Red Bull driver Max Verstappen claimed that he wishes to have his own motorsport team in the future. The three-time world champion has already achieved almost everything in the sport and garnered several records to his name in his nearly decade-long career at the pinnacle of motorsport.
Outside of the sport, Verstappen has a passion for sim racing and even has a team named ‘Team Redline’ with whom he competes often in the virtual world. But last year, the Dutch driver had expressed his desire to have his team under the name ‘Verstappen.com’.
The 26-year-old spoke about his wish to run his own team and said:
“I always had this passion of eventually setting up my own team. We started to create Verstappen.com racing. At the moment, it’s three drivers in the GT3 cars. What I also enjoy is to see young talent coming through so that’s why to try and create your own team.”
if red bull keeps f*cking up max might as well just become tp for his own team pic.twitter.com/tNGRWAu2IY
— Sem¹ ☆☆☆ (@Semmieeef1) August 2, 2024
In an interview with Verstappen.com, Max Verstappen also spoke about expanding the project but pointed out that they were still in the ‘early stages’. He said (via RacingNews365):
“Right now, it’s early phases. Using Verstappen.com Racing, we sponsor and support the racing activities of various people close to me via consultations and advice. It all started with the sim racing of Team Redline. Many people still think that sim racing is not professional, but it’s a serious sport, and I invest a lot of hours into it, to prepare and defeat everybody else.”We’re also busy right now at Verstappen.com Racing with Thierry Vermeulen in DTM and GTWC Sprint, and with my father in the rally races, but the goal is to eventually start our own race team. We’ll begin in the GT3-class, and see which way the wind blows.”
Red Bull advisor clarifies the rumors of banning Max Verstappen from sim racing
Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko said that he and Max Verstappen had come to an agreement regarding his sim racing activities on race weekends but had not banned him from competing in the virtual world.
Speaking with Sky Germany, the Austrian said:
“We’ve agreed that in the future, he won’t drive past midnight, even though he has a completely different rhythm of life. But still, situations like this, which are understandably criticized publicly, need to be avoided.”
Max Verstappen was heavily criticized for his sim racing activities during the Hungarian GP weekend as many had attributed his performance and attitude in the main race to his late-night shift on the simulator, racing for his Team Redline.
However, the Dutchman had denied any reports of a ban and clarified that he won’t be doing any sim racing for the next couple of months. Max Verstappen further silenced his detractors after he qualified P1 at the Belgian GP a race later and finished almost six tenths ahead of Charles Leclerc in P2.