Max Verstappen’s GT3 rival applauds F1 star for ‘awesome racing’ experience despite Nurburgring DQ

Follow us on Google Discover

Max Verstappen’s Nurburgring win may have been nullified, but his performance has garnered a lot of acclaim.

Verstappen managed to earn pole position by 1.9 seconds, setting him up brilliantly to go on and win the race at Nordschleife by a margin of 59 seconds.

However, due to Mercedes-AMG Team Verstappen Racing making seven tyre changes, one more than the allotted six tyre changes over the weekend, the Dutch driver was disqualified, and his win was struck from the record.

It was a crushing blow for Verstappen, who managed to find success behind the wheel that he just hasn’t been able to in Formula 1 this season.

However, even with the disqualification, one of Verstappen’s Nurburgring rivals waxed lyrical about the experience of driving against the four-time world champion.

READ MORE: Max Verstappen has already shown Lewis Hamilton how to take first Ferrari win in Japanese Grand Prix

Christopher Haase reflects on thrilling racing experience with Max Verstappen

Christopher Haase, who had a thrilling exchange with Max Verstappen at Nurburgring, spoke after the race about his time driving against the Red Bull ace.

Haase admitted it was one of the most fun experiences for him as a driver in quite some time. While he and Max did go back and forth several times, he enjoyed the overall experience.

“It was really, really, a lot of fun. I think I haven’t had as much fun during a race for a long time!… We had parts where Max was a bit faster than me, and then where I was a bit faster than him… It was awesome racing!”

Haase, who will rival Verstappen at the 24 Hours of Nurburgring with his experience of being a two-time winner, was able to go toe-to-toe with Max at various points during the race.

While it is a shame that Verstappen’s race was deemed illegal owing to a rule violation, it showed fans that he will be a top contender to win it all at the 24 Hours of Nurburgring in May.

READ MORE: Max Verstappen faces ‘even more painful’ Japanese Grand Prix with Red Bull after China retirement

Is Toto Wolff planting the seeds for poaching Max Verstappen from Red Bull? 🤔

Comment

Like or Comment

Have your say Sign-in now for free

Max Verstappen’s team issue apology after race disqualification

After the race, Christian Hohenadel, team principal for Winward Racing, released a statement expressing the team’s disappointment over Max Verstappen’s disqualification.

“The disqualification hurts. Unfortunately, a mistake was made within the team that forced race control to retroactively disqualify the winning car.”

“For us, this was our first outing as a Mercedes-AMG Performance team on the Nurburgring Nordschleife. I would like to apologise to everyone who was rooting for us.”

“We will now thoroughly analyse the day, meticulously prepare for the remaining races, and work toward the ADAC RAVENOL 24h Nurburgring with full concentration.”

Regardless of the outcome, Verstappen will feel confident about his chances of winning the 24 Hours of Nurburgring in two months, especially after his experience this weekend.