Verstappen leaves DTM engineer stunned after test

Max Verstappen left a DTM engineer in disbelief after again underlining his all-around talent as a driver that features as part of a documentary on the Red Bull driver.

In the Viaplay programme, entitled 'Verstappen - Off The Beaten Track', the 26-year-old Dutch driver tests Thierry Vermeulen's Ferrari 296 DTM car at Mugello, the Italian circuit which hosted a one-off F1 race in 2020.

Vermeulen drives for Emil Frey Racing, with Graziano Michelacci as its head of track engineering.

Despite Verstappen being a three-time F1 champion, his performance still left Michelacci stunned. 

"I usually know what to expect from certain drivers, but this was really unexpected," Michelacci said in the documentary. 

"He improved his lap times in a way that doesn't exist in real life. Even if you expect something like this from Verstappen, you're still surprised."

The engineer continued: "It's stories like that that you share later in the future when you're on the road with your friends in a van."

It was not just Michelacci who Verstappen amazed as Vermeulen was also massively impressed by what the 26-year-old achieved. 

Whilst Vermeulen pinpoints that any driver can post a quick lap time eventually, what separates Verstappen is his ability to do it immediately. 

"Everyone can drive a fast lap at some point, but he is capable of it so quickly," said Vermeulen. 

"Even though he is dealing with a new car, he can drive around the problems and use all his talent and experience to be fast right away."