Latest news with #Nürburgring
Car and Driver
3 days ago
- Automotive
- Car and Driver
First Test: 2025 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 Enters Another Dimension
In C/D's exclusive first instrumented test, the new ZR1 hit 60 mph in 2.2 seconds. It also blasted through the quarter-mile in 9.5 seconds at 149 mph. Those numbers make this Corvette ZR1 the quickest rear-wheel-drive car we've ever tested. A thousand horsepower makes a particular sound. It's a compact tornado ripping across the plains, a 30-foot swell curling across a shore break, an airlock blowing out in deep space. It's the sound of a placid afternoon breeze that was minding its own business until the 2025 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 showed up, its twin ball-bearing turbos cramming up to 26.1 psi of boost into its LT7 5.5-liter V-8. The ZR1 is rated at a strangely specific 1064 horsepower at 7000 rpm, and you'd guess that GM aimed for an even thousand and overshot the mark. That's not the case. The horsepower goal was simply "as much as possible," and it turns out that the envelope of possibility extends to four-digit output, a 233-mph top speed, and a yet-undisclosed Nürburgring Nordschleife lap time that's likely to embarrass the $300,000-plus Mustang GTD more than a little. For a frame of reference, this year's Indy 500 qualifying average speed was 231 mph, and you can't buy Álex Palou's Dallara for a starting price of $178,195 at your local Chevy dealer. View Exterior Photos Michael Simari | Car and Driver Strap In It would be disingenuous to claim that the ZR1's performance is easily accessible. When you first climb in, it's best to treat the accelerator pedal the way a bomb-squad crew treats a wired-up bundle of explosives—careful, careful, lest you trigger the boom. Perhaps the ZR1's most important instrument-cluster display is the tire temperature readout, which gleans its information from the TPMS sensors. If the display is blue, that means you'd best not show off while leaving Cars & Coffee. If it's green, that means you'd still best not show off while leaving Cars & Coffee, but your power-oversteer spin will happen slightly farther down the road. If it's red, you're a hero because that means you drove hard enough to actually make the tires hot. View Exterior Photos Michael Simari | Car and Driver HIGHS: Straight-line performance of the gods, aero upgrades, typical excellent Corvette value. We drove the ZR1 at GingerMan Raceway in Michigan, and the morning began with cold rain. That provided a good opportunity to confirm that a rear-wheel-drive car with 1064 horsepower and 828 pound-feet of torque, wearing Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2R tires ("not recommended for driving in wet conditions," per Tire Rack), is not ideal on a chilly, damp day. The ZR1 on wet pavement feels like a normal car on snow, with the front tires washing wide on tight corners at barely more than 30 mph, and the 345/25ZR-21 rears flaring into wheelspin at perhaps 25 percent throttle. Fortunately for us, the skies cleared, the track dried, and eventually the ZR1 got to demonstrate its talents. View Exterior Photos Michael Simari | Car and Driver Shrinks Racetracks GingerMan is a fairly compact circuit—2.1 miles—but the ZR1 is going to make every track feel tight. It's a cheetah let loose in a Chuck E. Cheese, an F-22 flying combat maneuvers in your grandma's attic, a Tyson Fury title fight held in an elevator. The ZR1's acceleration is so explosive that it's hard to find a frame of reference, but let's try. The 2006 Corvette Z06, with its 505-hp LS7 engine, hit 60 mph in 3.6 seconds. The 2025 ZR1 is almost that quick over the next 60 mph—it runs 60 to 120 mph in 3.9 seconds. In 23.8 seconds, you're at 200 mph. And that's with the optional giant rear wing slowing it down. Powering out of GingerMan's penultimate right-hand corner onto the long straight, you head uphill before the track flattens out, and the ZR1's accelerative ferocity makes that gentle transition feel like a launch ramp, the car going just a little bit light over the crest. In just about any other car, there is no crest right there, just a barely discernible transition to flatness. But behind the wheel of the ZR1, reality warps to the power. View Interior Photos Michael Simari | Car and Driver And that power is usable right