Valentino Rossi did not plan on racing Max Verstappen. He is now.
The 47-year-old Italian is a GT3 regular with Team WRT, and this weekend’s GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup finale at the Algarve International Circuit has put him on the same grid as the four-time Formula 1 world champion for the first time. Verstappen, 29, is squeezing a GT3 debut between F1 weekends in Singapore and the United States Grand Prix in Austin, and he has entered one of his own team’s Mercedes-AMG cars with British drivers Chris Lulham and Ben Barnicoat.
Speaking to Sky Sport Italy, Rossi welcomed the prospect of a 60-plus-car grid of GT3 professionals being joined by the reigning F1 champion.
“It’s going to be amazing. I mean, it will be a big problem because he’s sure to be incredibly fast, but it will be fantastic,” the Italian said.
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“I have to say, I never imagined I’d be racing towards Max Verstappen. So it’s great, it’ll be great for everyone to have him there, and I hope I get the chance to follow him and see how he drives.”
Verstappen hopes Rossi stays out of view
The F1 driver has long run his own GT programme, and he was blunt about where he wants Rossi to be once the lights go out.
“I hope I get to see him. He’s a very cool guy, so I hope to catch up with him,” Verstappen said earlier this month. “I mean it nice, but I do not hope to see him in the race, so that’s normally a good sign.”
Both entries are in the Pro class and will fight for the overall win. Rossi carries his career #46 on a BMW M4 GT3 EVO for Team WRT alongside Germany’s Max Hesse and American Neil Verhagen; Verstappen’s #3 Mercedes-AMG GT3 runs under the Team Verstappen.com Racing banner.
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A 61-car finale, with the Pro title already settled
The Endurance Cup is the longer-format half of GT World Challenge Europe, with races up to the Spa 24 Hours. Portimão is the season closer, a three-hour race on the Algarve layout with 10 manufacturers represented.
The Pro-class drivers’ title was settled at the Nürburgring, where Maro Engel, Lucas Auer and Luca Stolz took the crown for Mercedes-AMG Team Mann-Filter, so this round is a straight shootout for the race win, with the Overall, Gold Cup and Bronze Cup still to be decided. A 61-car field is entered, including former F1 driver Nikita Mazepin, back after the ban on Russian competitors was lifted, Aston Martin’s Nicki Thiim, Lamborghini factory driver Mirko Bortolotti and Arthur Leclerc in an AF Corse Ferrari.
For Verstappen this is one of seven race weekends in a row, with the GT outing falling between two F1 triple-headers. For Rossi it is the last chance of the GT3 season to measure himself against an F1 world champion in the same car class.
The lights go out at 5pm local time on Saturday, 17 October.
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