Max Verstappen Turns Heads With Comment About Desire to Drive NASCAR Ride originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
Max Verstappen has been the dominant driver in Formula One since 2021, winning 55 races and the championship in the last four seasons. Kyle Larson has been a dominant driver in NASCAR in that same time, winning 26 races. But he only has one championship to his credit.
For more than a year fans have been debating — between them — who is the best driver in the world? Unsurprisingly, NASCAR or US fans tend to lean toward the Hendrick Motorsports driver while international fans favor the Red Bull Racing driver.
The only true way to find out would be for them to race in a head-to-head competition.
On Thursday, the four-time champ got fans talking about that possibility following his comments made in a video that was shared on X by Trackhouse Racing, who Connor Zilisch is under contract with in the Cup Series.
Verstappen and Zilisch were both in Austria this week for a Red Bull promotion and had an interesting exchange as the 18-year-old stood by his car and the F1 veteran walked by.
You want to get in, @Max33Verstappen? 👀 pic.twitter.com/hH8I23gNKl
— Trackhouse Racing (@TeamTrackhouse) June 6, 2025
“What’s up man?” Zilisch began.
“How’s it going mate?” Verstappen replied.
“How are you? Good to see you,” the Trackhouse driver said as his Red Bull teammate walked over and shook his head.
“Yeah, it’s good to see you,” the Dutch driver said. “You ready?”
“I think so. You want to get in?” Zilisch asked.
“I mean, I would like to do it,” Verstappen admitted.
His remark was obviously directed at getting in that car on site. But it’s not hard to see how some fans could interpret it as something bigger. And it’s even more realistic when you consider Trackhouse has employed its Project 91 over the last several years, bringing in drivers from around the world to race in select Cup races, which is how Shane van Gisbergen was introduced to the NASCAR audience several years ago when he won in the streets of Chicago.
SVG hasn’t left and is now a full-time Cup driver.
Could Verstappen get a similar opportunity in the future? Time will tell.
Related: Wrecked Connor Zilisch Vents Frustration Over Radio With Teammate
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 6, 2025, where it first appeared.
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