Max Verstappen reckons it may be ‘harmful’ to solely deal with Method 1 after the four-time world champion’s endurance racing journey on the Nordschleife.
Final weekend Verstappen raced a Porsche Cayman 718 GT4 CS within the four-hour ADAC ACAS Cup to acquire a GT3 licence for the ‘Inexperienced Hell’ – a mission that proved profitable as he obtained the permit via committee decision.
And it ought to come as no shock that the Dutchman later confirmed his “dream” to race the Nurburgring 24 Hours as Verstappen’s love for endurance racing has lengthy been recognized.
He lately shocked followers by finishing a Nurburgring check underneath the ‘Franz Hermann’ pseudonym, whereas Verstappen additionally owns a GT crew and he has refused to commit his future to F1 past 2028.
That’s the 12 months his present Crimson Bull contract expires and he has beforehand revealed that when his ardour for the championship wanes, he shall depart. Final 12 months after making his 2 hundredth grand prix begin, for instance, he said he’s in the second half of his career.
“All of it is determined by your mindset as a driver, as a result of in case your mindset is about on Method 1 and you don’t want to vary that notion, then you definately’re speaking to a wall,” stated Verstappen forward of this weekend’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
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Picture by: Jan Brucke/VLN
“Typically with among the drivers that I am near, all of them dream of Method 1. I at all times advise that hold the choices open simply in case it does not work out, as a result of not everybody at all times will get the chance, regardless that you is likely to be ok.
“I additionally do assume that with endurance racing, there are plenty of alternatives to have a superb profession. Simply to stare blindly on Method 1 generally is a hazard.”
It speaks volumes about the place he would possibly see his future in racing. Verstappen has stated he isn’t thinking about racing till his 40s, one thing fellow world champions Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso have finished, but it surely doesn’t imply he’ll cease altogether.
This separates him from plenty of the world champions of the present century, who’ve restricted themselves to simply F1 moderately than the early days of grand prix racing, the place the likes of Stirling Moss and Juan Manuel Fangio additionally contested sportscar occasions.
So it’s in all probability no shock that Verstappen holds big admiration for one of many few current world champions to have proven curiosity in different forms of racing: Alonso. The Spaniard is a two-time Le Mans 24 Hours winner, plus has contested the Daytona 24 Hours, Indianapolis 500 and even the Dakar Rally.
“What he has finished earlier than, like going into endurance, even doing Dakar for instance, it is fairly insane,” stated Verstappen in Baku.
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Picture by: A.S.O.
“It simply reveals that he is additionally simply enthusiastic about racing, it does not matter if it is a Method 1 automobile or not.”
Verstappen clearly values the fervour of racing above all else. He’s already achieved his dream of changing into world champion, he has sufficient cash within the financial institution and is beginning to construct a household away from the monitor as accomplice Kelly Piquet lately gave delivery.
These are examples of varied elements that would drive Verstappen away from F1 on the finish of 2028. Sportscar racing, in the meantime, would swimsuit his way of life given the 2025 World Endurance Championship marketing campaign, for instance, has simply eight races.
However staying in single-seaters after F1 is seemingly not going to occur, as he wrote off any probability of trying the Triple Crown – achieved by profitable the Monaco GP, the Le Mans 24 Hours and the Indianapolis 500.
“Le Mans, sure, however I am not within the triple crown. I get pleasure from watching IndyCar. I don’t have to drive it myself,” he stated.
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