Latest news with #TeamRedline
The Sun
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Sun
Max Verstappen breaks silence on being one of only two drivers not to attend Brad Pitt's F1 movie screening
MAX VERSTAPPEN has revealed why he snubbed Brad Pitt's F1 movie screening. The Dutchman, alongside Aston Martin racing driver Lance Stroll, did not attend the event on Wednesday night in Monaco ahead of the Grand Prix, unlike the other 18 drivers on the grid. 3 3 It is understood that the event was mandatory but not written in their contracts to attend as it was during their free time. The four-time world champion said: 'Yeah, I notified FOM [ Formula One Management] about that, so we were well aware that I wasn't attending,' 'I wanted to spend more private time because it is private time at the end of the day.' Many fans spotted that the Red Bull driver instead streamed on Twitch at home with his Team Redline sim racing squad. Verstappen recently became a dad after his girlfriend Kelly Piquet gave birth to their baby daughter Lily just before the Miami Grand Prix. He added: 'I just wanted to spend more time at home, 'It wasn't a mandatory event either, it was just my private time. 'And I prefer to spend that private time at home, especially because in Formula 1 you're away from home so much already. 'Wanting to spend more time at home on days like that is pretty normal, I think. 'Now that the family is growing, I definitely prefer to spend more time at home.' 10 Years of Max Verstappen documentary trailer Verstappen said he will watch the film once it comes out, adding: 'I think it's coming out in June, so I'll download it on Apple. 'Of course I get it, there was the opportunity to watch it, I think I'll watch it now or in three or four weeks, that's fine as well. 'I read good stuff in the movie, so I'm sure that it's going to be exciting.' 3
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Chris Lulham on learning from Max Verstappen's secret Nurburgring test
Last week, someone named "Franz Hermann" drew significant attention during a GT3 test at the Nurburgring Nordschleife. Behind this alias was none other than four-time Formula 1 champion Max Verstappen, who got behind the wheel of the Ferrari 296 GT3 from Swiss outfit Emil Frey Racing during an official Nurburgring Endurance Series test. The Red Bull F1 driver collaborates with Emil Frey Racing under the Racing banner and wanted to get some laps in on the "Green Hell" without attracting crowds of fans to the pit lane in the early morning. Advertisement He succeeded in keeping things quiet, but that also meant many quickly forgot that Verstappen wasn't the only one in the car that day. Chris Lulham, sim racer for Team Redline – Verstappen's sim racing team – was also present. He appeared in some photos, though remained anonymous throughout the ordeal. 'We shared the car all day,' Lulham said in an interview with at the GT World Challenge event in Zandvoort. 'I mainly drove in the afternoon – I think I did most of the laps then. It was an incredible experience driving that track for the first time. Nothing can really prepare you for it. 'I've done thousands of laps on the simulator and even won the 24-hour sim race there several times, but nothing compares to the real thing.' Advertisement Lulham has been competing with Team Redline for several years now, and not without success. The Brit has made a name for himself by winning major sim racing events, which this year earned him a seat in GT3 racing with Racing. Though he has some prior experience in karting and motorsport, sim racing was his path to the real racing world. 'It was a strange experience,' Lulham said about his Nurburgring test. 'In the afternoon, more people started showing up. I don't think many of them even realized I was in the car too…' Chris Lulham will make his debut in GT3 racing this year for Racing. Chris Lulham will make his debut in GT3 racing this year for Racing. SRO SRO Advertisement When it's pointed out that he was indeed visible in some of the photos, but the focus was mainly on "Franz," Lulham laughs. 'That's a shame, isn't it?' he said. 'But he was super helpful throughout the day. We had the live onboard feed in the truck, and he pointed out the little lines he had discovered. 'There are over a hundred corners on that track, so plenty of nuances to find. We helped each other with what we learned. It was a very productive day and the car was really fast.' While Verstappen's participation attracted most of the attention, the underlying purpose of the test was also a topic of discussion. According to Lulham, both drivers had a similar objective: to log miles on the Nordschleife and support the team. Advertisement 'It was the first time on the Nordschleife for both of us. And also about building a baseline for the team, as it was the first time the 296 had been run on that track,' Lulham explained. 'We both need to get a permit if we want to race there. That's still an open question.' Lulham confirmed that he does aspire to race in the 24 Hours of the Nurburgring. To do that, drivers must go through a permit process. Those aiming to compete in powerful cars like GT3s or Porsche Cups must obtain permit A, which requires drivers to first attend a kind of 'school' covering the rules. Next, they must accumulate track time and participate in at least two races of the Nurburgring Langstrecken-Serie (NLS) in slower race cars. Lulham knows he needs to follow that path to make his dream a reality, which means doing those races in slower machinery. There's no guarantee he'll earn the permit this year, though. Advertisement 'There are a lot of loose ends that need to be tied up to make that happen,' he said. 