Barely a weekend goes by on GTPlanet without us talking about one race or another where a GT Academy winner has gone from playing racing games to driving a real racing cars, so it’s a little unusual to find out that it happens the other way round too.
Enter Max Verstappen. Max, son of late 90s mid-order F1 racer Jos, is the youngest person ever to drive a Formula 1 car in a race and the youngest person ever to score points in F1. He even managed a 4th place – aged just 17 – in last week’s madcap Hungarian Grand Prix. He’s also just signed to compete for leading sim racing team Team Redline in the iRacing World Championships.
It probably shouldn’t be too much of a surprise that even an F1 driver loves sim racing. Many top order drivers practice new tracks in racing games and simulator practice is part of every racing driver’s life these days, but taking the decision to do so on an effectively professional basis is relatively unusual. While Max will be more than a little familiar with close-quarters, high-speed racing, eSports is a fiercely competitive discipline so he’s not in for an easy ride.
Team Redline itself is no stranger to welcoming real-life racing drivers. Other team members include Nicky Catsburg, winner of last weekend’s Spa 24 Hours, and GP2 and WEC driver Richie Stanaway. The team also came to fame when team member and iRacing World Champion Gregger Huttu was invited to test an F2000 car at the Skip Barber school for a TV show – with emetic results!
So next time anyone questions your sim-racing obsession, you can point out that not only can it turn you into a real racing driver, but people who race for a living can’t keep away either!
Images from verstappen.nl and TeamRedline.co.uk.
See more articles on iRacing and Max Verstappen.
Late? I believe Jos is still kicking….
In the sentence, late refers to 90’s. i.e. late 90’s being the era of racing.
That would be a reference to the period in which he raced…
As Atze Kerkhof is on Team Redline and he is one of the trainers of Max Verstappen this is not a very strange move.
Check this nice interview Atze gave earlier.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=67DXf95TNmc
A few months ago I downloaded RSR Live Timing for Assetto Corsa and started running laps and placing on some leaderboards. Not long after a guy named Ben Cornett started appearing on the leaderboards, almost always at the #1 or #2 position. Turns out he’s also Team Redline and he now holds the overall Number 1 position in the Pro Rankings of RSR Live Timing for Assetto Corsa.
If you’re going to pick an online racing team to join, Team Redline would be the one. Good choice by Max but I think he probably has a bit of a learning curve ahead of him. I hope he shows up in Assetto Corsa so I can spank his butt!!
If other pro drivers have joined the team, did they attend some virtual race? Is verstappen going to have any?
This is amazing for the future of sim-racing, also it’s great having a future f1 champion representing Team Redline! :)
Good one :)
Kids are getting scholarships to play video games. The world is changing.
More and more the line is blending between virtual and real racing. Bodes well for the future of sim racing and hopefully leads to better and better equipment and games.
GTP Member IMMORTALPILOT is also a member of Team Redline, though I’m pretty sure he doesn’t play iRacing.
He’s not leaving Formula 1 right?
Ha, no.
Though it would be hilarious if he did.
So he’s not ‘making the switch’ to sim racing then, but doing it as well as F1.