Credits: IMAGO PanoramiC

Max Verstappen was once again at his dominant best during the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix as he registered an emphatic victory. Thanks to an incredible car, the Dutchman is making quick work of defeating the rest of the grid in each race. Since he does not have to worry much about the performance of the RB20, Verstappen often has a lot of free time on his hands. Speaking to the media after the race, a clip uploaded on X by user Nini shows Verstappen admitting to using his free time to catch up on his sim racing ventures. Despite being up all night for the same, he won the Saudi Arabian GP by over 13 seconds.

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As per a report from Planet F1, Verstappen was up till the early hours of Saturday. Racing online, he went to bed at 4 AM. However, that wasn’t enough for the Dutchman. After he woke up, Verstappen revealed he had an hour to spare. Hence, he logged into his Xbox and began sim racing with his friends again.

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“It’s a bit of, unwinding. I mean, I don’t have a rig here, I’m driving on my controller, you know. So, it’s just fun. Not having to think about Formula 1 and just be with people that you know – friends. Whenever I can, I do it. I woke up this morning and had an hour to spare, so I just logged in,” explained Verstappen.

However, Verstappen‘s late-night shenanigans were not an irresponsible move. The Dutchman claimed that since he wants to be in sync with the European schedule, he sleeps accordingly.

As for the online gaming part, Verstappen looks at it as a means of relaxing and focusing on things away from F1. However, it doesn’t mean sim racing is a mere hobby for the three-time F1 world champion.

Sim Racing is more than just a game for Max Verstappen

Aside from the increasingly hectic schedule of F1, Max Verstappen often spends a lot of his time on online racing. He has his own sim racing team, ‘Team Redline,’ for which he often competes professionally. He even took part in online series such as ‘Real Racers Never Quit’ in 2023.

Verstappen was a successful participant in the tournament, winning three out of the four races he competed in. Talking about the world of sim racing, Verstappen claimed he does not see it as a game. “I think it’s very professional. It’s hard to explain here, but there’s a lot going on.”

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Verstappen firmly believes that there is immense scope for the drivers who compete in sim racing. As per the 26-year-old, these drivers can even become professional racers in the real world.

He continued by saying that he is also trying to work on making this a possibility. The constant evolution of sim racing to try and make things as realistic as possible is also an exciting prospect.

Verstappen is of firm belief that this evolution will pave the way for sim drivers to make it all the way to real-world racing. While he thinks making it to F1 might still be a distant reality, these drivers can still explore other avenues of motorsports.