'I need to get that permit in the coming months if I want to race. For Max, it's a different story. He obviously has very limited time. Honestly, I don't know what his plans are. Hopefully, we can both race in the NLS by the end of the year.' Crucial Support Lulham spent several years karting and was even runner-up in the OKJ Karting Championship in 2017. Since then, he's raced in Formula 4 and the Radical Cup Championship, but thanks to support from Racing, he's now competing at the highest level of GT3 racing – the GT World Challenge Europe – in both sprint and endurance races. Advertisement Support from Racing and Verstappen himself has 'been crucial' to this rise through he ranks, he said. 'We had a long winter program that started late last year to prepare me for this season, and I think the results show that,' Lulham said. 'To get into the Ferrari for the first race and immediately qualify on the front row, just two hundredths off pole… That shows what's possible with the right preparation and the right people behind you.' #69 Emil Frey Racing, Ferrari 296 GT3: Thierry Vermeulen, Chris Lulham #69 Emil Frey Racing, Ferrari 296 GT3: Thierry Vermeulen, Chris Lulham SRO SRO Lulham was surprised that he was immediately quick and able to run at the front. During the winter program, he could already track his progress, supported by reference points from team-mate Thierry Vermeulen – son of Max's manager Raymond Vermeulen – and Verstappen himself. Advertisement 'I could see my own improvements, so I already knew what I was capable of going into the first races,' Lulham said. 'But being aware of it is one thing – executing under pressure in a race weekend, with limited laps, is another. You're thrown straight into qualifying, and that might be your first run on a new set of tires. You have to maximize what you've got in that moment. Did I expect it? I expected I was capable, but to actually pull it off immediately? Probably not.' The adventure with Racing is still in its early stages, but Lulham is very satisfied with the support so far. 'The Racing family is a big one, with many influential people backing me and my career,' Lulham said. Advertisement 'You always feel the support, but you also feel the pressure – so it's a double-edged sword. But it's been a fantastic start.' Very Similar Lulham was surprised by some aspects of transitioning from sim racing to real-world motorsport. Not so much the driving itself, but more the level of aggression on track compared to sim races. 'I expected it to be aggressive, but this level… Of course, you're racing at the top of international GT competition, so everyone is here to win, fighting for every position.' He also had to adapt to the many variables in real-world racing. 'In the simulator, you don't deal with so many variables affecting every moment of the race,' he added. Advertisement 'That's probably the biggest thing I had to adjust to. Then there's the physical side, whereas I was very mentally trained for the sim. I'd say the mental aspects are very similar, as are the techniques used. That's probably why I could jump in with so much confidence.' #69 Emil Frey Racing, Ferrari 296 GT3: Thierry Vermeulen, Chris Lulham #69 Emil Frey Racing, Ferrari 296 GT3: Thierry Vermeulen, Chris Lulham SRO SRO One thing sim racing can't really teach, according to Lulham, is wheel-to-wheel racing. 'You understand the technique behind it, but actually doing it – putting your body and the car on the line – that's a whole different story,' Lulham added. Sim racers are often accused of making reckless moves they wouldn't dare attempt in real life, knowing the real-world consequences. Still, Lulham thinks GT3 racing has surprised him in this area. Advertisement 'To be honest, I'd say that the professional level of sim racing is cleaner than the professional level in the real world,' he said. 'You'd expect the opposite, with all the money involved, but that's not the case.' It's become a trend for sim racers to make the leap to real motorsport – and often, they perform well. But does real-world experience feed back into his sim racing? 'It helps in the sense that you work with skilled engineers during real race weekends – people who've been in the sport for years,' Lulham said. 'You learn lots of small details you might miss as a sim racer, and you start thinking differently. In terms of lap time, it probably doesn't help, because the techniques you use in a real car differ. But I'm confident I'll still be competitive in sim races this year.' Very Helpful In the GT World Challenge, Lulham is teamed up with Vermeulen, who has built solid GT3 experience in DTM and GTWC in recent years. They haven't done many races together yet, but Lulham is happy with the partnership so far. Advertisement 'He's very helpful,' he said. 'With his years of experience in a GT3 car, he can point out things I wouldn't have even thought about. In pre-season, there are so many little things – how the Pirelli tires work, how to warm them up, which curbs to use or avoid, which lines to take. 