off the line. The ZR1's 2.2-second 60-mph time is the best number we've ever seen from a rear-wheel-drive car and matches the all-wheel-drive Porsche 911 Turbo S. The Corvette's launch control is very clever, and very adjustable—our best results came with a 3500-rpm launch at 10 percent slip. There's a burnout mode to clean off the tires, which is both useful and a crowd-pleasing warm-up to perform before cracking off a 9.5-second quarter-mile at 149 mph. Mind you, that result was on an unprepped surface. At a drag strip sticky with traction compound, there's surely more to be had. LOWS: Needs a bigger gas tank, normcore interior, brakes and handling don't make proportional gains. Not that this is a drag car, even. The ZR1 is optimized for destroying road-course lap records, especially when fitted with the $1500 ZTK Performance package (magnetic selective ride control and the Cup 2Rs), $13,995 carbon-fiber wheels, and the $8495 Carbon Fiber Aero package. You'll know the aero package by its enormous rear wing, which helps the ZR1 generate more than 1200 pounds of downforce. Up front, the Corvette's forward trunk is sacrificed for cooling and aero, with air flowing up from under the car and through the hood. There are also brake-cooling ducts on the rear fenders and, above those, more ducts to feed cool air to the turbos. Those are the obvious ZR1 tells, but if you're still unsure what you're looking at, the split rear window is the definitive signifier of a ZR1. Besides nodding to the C2 split-window from 1963, the center panel is vented to provide yet more cooling. View Exterior Photos Michael Simari | Car and Driver As the tires warmed up and the track dried out, we began to realize that the ZR1's outsized thrust dictates a particular driving style—quick hands, early on the brakes, but stoic with the throttle until the steering is unwound. It's helpful that the LT7 provides all manner of aural feedback on its state of readiness, but basically you can assume it's ready to pounce within a fraction of a second. The turbos are integrated into the exhaust manifolds and have their own speed sensors, with the engine management system always striving to keep the turbines spooled up. Even when you abruptly back off the throttle, you hear a lingering screeee as the turbos keep spinning, a high-pitched overlay to the LT7's guttural flat-plane howl. GM knew, when it was developing the Z06's naturally aspirated LT6, that there would be a turbocharged version, so the LT7 was optimized for its mission from day one, with a new intake, strengthened pistons and connecting rods, and a whole extra port fuel-injection system complementing the direct-injection setup. View Exterior Photos Michael Simari | Car and Driver You might infer, from the dual fuel-injection systems, that the LT7 swills gas, and you'd be right. In fact, the ZR1's voracious thirst and relatively small 18.5-gallon fuel tank will be the constraining factors in track-day shenanigans. We weren't trying to set any lap records, and still the ZR1 managed barely 50 miles before demanding a pit stop. One tank that included the five-mile drive back from the gas station netted less than 4 mpg. Out on the street, the EPA reckons you'll see 12 mpg city and 18 mpg highway, hence a mandatory $3000 gas-guzzler tax. While it's a fine practice to occasionally pit in and let the red mist dissipate, the ZR1 insists you do that on a regular basis. That's for the best, we think, because the ZR1's historic leap in horsepower doesn't come with commensurate gains in braking and cornering—how could it? The ZR1's 1.13 g's on the skidpad is, of course, a top-of-the-food-chain number, but still not quite as good as the 1.16 g's we saw from the Z07-equipped Z06. (At 3831 pounds, the ZR1 weighed in at 165 pounds more than the Z06, an admirably minor gain, but still a gain.) And although the ZR1 gets upsized 15.7-inch front brake rotors, the largest ever fitted to a Corvette, its braking performance mirrors the Z06's: Stopping from 70 mph requires 140 feet of pavement, and 100 mph is scrubbed in 273 feet, compared with 139 feet and 274 feet for the Z06. View Interior Photos Michael Simari | Car and Driver The interior, too, is a doppelgänger for the Z06, if not the base Stingray. There's a boost gauge and a ZR1-specific Top Speed mode, which basically tells the stability control that you plan to go extremely fast in a straight line, but the base 1LZ interior on our test car is standard-issue Corvette. Our test car was very superleggera, lacking even heated seats, but who needs creature comforts when you've got 1064 horsepower? That should occupy your full attention. How We Got Here It's tempting to look ahead and ponder the Corvette team's next move—hey, what if you combined the E-Ray's hybrid all-wheel drive with the ZR1's engine?