A defiant Max Verstappen has dismissed suggestions that he has been banned by Red Bull from sim racing late at night on F1 weekends, insisting he will continue to indulge in a passion that is “very important” in his life.
Last weekend, the reigning world champion drew some unwanted attention after participating in the iRacing Spa 24 Hours until 3am on the morning of the Hungarian Grand Prix.
The controversy began after Verstappen finished fifth in the race at the Hungaroring, where he appeared particularly irritable and frustrated with his team’s strategy calls and how his race unfolded.
The Dutchman’s performance inevitably came under scrutiny, with fans suggesting that burning the midnight oil on his sim rig had left him deprived of the necessary sleep and rest required to race in the real world.
Addressing the topic in his post-race editorial for Speedweek, Red Bull motorsport advisor Helmut Marko suggested that Verstappen had agreed to cut back on late-night sim racing during race weekends.
"His late-night sim race on the Hungarian weekend only came about because a driver in his team was cancelled,” wrote Marko. “Nevertheless, we have agreed that he will no longer drive sims so late in future."
Verstappen, however, was quick to dismiss the notion of a ban.
"We talked about it," he said, speaking at Spa on Thursday. "There is no other sim race coming up anyway, so no one needs to worry about that.
"So no, it's not that I have a ban or whatever. I also don't need to tell them what they do in their private time and during the weekends, and that's the same to me.
"Racing till 3am is not something new and, for me, it's something very important in my life."
Verstappen was happy to point out that his sim racing hobby has not hindered his performance, highlighting his victory at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix in Imola after a late night stint of iRacing.
"It's always when you don't win the race, [people] will always blame it on: 'Ahh, he's staying up until 3am or he's being one kilo overweight,'" he said.
"There are always things to make up that you can argue about when you're not winning a race.
"But, for example, in Imola I do win the race – both of them. I've been doing this since 2015. So for me, this is not something that is any different in my preparation.
"I mean, I've won three world championships, I think I know pretty well what I can and what I cannot do. I'm always very hard on myself, on what is allowed and isn't allowed, so I think with all the experience that I have in Formula 1, I know quite well what is possible."
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