Van Buren already working with Red Bull "unofficially" in simulator role, says Verstappen

Red Bull’s new official ‘Simulator Test & Development’ driver, Rudy Van Buren, was already working with the team in an unofficial capacity according to Max Verstappen.

The Red Bull driver, who does sim racing with Van Buren as part of Team Redline, claimed that he had already been doing work with the team prior to his appointment.

“I’ve known Rudy already for a long time, of course we also do our sim racing together in the same team with Team Redline,” Verstappen told media, including RacingNews365.com.

“But then lately, and he's been doing it for a while ‘unofficially’, [doing work] already in the simulator.”

Verstappen: Van Buren can adjust to my driving style

The Red Bull driver praised the work already done by Van Buren, claiming that he is good at being able to adapt to his driving style and further help his understanding of the car setup.

He added: "I explain my feelings of what I need from the car, and I think what is really good about Rudy is that everyone has their own driving style in his simulator or in real life as well.

"But he can also put himself in someone else’s driving style and knows what that person particularly needs from the car. I think that's why he's such a big value on the simulator."

When asked by media if Van Buren is more oriented to Verstappen’s driving style, teammate Sergio Perez said: "No, no, I think he obviously does a great job for our team."

Although when challenged on whether Van Buren has shown that he's adapted to Perez's driving style, the Mexican hesitated before claiming: "He's just started."