Max Verstappen used fake name to shatter Nurburgring lap record in Ferrari
Max Verstappen confirms he smashed the Nurburgring lap record in a Ferrari GT3 car - using a fake name.
Max Verstappen used a fake alias as he confirmed rumours he smashed the lap record around the legendary Nurburgring driving a GT3 car.
The reigning F1 world champion swapped his Red Bull for a Ferrari 296 GT3 car as he secretly entered a NLS test at the Nurburgring Nordschleife last Friday - using the pseudonym “Franz Hermann” to conceal his identity in the entry list.
Verstappen took an Emil Frey Racing Ferrari carrying the black and red Verstappen.com livery for a spin around the legendary German venue.
Rumours quickly circulated that Verstappen had set a time quicker than the current GT3 lap record, something the Dutchman confirmed when he spoke to media ahead of this weekend’s Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.
"They asked me for a fake name, so I said let's make it as German as we can,” Verstappen is quoted as saying at Imola by Motorsport.com
"[I had a fake name because] then you're not on the entry list. Otherwise people woke up at 8am knowing that my name is there.
“I knew that once I was there that people would realise. It's normal. But at least I wasn't on the entry list. So at least at 8, 9am it was pretty calm.
"But for me, I'm not there to show that I can break a lap record or whatever record. I was just having fun and learning the track together with the team.
“With Emil Frey as well, they weren't there before. So for them also the dream is to do the 24 Hours there.
"We just had a good time getting up to speed. We were lucky with the conditions as well. It was really nice and sunny. So that's great if you can have that.”
Max Verstappen beats lap record by two seconds
No official data was released from the test but Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko claimed Verstappen had informed him he produced a lap record for the GT3 class.
“GT racing is his great love and he has his own team,” Marko told Kronen Zeitung.
“He told me that he beat a record by two seconds after just three laps, knew every one of his lap times and everything about the suspension.
“He was almost more into the details than he was with his Formula 1 car.”
Verstappen’s attention now turns back to F1 and the upcoming European triple header which starts at Imola this weekend.
The 27-year-old trails McLaren’s Oscar Piastri by 32 points in the world championship after the opening six rounds of the 2025 season.
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