Max Verstappen skipping Kelly Piquet's sister wedding enhances breakup tension

Max Verstappen issued a defence of his girlfriend Kelly Piquet and called for an end to online abuse, after the Brazilian model issued a public response on Instagram to unsavoury rumours and accusations that have been made against her.

Piquet, 35, issued an emotional statement on her Instagram account on Tuesday asking social media users to stop spreading ‘falsehoods’ about her.

She stated that she had ‘in the past three years been navigating a strange and upsetting wave of accusations’, some of which relate to her previous relationships, with the 35-year-old having dated Russian Formula One driver Daniil Kvyat.

Hate has no place in this world. We know what’s true within our family and we are very happy together. I love you,’ he added with a heart emoji.

Piquet, who is the daughter of former Formula One driver Nelson Piquet, has a high profile within the sport and online, currently boasting 1.5million followers on Instagram.

‘A note from me and a gentle reminder to all…’ Piquet began.

‘The online world can be a wonderful place for various reasons, but a very scary one when wrong information and lies are thrown around.

‘I am unsure of the appropriate approach to address hate stemming from falsehoods. I have considered composing a response and letting it stand.

She was born in Homburg, Germany and had spent most of her childhood living in France before moving to Brazil.

The 35-year-old began dating Kvyat in 2017 with the pair having a daughter, Penelope in 2019.