'At first, I wasn't even aware of some of these, but someone like Thierry sees them and helps me. He's really guided me well over the past few months toward becoming a professional driver.' Chris Lulham enjoys working with Thierry Vermeulen. Chris Lulham enjoys working with Thierry Vermeulen. SRO SRO In a GT class where the car is shared, it's also a big advantage if both drivers are evenly matched and, so far, this is going well for Lulham. Advertisement 'During pre-season, we were always very close. Sometimes I was faster, sometimes he was. But the gaps were always small,' the Briton said. 'That's been the case in every race, like the endurance race at Paul Ricard and the sprint at Brands Hatch. You can't really prepare for experiences like your first races and race starts. So it's great to have someone like Thierry by your side.' Together with Vermeulen, Lulham wants to make a big impression in the Gold Cup class of the GT World Challenge. The rookie even believes a top-three finish overall is possible. The pair is currently in 10th, but at Brands Hatch – where they won the Gold Cup – an outright victory didn't seem far off. Read Also: Who is Franz Hermann? Max Verstappen shares details of Nurburgring GT3 test Red Bull: Max Verstappen's focus has to be on F1 after Nurburgring test Advertisement 'I'd love to win the Gold Cup in both Sprint and Endurance,' Lulham said of his ambitions. 'That's the main goal. In Sprint, I don't see why we couldn't finish in the top five, top four, or hopefully even top three. Every race has its own challenges, and we'll have highs and lows – we already have. Long-term, we're still early in my first season, so I don't know where this journey will go yet. I can't say anything for certain, but I'd love to make a career out of this.' To read more articles visit our website.
New York Times
14-02-2025
- Automotive
- New York Times
Inside Max Verstappen's long-term goal to make F1 drivers out of sim racers
Race teams always look up and down the motorsports ladder to identify rising stars. But Formula One world champion Max Verstappen sees untapped potential in the virtual world. Sim racing is more than a video game; it's a career path in the competitive esports world filled with championships, Formula One teams, and the potential to drive in real life. The two worlds are fairly similar, Verstappen saying in a recent Team Redline video that, 'It's like 90 to 95 percent there but that five percent is mainly just that real touch, you strap yourself in the car and the G-forces.' Advertisement It's a world that Verstappen knows well. He made headlines during the first half of his latest world championship campaign for his stints of sim racing that clashed with Formula One weekends, like when he won the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix after his team took first in the virtual Nurburgring 24-hour race or the controversy around the Hungarian GP weekend. Every once in a while, fans will post on social media how the four-time world champion is competing in the virtual world. And he doesn't shy from sharing his love for the competition or his goal of creating a team that merges sim racing with physical racing. 'Everyone always thinks that it's just a game and it's fun, easy going,' Verstappen told The Athletic, 'but I would say the competition is just as hard, or even harder, to nail — to win — than in real life.' Verstappen's taste for motorsports came from his family legacy and jumping into a go-kart at a young age. But he, like many kids, did gaming on the side, initially starting on a controller. By the time he got a simulator in 2009, the Dutchman already had multiple national karting championships to his name. Time was limited. 'I never really had time to spend a lot of time on the simulator because combining school (and) go-karting, it was not possible,' Verstappen said. 'From 2009 until like 2015, I did a bit but just for fun, to go on with my friends and have a good time.' There was even a stretch when he stopped racing on the simulator for fun for a few years as he focused on his motorsports career. In 2015, Verstappen joined the F1 grid full-time, racing for Toro Rosso (now known as Racing Bulls) at 17 years old before jumping to Red Bull Racing the following season. He raced for Toro Rosso for the first four grands prix weekends in 2016 before being promoted to the senior team — and he won that first race with Red Bull. Around the same time, Verstappen began taking his sim racing a bit more seriously, and his passion for it continued to grow. 'I did it for a little bit, and then I realized, 'OK, this is actually a lot of fun when I'm surrounded by really good drivers, and I want to try and be good at it as well,' Verstappen said. 'And then, step by step, you get the right gear, you get the right advice from the drivers (on) how to build up your sim, what you need. That was definitely very helpful.' Advertisement In 2015, he joined Team Redline, one of the most successful professional sim racing teams. In the two decades since it was founded by Dom Duhan, Team Redline sim racers have brought home numerous individual and team championships across different games. As technology advances, digital car racing replicates many aspects of real-world motorsports, like navigating tire wear and adjusting setups. Sim racing has turned into a sport of its own, with car manufacturers and professional motorsports teams either backing drivers or creating teams. F1 created its own program in 2017 involving the F1 video game, and all 10 teams compete in the F1 Sim Racing World Championship. As time passed, these two parts of Verstappen's life became more intertwined. 