Does Max Verstappen outperform all the posh colleagues?
Why is it that only Max Verstappen went to race at the Nurburgring, first obtaining the special license to race on the legendary and dangerous Nordschleife track and then even living as a protagonist fighting for victory in the 24h? Surely there is the boundless passion of the Dutch ace, as well as his desire to compete in every circumstance, whether in a Formula 1 GP or in a very ordinary virtual race in the living room. But there is also, and perhaps above all, the contractual freedom that Red Bull has guaranteed to the four-time world champion, who has now reached such a status that it would be impossible – and even counterproductive – to deny him permission to engage in such an activity. It is also for this reason that making comparisons with the weekends of other drivers can seem unfair and even a bit unjust.
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Because it is true that Max Verstappen was bumping with Maro Engel at 300 km/h and that in the same weekend Charles Leclerc was strutting in style on the red carpet of the Cannes Film Festival, while Lando Norris was visiting the Formula E paddock just steps from his home in Monte Carlo. But also that most drivers have explicit contractual bans on racing in categories other than Formula 1, let alone with cars from brands different from the one they are tied to in GPs. Thus, Leclerc has never hidden his desire to participate in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, but at the same time Ferrari has always pretended not to hear his appeals, despite the official presence in the WEC, both in Hypercar (where it has won at Le Mans for three consecutive years) and in GT3.
The contractual freedom Max had from Red Bull
On the contrary, Verstappen at the Ring was able to race within a few months with a Porsche 718 GT4, a Ferrari 296 GT3, and a Mercedes-AMG GT3. And perhaps this is one of the reasons why, amid uncertainty about who would have the best car in 2026, the Dutchman ultimately chose to stay in Milton Keynes, despite the many market sirens.
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For this reason, a decidedly emblematic case can be that of Andrea Kimi Antonelli: the young Italian driver, leader of the F1 championship, does not seem willing to resist at all costs the charm of old-school races like the 24h of Nurburgring in which his friend Max participated over the weekend. In fact, he recently did not even hide the intention to obtain the license to race at Nordschleife, only to receive a polite but firm refusal from his team.
The case of Andrea Kimi Antonelli
The story is told by Bradley Lord, former communications director of Mercedes in F1 and for a few months officially the right-hand man of Toto Wolff as vice-team principal: in an interview with Nitro, the English manager responded sharply to Antonelli. “Will Antonelli be allowed to race at the Nurburgring this year? Well, no – explains Lord – and we talked about it directly, him and I. I think it was mostly a joke on his part. Maybe he could do it after winning four world championships in Formula 1. Max Verstappen probably has a bit more leeway thanks to his great experience.” Posh or not, poor Kimi will have to wait quite a while…
