Max Verstappen drove an Aston Martin in pre-season (Image: Getty)
returned to the wheel of a race car ahead of pre-season testing in Bahrain, but not a F1 machine. The four-time F1 world champion tested an GT3 car at Circuit Paul Ricard.
Verstappen has been linked with a record-breaking move to Aston Martin in 2026, should fail to improve their machinery. As per a report from the Daily Mail, Lawrence Stroll’s team are prepared to offer £1billion to the 27-year-old in order to bring him to Silverstone on a long-term contract.
Speaking to media, including Express Sport, before the F1 75 Live event, Verstappen was asked whether or not he had heard from Aston Martin during the off-season. He replied: “It’s a lot of money.
“Honestly, when I read that, it was the first time that I saw something like that. The only contact that I had with them was about GT3 for this year. That’s it. There’s not much to say really because there isn’t anything.”
While the reported figures are eye-watering, won’t be too concerned about losing their star driver to Aston Martin unless the Silverstone-based squad takes a massive step forward in 2025. Andy Cowell’s team regressed deep into the lower midfield by the end of the 2024 campaign.
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Aston Martin are reportedly trying to lure Max Verstappen away from Red Bull (Image: Getty)
Verstappen’s laps behind the wheel of an Aston Martin GT3 machine were not a means of staying race-fit. The Dutchman is planning on launching a GT3 team in 2025; thus, his car was wrapped in a Verstappen.com livery.
In a previous Formule1.NL interview, he explained: “It all started with Team Redline in sim racing. With Verstappen.com Racing we are sponsoring and supporting various racing activities from people close to me.
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“We are also active in DTM and the GTWC Sprint with Thierry Vermeulen [son of Verstappen’s manager Raymond Vermeulen] and with my father [Jos] in rallying, but the end goal is to put together our own race team. The first step in our own GT3 team and then we’ll see where we end up.
“It would be nice to be able to grow to the highest level in endurance racing. We are working on it at the moment. Next year will be tight, but I would like to have it as soon as possible. Having a GT3 team in 2025 with a minimum of two cars should be possible.”