—but we think the ZR1 merits a moment to reflect on how incredible it is that this car exists. Back in the bankruptcy-era days of the 638-hp C6 ZR1, Chevy wasn't even sure if it could improve on the 505-hp Z06's 60-mph time because the rear tires were already at their limit all the way through first gear. Then Michelin worked some magic, and the ZR1 shaved off a few tenths. But at the time, 638 horsepower was all the Corvette could handle and then some. View Exterior Photos Michael Simari | Car and Driver The seventh-generation Vette brought the 650-hp Z06 and the 755-hp ZR1. As one Corvette engineer told us, "You'd drive the Z06 for a week and think, 'Eh, it could use another hundred horsepower.' You never drive a ZR1 and think it could use another hundred horsepower." And yet, here we are. They added another hundred horsepower. And another hundred after that, and another hundred after that. And then nine more for good measure. Prior super-Vettes, as good as they were, played by rules established in 1953: front engine, rear drive, and (almost) always a pushrod V-8. The new ZR1's sole guiding ideology is the pursuit of maximum capability, and so it makes an exponential leap in performance—who'd have thought that 755 horsepower would ever seem quaint, let alone so soon? View Exterior Photos Michael Simari | Car and Driver The benchmarks are moving fast. The 1990 ZR-1's 375 horsepower, so staggering in its day, is now considered a normal output for a family SUV. Will 1064 horsepower ever seem normal? We doubt it, but if you're stout enough to want a taste of that future, the ZR1 is ready right now. As for whether you're ready for it, there's only one way to find out. VERDICT: Chevy builds an earthbound rocket. Specifications Specifications 2025 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 Vehicle Type: mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive, 2-passenger, 2-door targa PRICE Base/As Tested: $178,195/$205,265 Options: carbon-fiber wheels, $13,995; ZR1 Carbon Fiber Aero package, $8495; ZTK Performance package, $1500; Competition sport bucket seats, $995; body-colored split-window trim, $995; microsuede-wrapped steering wheel, $695; black exhaust tips, $395 ENGINE twin-turbocharged and intercooled DOHC 32-valve V-8, aluminum block and heads, port and direct fuel injection Displacement: 333 in3, 5463 cm3 Power: 1064 hp @ 7000 rpm Torque: 828 lb-ft @ 6000 rpm TRANSMISSION 8-speed dual-clutch automatic CHASSIS Suspension, F/R: control arms/control arms Brakes, F/R: 15.7-in vented, cross-drilled carbon-ceramic disc/15.4-in vented, cross-drilled carbon-ceramic disc Tires: Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2R ZP F: 275/30ZR-20 (97Y) TPC R: 345/25ZR-21 (104Y) TPC DIMENSIONS Wheelbase: 107.2 in Length: 185.9 in Width: 79.7 in Height: 48.6 in Passenger Volume: 51 ft3 Trunk Volume: 9 ft3 Curb Weight: 3831 lb C/D TEST RESULTS 60 mph: 2.2 sec 100 mph: 4.5 sec 130 mph: 7.1 sec 1/4-Mile: 9.5 sec @ 149 mph 150 mph: 9.7 sec 170 mph: 13.1 sec 200 mph: 23.8 sec Results above omit 1-ft rollout of 0.2 sec. Rolling Start, 5–60 mph: 3.0 sec Top Gear, 30–50 mph: 1.8 sec Top Gear, 50–70 mph: 2.0 sec Top Speed (mfr claim): 225 mph Braking, 70–0 mph: 140 ft Braking, 100–0 mph: 273 ft Roadholding, 300-ft Skidpad: 1.13 g C/D FUEL ECONOMY Observed, Track/Street: 4/13 mpg EPA FUEL ECONOMY Combined/City/Highway: 14/12/18 mpg C/D TESTING EXPLAINED Reviewed by Ezra Dyer Senior Editor Ezra Dyer is a Car and Driver senior editor and columnist. He's now based in North Carolina but still remembers how to turn right. He owns a 2009 GEM e4 and once drove 206 mph. Those facts are mutually exclusive. Tested by David Beard Managing Testing Editor David Beard studies and reviews automotive related things and pushes fossil-fuel and electric-powered stuff to their limits. His passion for the Ford Pinto began at his conception, which took place in a Pinto.
