Nordschleife specialist Frank Stippler believes Max Verstappen's triumph on his GT3 debut was a "logical outcome".
Ford Mustang GT3 driver Stippler could only watch and admire as from third on the grid Verstappen exited Turn 1 in the lead, and from there pulled away with consummate ease.
By the time Verstappen handed over the Ferrari 296 to team-mate Chris Lulham after his two-hour stint, the Dutchman's lead was just over a minute.
"I indeed had the best view of things," Stippler told VNLFP when asked about his perspective on Verstappen's performance.
In particular, the German driver highlighted the quality of Verstappen's machinery. He said: "That car is the benchmark and in that respect a worthy successor to the Audi R8, which is now a bit out of date anyway."
Verstappen's car proved to be an incredible machine for the occasion, although it has rarely been used at the Nordschleife, as pinpointed by Stippler.
"We have seen in the last two years how good that car is, and in that time we have not seen that car here very often," said Stippler.
"On Friday, that car was already going well during practice when I was behind Max for some time."
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Verstappen victory not a surprise
While Verstappen did have an excellent car at his disposal, Stippler, who finished third, revealed that he was not surprised by the four-time F1 champion claiming victory.
"As everyone knows, he is the best track driver in the world," remarked Stippler. "That's why I'm not surprised by his overall win. The Ferrari is the best car here, in terms of balance as well as performance.
"When you also combine that with a driver lineup of that calibre, winning is the only logical outcome. Their performance was superb."
Ahead of the event, Verstappen and Lulham spent hours preparing for the four-hour event, both on the simulator and in real-life testing.
"The conditions were familiar to them and the track was also clearly familiar territory for them [from the simulator]," added Stippler.
"And Verstappen and Chris Lulham are good enough to handle traffic smartly."
Given Verstappen's intent to compete in the Nürburgring 24 Hours, the Red Bull driver will likely be back in the NLS Series at some point, something Stippler is unconcerned about.
"I'm more concerned with myself, we have our own problems to solve. So Max does not interest me much in that respect," he said.
"He's arguably the best driver in the world, so I find all this discussion about his lap times absolutely laughable. You can't deny that something crucial is missing from the whole thing.
"In Formula 1, the others are missing something crucial, so why would that be different in GT3? That's just crazy. But anyway, I can't say anything more about that."
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