'I keep myself busy with doing the same thing as in real life, working on setup, strategy, racing, pit stops, all these kinds of things,' Verstappen said, when discussing why he loves sim racing. 'It is becoming more and more professional every single year.' Sim racing arguably isn't for the faint of heart, if they're trying to make a professional career out of it. In F1, practice time is limited, with just three practice sessions on a standard, non-sprint weekend. However, sim racers can spend hours upon hours working to nail their craft. Verstappen spent 35 hours preparing for the virtual Nurburgring 24-hour race during the 2023 Imola race weekend. He prefers around 50 combined hours. Team Redline operates similarly to a traditional motorsports team, including 'real engineers' working to 'optimize everything,' according to Verstappen. It holds pre- and post-race meetings, and the team analyzes the reports to see where they can improve, but Verstappen says this kind of preparation 'only happens with the top teams.' 'We really want to be successful,' he added. 'You need to operate like that.' Advertisement Sim drivers race a full season, similar to how F1 operates. Once they complete a championship on iRacing, for example, they may only have a day or two to rest before preparing for the next race, which could be around three weeks away, Verstappen said. Where it gets more complicated is that you've got to pick the right car each time. These drivers are testing different GT cars to identify the fastest for that circuit they'll compete at and work through a process from there, such as one-lap performance, considering the weather conditions and stint performance, he explained. A concept called BoP (balance of performance) in car racing helps ensure a level playing field. Some performance parameters, like weight or power, will be adjusted. 'There are so many, say, e-sports out there. Now, instead of mainly using whatever mouse and keyboard or a controller, there's a little bit more involved in it. But we tried to mimic the real world,' Verstappen explained. 'That's what all the games try to do. They try to get as much data as possible from the real cars and bring that into the virtual world and try to replicate the same.' Sim racing has allowed Verstappen to test various cars outside of F1. A majority of what he drives now is GT-related, as most of the sim racing championships are in that series. While he says he enjoys driving GT cars in real life, that experience also helps him with sim racing — and arguably vice versa, even though one of the biggest differences between sim and real-life racing is the lack of G forces. In 2021, less than a week after his 51G collision during the British GP, Verstappen hopped onto the sim for the iRacing 24 Hours of Spa, finishing fifth with Jeff Giassi and Gianni Vecchio in a Porsche 911 GT3 R. He told Ziggo Sport in 2021, 'Some people think that a sim race can't be compared with the real thing, but I have set my brake pedal pretty hard at home.' 'It meant I could already practice how my knee would hold up, and my ankle. So when I got into the car here in Hungary, I didn't have to use much more force than at home. Everything just felt OK. And my neck is doing well as well, so that's great.' Advertisement But sometimes, Verstappen's sim racing ventures have been questioned when they clash with F1 weekends. A report circulated before the Belgian GP last year that Red Bull had banned the Dutchman from sim racing on grand prix weekends, which Verstappen denied. He stayed up until 3 a.m. on the Sunday of the Hungarian GP the weekend prior while competing in the 24 Hours of Spa on iRacing with Team Redline. The grand prix was a difficult race where Verstappen clashed with Lewis Hamilton and expressed his frustration over strategy calls. He finished fifth. It wasn't the first time Verstappen had competed in a sim race during a grand prix weekend. He also did it in Imola, competing in the virtual Nurburgring 24-hour race, and proceeded to win the F1 grand prix. But Verstappen didn't initially plan to compete during the Hungarian GP weekend. According to Helmut Marko's post-race column on Speed Week, 'His late-night sim appearance on the Hungary weekend only came about because a driver in his team had dropped out.' Sim racing remains a constant in Verstappen's life. However, he is considering how to advance his passion in the future. Competing on the sim and GT racing started as a way for him to connect with Team Redline, he told The Athletic in Monaco last year, but now his 'main target also has shifted a little bit.' 'Initially on sim racing, I enjoyed it a lot, and it was just a way of connecting with my team, Team Redline,' he continued. 'But I also want to find an opportunity for sim drivers to get into the real world.' Motorsports are expensive, which creates a significant barrier to entry. The investment varies, but it can range from approximately £1,200 to £3,000 (roughly $1,490 to $3,725) per year just for used equipment, according to the Association of British Karting Clubs. This may include the chassis, engine, race suit, gloves, boots and helmet. Then there are the license fees, track time, maintenance and repairs and equipment, to name a few. 'We all know go-karting and the early steps into racing, they all cost a lot of money,' Verstappen said. 