Max Verstappen 'respect' urged as highly-anticipated debut beckons

Jaguar TCS Racing driver António Félix da Costa has insisted that Max Verstappen deserves "respect" for taking on this weekend's Nürburgring 24 Hours.

The Dutchman has brought significant attention to GT racing by entering the iconic event alongside his Formula One commitments with Red Bull Racing.

Verstappen has completed extensive preparation to give himself and the #3 Mercedes GT3 outfit the best possible chance of victory, with the team starting from fourth position.

Da Costa, a close friend of the four-time world champion, knows first-hand how difficult the Nordschleife is, having entered the 24-hour race himself in 2017.

The Portuguese driver also competes in the FIA World Endurance Championship for Alpine Endurance Team and is "loving" seeing Verstappen tackle GT racing, with the Dutchman almost rolling back the clock to what F1 drivers used to do regularly.

In the past, it was common for F1 drivers to compete in other events alongside an F1 campaign, although this became far less common in recent years. However, drivers like Verstappen have helped revive the trend.

Asked what he makes of Verstappen taking on the Nürburgring 24 Hours, da Costa told RacingNews365: "I'm loving it. I mean, many, many years ago, you had F1 drivers coming in and out of other series while they were racing in F1, and then over time that stopped happening anymore.

"I think we saw Nico Hülkenberg go to Le Mans and win it on his first attempt. That was very cool to see. And now you have Max doing it — not just this year with the serious racing, but he's always been involved in GT driving. He has his own team, and he helps his own sim racing team as well.

"Then what he's doing with Chris Lulham is something very, very cool. And yeah, to see Max doing it — especially in a GT3 car — is great because normally people would go to IndyCar, LMP1 at the time, or Hypercar, or whatever. Max has just gone with what makes him happy.

"So we have to respect it. He's putting himself in the mix with some of the best GT drivers in the world, and he's right up there, as we knew he would be.

"So yeah, it's going to be cool to watch him this weekend. I've done the Nürburgring 24 Hours before, and it's such a crazy race. Pace is so critical, but you're also vulnerable to so many things outside your control that winning that race must be special."