Chestappen

Chestappen
GENERAL
Formula 1
Person 1	Max Verstappen
Person 2	Sergio Pérez
Canonical?	Fanon
Status of Relationship	Friends, Ex-Teammates
IN FANDOM
Type (?)	Slash
Also Known As	1133, 3311
Tropes	• Can't Imagine A Life Without You • Everyone Can See It • Found Family • Friends To Lovers • Heterosexual Life Partners • Soulmates

❝

I have a great relationship with Checo. We've always, I think, been great team-mates. I have a lot of respect for him. He has a lot of respect for me.

—Max about Checo

Chestappen is the slash ship between drivers Max Verstappen and Sergio "Checo" Pérez from the Formula 1 fandom.

Canon

Sergio Pérez and Max Verstappen have been teammates at Red Bull Racing since the 2021 Formula One season. Pérez joined the team after winning the 2020 Sakhir Grand Prix with Racing Point, replacing Alexander Albon as Verstappen’s partner.

Pérez has been in Formula One since 2011, when he signed a contract with Sauber, meaning the season he started partnering Verstappen was his eleventh. For Verstappen, who started in F1 in 2015 with Toro Rosso, it was his seventh.

Their partnership coincided with Red Bull’s return to consistent championship contention. Verstappen won the World Drivers’ Championship in 2021, while Pérez played a key supporting role, including his defensive driving against Lewis Hamilton at the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, which was widely credited with helping Verstappen secure the title. Pérez has since earned multiple victories and podium finishes for Red Bull, contributing to the team’s Constructors’ Championship successes.

Although Verstappen has been the dominant figure in the pairing, often finishing well ahead in the standings, Pérez has occasionally matched or outperformed him in certain races, particularly on street circuits such as Monaco and Baku. Their relationship has generally been described as professional and cooperative, though not without moments of tension. In the 2022 Brazilian Grand Prix, Verstappen refused a team order to let Pérez past, prompting public comments from both drivers. The incident led to speculation about internal friction, though both later affirmed their respect for one another and emphasized team unity.

Off-track, Pérez and Verstappen have presented a cordial relationship, frequently highlighting their teamwork in interviews. Verstappen has credited Pérez with helping Red Bull achieve dominance during the early 2020s, while Pérez has often praised Verstappen’s speed and skill. Their partnership is regarded as one of the more successful teammate combinations in modern Formula One, balancing Verstappen’s status as team leader with Pérez’s ability to deliver strategic results.

Quotes

❝

[Max] holds things in until he finally lets them out, usually on the track.

—Checo about Max

❝

I always worked really well with Checo, he is a great guy honestly. It is very rare that you have a team-mate like him who has always been very good and just a nice guy too.

—Max about Checo

Fanon

On AO3, Chestappen has gained over 1,400 fanfics under its romantic relationship tag. Its platonic tag has over 240 works, of which only about over 60 are purely platonic stories. The ship is the most popular for Sergio "Checo" Pérez, and the third most popular for Max Vestappen (the first two being Lestappen and Maxiel). Numerous fanworks for the pairing can also be found on social media platforms such as Tumblr.

Fans often highlight their contrasting personalities — Verstappen’s intensity and dominance on track paired with Pérez’s more relaxed, affable demeanor — as a source of appeal. Key moments, such as Pérez’s defensive driving in Abu Dhabi in 2021 (which Verstappen praised as “legendary”), their podium celebrations, and playful exchanges in media appearances, are frequently cited in fan spaces as examples of loyalty.

Fandom

FAN FICTION

Checo/Max tag on AO3

Checo & Max tag on AO3

TUMBLR

Chestappen tag on Tumblr

Gallery