Auto Blog
3 days ago
- Automotive
- Auto Blog
Tesla Is Testing A New Model S Plaid, With Few Design Updates
Spy shots show a lightly revised version of Tesla's flagship sedan testing at the Nürburgring. But are the subtle updates enough? Tesla's aging flagship gets a light touch-up Tesla is testing a revised version of the Model S Plaid, its once-groundbreaking performance sedan. Caught lapping the Nürburgring in Germany, the updated car sports only the slightest visual changes — a new front splitter and a revised rear diffuser. Beyond those tweaks and what appear to be larger wheels, the design is largely unchanged from the version Tesla refreshed in 2021. That's left some fans disappointed. Despite promises earlier this year from Tesla's VP of Engineering that the Model S and Model X would get some 'love' in 2025, this prototype suggests a minor facelift rather than a ground-up overhaul. The competition isn't standing still The Model S Plaid was once the king of the electric performance hill, boasting a 1,020-horsepower, tri-motor setup. But lately, it's been dethroned by newcomers like Porsche's Taycan Turbo GT with the Weissach Package and Xiaomi's surprise EV, the SU7 Ultra. These cars not only go toe-to-toe with the Plaid on performance, but do so with newer, more refined platforms and fresher designs. Porsche Taycan Turbo GT — Source: Porsche While the Model S's blistering acceleration still impresses, its aging chassis and layout are beginning to show their limitations. Critics have noted that the car's suspension struggles to keep up with its prodigious power, particularly in hard cornering and under braking. A long overdue redesign Originally launched in 2012, the Model S is now 13 years old — an eternity in automotive terms. While Tesla has updated many of the car's components over the years, the underlying structure and dynamic hardware haven't seen the sort of deep rework that modern performance EVs demand. Tesla Model S Plaid — Source: Tesla Key features that are becoming industry standards, like 800-volt charging systems, four-wheel steering, or even a suspension setup tuned for aggressive driving, are still missing from the Model S. For a flagship EV, that's a problem. Tesla has often marketed itself as a fast-moving tech company, but when it comes to vehicle updates, its pace has been surprisingly slow. The Cybertruck took nearly five years to reach production, and both the Model S and Model X have seen minimal visual changes in more than a decade. Xiaomi SU7 Ultra — Source: Xiaomi Now, with more EV competitors entering the market every month — especially from China — Tesla's slow approach to vehicle redesigns is starting to hurt its position. Legacy automakers are now iterating faster, making Tesla's aging lineup harder to justify, especially at premium prices. Final thoughts There's still hope that Tesla has deeper changes planned under the skin, but if the Nürburgring prototype is any indication, the 2025 Model S Plaid refresh may be more cosmetic than transformative. For a brand that once defined what a modern EV could be, that's a risky strategy in an increasingly crowded and fast-moving market.
Auto Car
22-05-2025
- Automotive
- Auto Car
This is your best look yet at the electric Porsche Cayman, due next year
Porsche is stepping up testing of its 718 Cayman EV as it readies its first electric sports cars for next year. Autocar understands the German car maker will pull the covers off the 718 Boxster EV roadster first, with the Cayman coupé due to be shown, as with previous model generations, six months after that. It's expected that the first debut will come in early 2026, given that Boxster mules have been frequently seen testing during the past few months – and we have now finally spotted a Cayman prototype being rigorously put through its paces on track. These photos from the Nürburgring Nordschleife provide our clearest look yet at the new two-seat EV and show just how close it will be to its existing ICE sibling in size and styling. A few key changes are evident, though, such as new lights and a more angular bonnet – both influenced by the Taycan electric saloon in a probable push for optimal slipperiness. There are also wider air intakes to provide extra cooling for the brakes and what is likely to be a dual-motor powertrain. The Cayman and Boxster EVs use a new bespoke electric sports car platform to ensure they offer a 'real sports car feeling', Porsche R&D chief Michael Steiner has previously told Autocar. In pursuit of a light and nimble driving experience, the battery pack will be sited behind the driver – similar to a mid-engined ICE car set-up – rather than under the floor. The aim is to optimise balance and to make the driving position as low as possible. No official figures have been given, but the motors are expected to come from the larger Taycan, whose outputs start at 402bhp and top out at 1019bhp.
