Jos Verstappen saw something ‘not normal’ when he watched Max Verstappen’s onboard from GT3 test

Formula 1 drivers have a ridiculous schedule in the 2025 season, with 24 race weekends – six of which are Sprint weekends – running from March until February.

Most drivers will use any gap in the season to rest and recuperate before the next Grand Prix. But between the Miami and the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, four-time defending champion Max Verstappen decided to keep up his racing exploits.

Last week, Verstappen took to the Nurburgring Nordschleife in an incognito GT3 test. Driving a Ferrari 296 GT3, the Dutchman ran under the pseudonym ‘Franz Hermann’, not wanting the media to draw attention to his outing.

But his helmet and racing suit made it clear what the real identity of the driver was. Verstappen has made it no secret that he enjoys all forms of motorsport, regularly seen sim racing, as well as owning his own GT3 team.

Tom Kristensen suggested Verstappen could compete in the 24 Hours of Le Mans alongside his F1 schedule. It is believed that the 27-year-old used his GT3 test to obtain the licence to compete in the 24 Hours of the Nurburgring.

Jos Verstappen says Max’s onboard footage from his GT3 test was ‘not normal’

Timo Glock lauded Verstappen’s incredible feat at the Nordschleife. The Dutchman was on the limit within two laps of running the circuit.

Father Jos Verstappen saw his son’s onboard footage from the test. Speaking via racexpress, he said it was ‘not normal’ how quickly the 27-year-old was on the pace, despite having never driven the track before.

“I mean, yeah, Max has a new name, Franz,” he said. “No, that’s a thing he’s wanted for a long time, so to speak. He just finds it an incredibly challenging circuit and yeah, I think he’s been looking forward to doing his laps there for a long time.

“And yes, from what I understood, it went really well. But I saw the onboard of him and if you see how he is on the limit within three laps and how he knows the circuit.

“Because I think [the] Nordschleife is one of the most difficult circuits in the whole world, but within three laps, he drove such good times. It’s just not normal.

[About whether he expected his lap record] “No, but I know him, of course he knows the circuit from the sim and I think he has already driven two 24-hour races there.

“So I think that it corresponds very well with what he actually does there, so to speak. Only you have to do it and when I saw it onboard, it is really impressive what he has put there.”

READ MORE: Red Bull driver Max Verstappen’s life outside F1 from net worth to girlfriend

Max Verstappen leaves F1 fans in hysterics with ‘Franz Hermann’ joke at Imola

Verstappen comes to Imola looking to close the gap to McLaren. Starting on pole in Miami, he dropped back to fourth and finished almost 40 seconds down the road from race winner Oscar Piastri.

Red Bull have brought updates to the RB21 at Imola, notably to the floor and sidepods. The team hope it will be enough to challenge McLaren, but Gary Anderson was saddened by Red Bull’s upgrades, stating that teams are ‘running out of steam’ in the ground effect era.

Understandably, Verstappen’s GT3 test was on the agenda during Thursday’s media day. The Dutchman confirmed that he broke the Nordschleife lap record during his secret test.

Verstappen joked ‘Franz Hermann’ received ‘contract offers’ for the Nordschleife after his outing. His response left F1 fans dubbing him the funniest driver on the grid.