Max Verstappen defeated on eve of United States Grand Prix

Max Verstappen is almost unbeatable on the track, on the padel court, the now three-time world champion knows what losing is. Last weekend, Verstappen lost the final of a high-profile padel tournament to none other than Charles Leclerc. The tournament was held to raise money for charity.

Leclerc did have a slight advantage: his partner in the final was Thomas Johansson, a former Grand Slam winner in tennis. Verstappen found his friend Norman Nato - active in Formula E on behalf of Andretti Global - at his side. It was also thanks to Nato that it is known who won the match between them.

Leclerc responds with a jab

On Instagram, Nato posted a picture with the three including Verstappen. In it, the Frenchman wrote: "Great fun playing in the very first @alltime.mc padel tournament together with athletes from all different sports and backgrounds. A lot of fun and just a little bit of competition." Charles Leclerc responded to that post with: "You forgot to mention that you lost in the final I think."

Among drivers, padel is quite popular. Not only Verstappen and Leclerc are known to do this sport regularly, but , , and Alex Albon can often be found on a court somewhere in the world. It is not known whether they also participated in the tournament in Monaco.