'And in sim racing, you can see talent already when they are driving on very easy-going equipment, what you can buy in the local supermarket and save. It all costs a lot less money. A post shared by F1 Esports (@f1esports) 'You can attract talent from all over the world. If you look at people in general in (the F1) paddock, it's very limited to Europe. Then you've got the U.S., Canada, South America, Mexico, (but) it's not a lot. One driver from China, but it's not a lot of diversity. In sim racing, there are a lot of different countries already participating, but I just want to try and open it up to many more drivers. Advertisement 'The price is already a big game changer for that, to find new talent.' Verstappen feels that, with the right people around him and his experience, he could help a sim driver transition into real-life racing. Speed is something these drivers need to be aware of when they hop into a real-life car for the first time because it is something you don't feel necessarily on the simulator. 'In the simulator, if you hit a wall, it doesn't hurt, so you're not really that afraid when you're driving,' Verstappen explained. 'In real life, when you sit in the car, you have your helmet on, suit, belts are strapped in, you suddenly realize, 'Wow, I'm in a real car with a real engine. If I crash, it's going to cost money, and I can hurt myself.' This whole realization needs to happen.' There's also the physical training component. Verstappen said that in the gaming world, people sometimes stay up until the early hours of the morning, to 4 a.m., and their diet may be unhealthy, especially compared to what F1 drivers eat. He added, 'They don't really think about that nutrition side of things, where I do think there we can help as well.' 'You have to go through these kind of stages to make them realize what they have to do to be an athlete, basically,' he continued. 'And from there, then you need to give them time. You need to coach them when you're there in real life, step by step, build up to it. You can't rush them into something and say, 'Within a year, you need to be on top of your game.' They are fighting against people that grew up like me in go-karting and build up a lot of real-life experience.' Verstappen has already started working on this idea. His manager's son, Thierry Vermeulen, started racing at 18, entering the space with 'zero experience,' Verstappen said. 'The only thing he does now is GT3 in real life and then a bit of sim work.' 'So again, we went through that process, and he's doing incredibly well. He's fighting against the top drivers. He's already scoring podiums here and there. Now he's just waiting to get that moment to win. But he's really in the mix of good drivers, and every time that I go testing with him, he's only, like, two-tenths off me, maximum three-tenths, which I think is pretty incredible.' Verstappen is in the prime of his career, with four world championships to his name, and he shows no sign of faltering. But he is thinking of the future. When the Dutchman wanted to invest more in sim racing, he opted to pour that money and time into Team Redline. He explained how he 'saw the potential' and 'was really good friends with the ownership at the time,' people who are still involved in the team. But Verstappen did not want to cause a split when he realized he wanted to move into a team owner-type role. Advertisement 'I'm a loyal person. I really appreciate friendship a lot,' he said. 'I could have set up my own team under my own name. I didn't want to do that because we had such a good group of people at Team Redline that I was like, 'I don't want them to then come to me. I want everyone to stay in a structure.'' Verstappen instead invested and received shares, becoming a majority owner. He added, 'I said, you guys started it all, and I find it very important that everyone stays on and, you know, everyone is in their own role, but we keep this winning team – because they were when I joined. They were already incredibly successful. 'I said, 'But if you really want to be successful for the long term, I need to be more involved, and when I'm going to invest in it, we go all the way', and that's basically what happened at one point.' Verstappen does want to start his own team one day, one that merges real-life racing with sim racing. He has an eye on a few drivers within Team Redline who he feels have the potential; however, he didn't name anyone specific. 'I don't want to put pressure on them now. Also, from their side, they don't know yet, but they know my ideas and plans, but they don't know who is going to be selected yet.' Pressure is a key concept to remember in all of this. It will take time, patience and investment to merge these two worlds. Some sim racers may have real-life racing experience, initially starting in karting before stopping due to finances, while others may only have virtual experience and need more coaching. He doesn't want to pressure sim drivers to perform in a year or so in physical racing, or else Verstappen will drop them. He wants to see if there's a future when these two worlds can collide. 'I know it takes time, but I do want to find the talent that is able to transition to real life,' he said. 'Not everyone has that in them. Some are just very good at what they do, and they might not make it in real life, but (I want) at least to give them the opportunity. Ideally, they start with my team, and then they get picked up by manufacturers and then they really build up their career. 'I think that would be a very beautiful story.' (Top photo courtesy of Red Bull)
