanna Raganelli and Cathy Muller. She married Jos Verstappen the following year and retired from racing upon the birth of her son Max in September 1997. Kumpen returned to racing in 2013, competing in the Formido Swift Cup in the Netherlands before suffering a career-ending injury at Zandvoort.

Since retiring from motor racing, Kumpen has taken up a career as a social worker at the OCMW in Maaseik.