Car and Driver
19-05-2025
- Automotive
- Car and Driver
2026 Genesis GV90 Electric Flagship SUV Looks Massive in Spy Photos
Genesis is preparing a flagship electric SUV, and the 2026 GV90 SUV has been spotted testing on the Nürburgring race track in Germany. The GV90 was previewed by the Neolun concept last year and retains the same colossal footprint, twin-line LED headlights, and chunky front end. The GV90 appears to ride on air suspension with rear-wheel steering and, at least on this example, features a two-seat second row instead of a rear bench. Genesis solidified rumors that it is planning a large flagship SUV when it unveiled the decadent Neolun concept ahead of last year's New York auto show. Expected to be called the GV90 when it reaches production, we now have proof that the gigantic electric SUV is nearing its debut. Our spy photographer snapped the GV90 testing on the Nürburgring, revealing key design elements from the minivan-like silhouette to flashy chrome wheels. KGP Photography | Car and Driver Sometimes it can be hard to get a sense of a vehicle's true size from spy photos, especially when no other cars are nearby for reference. But the GV90 looks truly massive in these new photos, and the way it sits on its chrome 22-inch wheels makes it appear heavy and solid. Like the Neolun concept, the production model has an upright front end and a long, mostly flat roofline. While the Neolun concept removed the B-pillars and featured flashy coach-style doors for easy entry to the purple-leather-equipped cabin, the production GV90 takes a more practical approach with B-pillars and traditional doors. The GV90 will, of course, wear the Genesis brand's twin-line LED lighting motif up front, although the look isn't as simplified as the concept's front lights, and it's unclear if the lights will stretch across the front end to form a triangular grille shape like on the Neolun. The lower bumper appears to remain faithful to the concept with an upside-down U-shaped ridge and venting with an intricate latticework. Full-width taillights also appear to carry over from the concept, sporting the same twin-line LED look. KGP Photography | Car and Driver The GV90 is expected to be sold exclusively with an electric powertrain, and rumors suggest that it will ride on a new platform called "eM" that features an 800-volt electrical architecture. In 2022, parent company Hyundai said the eM platform would bring a 50 percent improvement in driving range versus its current EVs and also said the platform would support Level 3 and higher autonomous driving technology. While earlier spy photos of the GV90 testing in a wintry region showed it wearing 285/45R-22 Michelin X-Ice Snow SUV tires, the GV90 is fitted here with Pirelli P Zero E tires of the same size. Close-up photos also reveal that the GV90 is riding on air suspension and features rear-wheel steering, neither of which is a surprise for a vehicle in this class. KGP Photography | Car and Driver Our spy photographer also peeked inside, revealing a two-seat layout in the second row with the rear passengers separated by a center console with cupholders, a wireless phone charger, and a sizable screen. We wouldn't be surprised if this represents a sort of "executive" package, and we think a full rear bench could be available in the United States. Buttons on the pillar behind the second-row seats imply the presence of a third row. Unfortunately, it seems like the snazzy quilted purple leather of the Neolun concept hasn't made it to production. The GV90 will likely compete with the Mercedes-Benz EQS SUV and Cadillac Escalade iQ as well as pricier versions of the Lucid Gravity. We expect the GV90 to start at around $100,000, with production likely to take place in South Korea. A full reveal should come later this year. Caleb Miller Associate News Editor Caleb Miller began blogging about cars at 13 years old, and he realized his dream of writing for a car magazine after graduating from Carnegie Mellon University and joining the Car and Driver team. He loves quirky and obscure autos, aiming to one day own something bizarre like a Nissan S-Cargo, and is an avid motorsports fan.
