Dutchman Robert Doornbos, who was at the beginning of the successful Red Bull Formula 1 team, received a serious blow to the head when thieves decided to take his expensive watch.
He worked for Red Bull as a tester in 2006 and drove three Formula 1 Grands Prix. This ended his Grand Prix career, which included a total of 11 starts without a point gain.
He tried his luck overseas in the IndyCar series, but then went into business. He was one of the founders of a successful company producing sex toys, and as a co-commentator he brings Dutch fans the successes of their compatriot Max Verstappen in F1.
Recently, however, the 41-year-old native of Rotterdam experienced a big drama himself. At night, he was ambushed by a pair of thieves in front of his own house in Amsterdam. Although the attack took place a month ago, he decided to talk about it only now.
Police believe the violent robbery was planned and the thieves used a tracking device to track his car’s movements. The former F1 pilot was hit on the head, then his precious Rolex watch and mobile phone were stolen.
“It was a rough experience. I will no longer wear an expensive watch, only an Apple Watch. At least I can count my steps this way,” Doornbos said to the RTL Boulevard website.
According to the police, the violent act happened 15 minutes after midnight. “After parking, the victim got out of the car when almost immediately an unknown man approached him, who accelerated his pace. He was holding a bat in his hand and hit the victim on the head. While the man was defending himself and calling for help, he was robbed of valuables with the participation of another criminal watch and phone. The pair of rapists, aged between 25 and 30, then ran away,” the official press release states.
