Verstappen Impresses: Victory at Nordschleife and Praise from F1 Rivals

Verstappen: Victory at Nürburgring Could Boost His F1 Dominance

Max Verstappen’s recent victory in the GT3 endurance race at Nordschleife has not only solidified his position among his Formula 1 colleagues, but could also have made him an even more formidable driver, according to his rivals.

With Red Bull’s permission, Verstappen participated in the four-hour Nürburgring Endurance Series race on the 13-mile Nordschleife circuit, known as “the Green Hell”. The four-time world champion tested the circuit earlier this year under the alias “Franz Hermann”, before obtaining his permit during the weekend between his F1 Grand Prix victories in Monza and Baku. Verstappen and his teammate Chris Lulham, a simulator driver turned real-life racer, won in a Ferrari 296 entered by Emil Frey Racing, beating the next car by 24.5 seconds.

“We have been preparing for that for a while… it was a very nice two days,” Verstappen told reporters in Singapore. “Running a bit in the wet, in the dry, just gaining more and more experience was nice. And of course, winning is an extra bonus.”

Max Verstappen

Verstappen’s focus is now on achieving his third consecutive F1 victory at this weekend’s Singapore Grand Prix, which could vindicate McLaren’s repeated claims that the Dutchman is a disruptive element in this year’s drivers’ championship. The ability to seamlessly switch between series is impressive. Verstappen competed against a group of drivers with regular experience on the Nordschleife circuit, considered one of the most dangerous in the world. It hosted the German Grand Prix and where Niki Lauda’s famous accident occurred in 1976. His victory in GT3 generated an inevitable question before Sunday’s Singapore Grand Prix about whether the experience has made Verstappen, the best Formula 1 driver at the moment, even stronger.

“Does it make me a better driver? I’ve been doing this in the simulator for many years, so doing it now in real life isn’t very different,” Verstappen said. “But it definitely doesn’t hurt, I think I can say that.”

Max Verstappen

Alex Albon, Williams driver and former teammate of Verstappen for two and a half years at Red Bull, agreed. “There’s a lot to gain from driving different cars, something like your ‘vocabulary’,” said Albon. “You read a book, you increase your vocabulary. You drive different cars, you increase what we call our ‘toolbox’. You learn different ways to drive fast and discover different techniques, different challenges, different criteria in terms of limitations with the car and how you drive around it.”

Lando Norris of McLaren stated that this simply underscored the fact that the Red Bull driver is the benchmark against which the rest of the F1 grid must measure themselves. “The fact that he can participate in any series and probably be the best demonstrates how good and great he is,” Norris said. “I’ve said it many times. I think he was born to be, and always will be, one of the best, if not the best, in Formula 1.” The striking thing about the media day in Singapore was the excitement of other drivers when talking about Verstappen’s extracurricular activity. While other drivers, such as 24 Hours of Le Mans winners Nico Hülkenberg and Fernando Alonso, have participated in other events, the fact that Verstappen chose the fearsome Nordschleife as his first race outside of F1 impressed his rivals. Pierre Gasly, another former teammate from Alpine, was impressed and would like to find a way to join Verstappen in the future.

“I think it’s just incredible,” said the Frenchman. “Nordschleife is an iconic race track. I think it’s crazy. There’s really nothing like it. It’s great that Max has the opportunity to organize this kind of thing. I think, ultimately, it’s great. He got to a point where he has his team, he has his cars.

Pierre Gasly

“He has a good setup to just go and do these types of races. I think it’s great for the sport. Ultimately, I wouldn’t mind joining him in the future in some of these races,” he added. The eyes of Haas rookie Oliver Bearman lit up when asked if he had seen any highlights from Verstappen’s race weekend. “I’m a big fan of Max,” Bearman said. “It was really cool to see him.” I saw some highlights and also saw his pole lap, in which he had to overtake a car on the grass. It was great.” There was an extra element for Bearman to enjoy, as he had crossed paths with Verstappen’s teammate, Lulham, early in their careers. “I was karting with him when I was 7 or 8 years old,” Bearman added. “He was always very fast and very, very good and then, of course, he went into sim racing and was like the best sim racer in the world. And now, you know, he’s been doing the GT World Challenge this year, but racing with Max at the Nordschleife, that must be an incredible experience.”