Telegraph
17-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
Max Verstappen interview: I don't care about F1 dramas, even Brad Pitt film doesn't excite me
For someone who became a father two weeks ago, Max Verstappen looks surprisingly sprightly. There are no bags under his eyes when we meet in a quiet corner on the first floor of Red Bull's team home in Imola. Apparently, night feeds and nappy changes do not disagree with the four-time world champion. 'Ha, no it's been OK on that front!' he says laughing, when I put that to him, declining to elaborate on whether he is actually getting stuck into that element of parenthood. 'But no, it's been a very special time. Lily is still so tiny, obviously, and can't communicate yet. But just having your own daughter… yeah, it's been amazing.' As it happens, Verstappen appears to be on a pretty long leash. Not only was he back at the Red Bull factory in Milton Keynes last week doing some simulator work, he even squeezed in a trip to the Nürburgring en route home, to take part in a GT3 test in a Ferrari 296. His presence at the legendary Nordschleife circuit immediately set tongues wagging in the F1 paddock, not least because of his well-known ambitions to move into sports car racing one day. Verstappen's efforts to go incognito, entering the test under a pseudonym, 'Franz Hermann', were predictably unsuccessful. 'Well, I knew it would come out,' he says. 'I mean, I wore my own helmet so I was hardly trying to hide it. I just didn't want to be on the entry list, that's all. I didn't want people rocking up at 8am.' Having fun at the Nordschleife 🙌 Racing 👀 — Max Verstappen (@Max33Verstappen) May 9, 2025 Breaking the GT3 lap record probably did not help his bid for anonymity, either. Verstappen says he had 'a lot of fun' at one of motor racing's most feared circuits in the world, but scotches suggestions that he might surprise everyone by taking a sabbatical next year to indulge his non-F1 passions. It would make sense in one respect, I suggest, in that it would afford him the opportunity to see how F1's new regulations shake out and which team is the most competitive. 'No,' he says firmly. 'It is not in my mind to take a year off. I know in the future I want to do other things. And I'm already, slowly, you know, tasting a bit of it. But no, I will be in F1 next year.' The question is: where? While Verstappen has a contract with Red Bull until 2028, rumours that he might seek to switch teams, rumours which first surfaced in the middle of the Christian Horner saga last season, when Versteppen's father Jos and mentor Helmut Marko were both at war with his team principal, have never truly gone away. Toto Wolff, the Mercedes principal, openly courted the Dutchman during the height of that saga, before eventually promoting teenager Kimi Antonelli. But neither Antonelli nor George Russell has contracts beyond the end of this year, meaning the Brackley team remain one possible destination. Aston Martin, too, would undoubtedly pay a king's ransom to sign the fastest driver currently on the grid. So, I ask, can Verstappen categorically state he will be at Red Bull next season? 'I mean, I've said it many times,' he replies. Has he, though? Has he not said 'There is no reason to leave as long as I'm happy', or 'I'll stay as long as I'm competitive', or some variation thereof? 'Well, I've said it to the team,' he insists. 'I think that's the most important thing.' So he won't say it publicly? Surely until he does, speculation that he might leave is inevitable? 'Yeah, but I mean, we also don't know if I will wake up tomorrow, you know what I mean? You just never know. This is the thing.' Reading between the lines, it feels as if Verstappen is saying he is 90 per cent sure he will stay but does not want to guarantee it publicly, partly to keep the pressure on Red Bull, partly in case the team suddenly fall apart over the next few races and he needs an exit strategy. That does not look as if it will happen. While Red Bull are no longer the dominant force they were two seasons ago, as it stands they are the only team other than McLaren to have won a race this season. Verstappen has taken three pole positions as well as his memorable victory in Suzuka. More importantly, he is still in title contention, sitting third in the drivers' championship, 32 points behind Oscar Piastri, albeit still with work to do. As McLaren's dominant performance in Miami showed, they are head and shoulders above their rivals in the right conditions, and competitive across the board. 'Look, we can't always win,' Verstappen says. 