Toro Rosso rookie Max Verstappen has joined top simracing team Redline to compete alongside his F1 duties.

Fresh from his fourth place in Hungary - a result which Toro Rosso technical director James Key told F1i the team "needed" - Verstappen has been announced as a member of Redline which is the world's most successful virtual racing team. The 17-year-old says he is looking forward to the challenge of racing with Redline which he will use to keep sharp away from F1.

"I enjoy simracing outside of Formula 1," Verstappen said. "I've been working with Atze [Kerkhof] for a while already and of course with Team Redline and Fanatec I'll be sharing the virtual track with the fastest simracers in the world which is a great test and the way I like it!"

Team manager Kerkhof says Verstappen is already a competitive racer when it comes to simracing.

"I'm happy and honoured to have Max onboard at Team Redline!" Kerkhof said. "Looking forward to continue our sim battles like we did in the F3 last year."

Felipe Nasr's exclusive F1i column: From the cockpit

Click here for a lighter look at some scenes from the Hungarian Grand Prix

Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter

Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.

Recent Posts

Audi reveals ambitious new home for its F1 operation

Audi is putting another brick in the foundations of its Formula 1 project, with the…

29 minutes ago

Stroll reveals brutal Honda deficit despite secret engine upgrade

Honda has revealed that it has quietly burned through both of its 2026 Formula 1…

1 hour ago

Verstappen set for surprise GT World Challenge race at Portimao

Max Verstappen is about to add another unusual chapter to his increasingly busy life away…

2 hours ago

Ocon: Haas exit ‘not really the way it should be’

Esteban Ocon is refusing to treat Haas’ decision to drop him at the end of…

3 hours ago

Herta clings to F1 dream despite disastrous F2 campaign

Colton Herta's Formula 1 ambitions have taken a serious beating in Formula 2, but the…

19 hours ago

Hadjar feels ‘very, very lucky’ to have Verstappen as benchmark

It’s undeniable that Isack Hadjar has one of the most intimidating reference points in Formula…

21 hours ago