Max Verstappen has acknowledged that he participated in a Ferrari test session over the weekend.
Despite taking precautions to ensure his presence was not recognised beforehand, the Red Bull Formula 1 star was spotted driving a Ferrari 296 GT at the Nurburgring Nordschleife last week.
Verstappen used the alias Franz Hermann for his test, while security guards barred outside photographers from the garage so they couldn’t get a good look at the 27-year-old.
However, after sharing a picture of Verstappen visiting the renowned circuit on Instagram with the message, “Nordschleife last Friday,” his own employer has now confirmed his participation.
Verstappen has driven in virtual racing events in the Nurburgring Langstrecken-Serie (NLS) before, but he may be eyeing up a real outing in the competition after it was reported he plans to obtain a Nordschleife permit this year.
Verstappen’s attention turns to Imola
Verstappen – who runs his own GT3 team, Verstappen.com Racing – will now turn his focus back to the world of F1 as he looks to keep pace in the championship battle.
A disappointing day in Miami on his previous outing saw him come home fourth, thus losing more ground to title rivals Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris, both of whom finished on the podium.
He heads to Imola for this weekend’s Emilia Romagna Grand Prix 32 points off top spot, with his chances of winning a fifth consecutive championship in significant peril.
Since neither Liam Lawson nor Yuki Tsunoda, his replacement, can contend at the top of the order, his situation has not been aided by the lack of support from his teammates.
Despite his recent struggles on the track, the 64-time race winner did get some positive news after his first kid with partner Kelly Piquet was born.
