Three-time Formula 1 world champion Max Verstappen is an avid fan of virtual racing, has his own team of seven racers, and participates in virtual races himself.

The last such race, the iRacing Spa 24 Hours, lasted until 3 a.m. on Sunday, July 21, 2024, meaning it ended only 12 hours before the start of the actual Hungarian Grand Prix 2024, in which Max was to participate. This race, among other things, was remembered by fans for Verstappen’s very nervous behavior, his aggressive talks on the radio, and his criticism of his own engineer and team. And also a rather ridiculous accident that caused Max to lose a place and finish only fifth.

Of course, social networks exploded with memes and criticism of Verstappen, including for playing late at the computer, which could prevent the driver from getting enough sleep and affect his mood, reaction, etc. during real races.

After that, it was reported that Max was allegedly banned from participating in virtual races on the eve of the real grand prix.

“Max has a different sleep rhythm and he slept his seven hours [on the eve of the race]. His late night virtual race at the weekend in Hungary was only because a driver from his team was unable to compete. However, we have agreed that he will not drive simulators so late in the future,” said Helmut Marko, Red Bull Racing’s sports consultant and a close friend of Verstappen..

But, according to Motorsport, Verstappen laughingly dismissed the suggestion that his nighttime “exploits” had any effect on him during real races and said he would continue to combine his hobby with his duties as a Formula 1 driver.

“We talked about it,” Verstappen said. “There is no other sim race coming up anyway, so no one needs to worry about that. So no, it’s not that I have a ban or whatever. I also don’t need to tell them what they do in their private time and during the weekends, and that’s the same to me.

Racing till 3am is not something new and, for me, it’s something very important in my life. It’s always when you don’t win the race, [people] will always blame it on: ‘Ahh, he’s staying up until 3am or he’s being one kilo overweight,'” he said. “There are always things to make up that you can argue about when you’re not winning a race.

But, for example, in Imola I do win the race – both of them. I’ve been doing this since 2015. So for me, this is not something that is any different in my preparation. I mean, I’ve won three world championships, I think I know pretty well what I can and what I cannot do. I’m always very hard on myself, on what is allowed and isn’t allowed, so I think with all the experience that I have in Formula 1, I know quite well what is possible,” commented Max Verstappen.

As a reminder, Red Bull Racing has lost its striking advantage of previous seasons, and in the 2024 season we already have 7 different Grand Prix winners. Max Verstappen has won only 7 out of 13 stages (24 in total this year), but continues to lead the individual standings.

This weekend, July 27-28, 2024, the Belgian Grand Prix will take place at the legendary Spa-Francorchamps circuit, and so far Red Bull Racing and Max Verstappen do not look like favorites.