Double Formula 1 world champion Max Verstappen said Red Bull motorsport head Helmut Marko had confused a motorhome with a plane after erroneous reports that the Dutch driver was installing a race simulator on his private jet.
Speaking to reporters after his team’s livery launch in New York on Friday, the 25-year-old smiled when asked about the stories.
Verstappen said he had been talking to Marko last year about the new motorhome he was building for use at the European rounds: “I said I will install one [a simulator rig] there because I just can keep on driving when I’m back in the evening because I like it. It’s my hobby in a way. It just keeps you sharp as well.
“I think he misunderstood and he said plane. So no, I’m not installing one in my plane. I think that would be a bit absurd,” added Verstappen
Marko was widely quoted on websites this month as telling Germany’s Sport1 television that Verstappen “had his plane converted so that he can fly a simulator in the air in the future”.
The story emerged after keen simulator racer Verstappen took part in a virtual 24 Hours of Le Mans and was furious when server problems left his Red Line team and many other competitors disconnected, calling the Motorsport Games event, using rFactor 2 sim platform, a “clown show” during his rant about the debacle. (Reporting by Alan Baldwin)