'But are we happy with the pace we have in the car right now? No. I mean, I think no one is except for McLaren. And they aren't standing still, either. So we need to improve. Our one-lap pace is OK, but they have a massive advantage when the tyres start overheating. That's where everyone else is just… yeah, not on the same level.' Oscar Piastri takes the lead! 🟠🙌 — Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) May 4, 2025 Could the forthcoming changes to the rules on flexi-wings, due to be introduced in Barcelona later this month, be a game changer? Verstappen looks doubtful. 'It might make a little difference, but not much,' he says. More likely, he is going to need Lando Norris and Piastri to keep taking points off each other, allowing him to stay in touch while Red Bull try to close the gap. The inter-team dynamic at McLaren is certainly an interesting one. With Piastri currently on four wins to Norris's one, the pressure on the Briton is ramping up all the time. Verstappen could be excused for adding to it. But he declines to stick the boot in. 'Honestly, I think both of them are very good,' the 27-year-old replies when asked whether he now sees Piastri as the bigger threat. 'Lando, I think, has the pace. It just hasn't really come out yet over a [sustained] period of time. But I think it's still going to be a tight championship for them. I don't know where I'm going to be. I'm just trying to maximise every result. At the end of the day, we can't rely on them to make mistakes. It has to come from us.' Verstappen's reluctance to stir the pot is increasingly his preferred modus operandi. While he can be punchy when he wants to be, and quick to anger, he says he is tired of F1's constant controversies and prefers to stay out of them if he can. He does not get drawn into seemingly outlandish rumours that Horner might be fired after this race, saying: 'I have no idea where that comes from. I had people writing me like, 'what is this about?' And I was like, 'Excuse me!? I have no idea what you're talking about.' The problem is that now with social media, more and more people try to get a voice or try to act as a professional media outlet or whatever. But yeah, it's nonsense. Honestly, I really don't know where it comes from.' He refuses to react to Norris's parting shot in Miami, that Verstappen 'did not race smart', costing himself a possible podium, burning up his tyres in a pointless defensive battle with the McLaren. 'Lando can say what he wants,' he says. 'Honestly, I enjoyed it. I know it makes headlines, which is what drives the sport. But for me, it's not worth my time to try and counter that again. I race how I race.' He says he is '50-50' about next year's new regulations when he might have been expected to write off next year's cars as oil tankers which will require the drivers to 'coast' at some tracks in order to replenish battery power. Even the FIA's recent about-turn on swearing – described by Russell on Thursday as 'ridiculous' and 'strategic' on the part of the president – fails to get a rise. Verstappen was the first victim of the president's clampdown last year when he was handed what amounted to a community service order for swearing in a press conference in Singapore. 'Honestly, I'm not interested anymore,' he says. 'I live my life. As soon as I leave the paddock here, I don't think about it. I did my stuff on the Nordschleife. I have other projects going on with GT3 that I'm really passionate about. My [simulator] racing activities with Team Redline. I'm busy. That keeps me away from all the gossip or potential stuff that goes on here. I don't have any interest.' Anything that gets in the way of racing is of no interest to him. Even Brad Pitt. Verstappen says he hopes the new Hollywood film F1, released next month, is a success, but adds 'it is not something which really excites me personally', confirming that he declined to film extra scenes with Pitt himself. 'We spoke about it, but at the end of the day, it didn't really materialise. But that's fine. It's not why I'm here.' The irony, I say, is that controversy is the lifeblood of F1. His spicy on-track battles with Lewis Hamilton in 2021, or Norris last year? His furious row with 'cry baby' Russell last year? Netflix and F1 must be desperate for him to engage? 'Yeah, but then we get punished for it,' he says. 'So that's it. I don't want to get into 'you said this, he said that' arguments anymore. It's always then written up as a big controversy. I talk when I need to talk. But in general, I prefer just to live quiet, you know?' Perhaps fatherhood has changed Verstappen after all.
