Yuki Tsunoda during the Hungarian Grand Prix. Photo: Red Bull Content Pool

F1 LIVE | Marko confirms Verstappen news on 24 Hours of Nürburgring entry

07:08, 17 Sep

Updated: 19:48, 17 Sep

byTobia Elia

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On Tuesday, the six venues set to host the sprint weekends next season were officially announced: China, the United States, Canada, Great Britain, the Netherlands (making its final appearance before leaving the calendar), and Singapore, scheduled for the weekend of October 9–11.

For the Netherlands, Canada, and especially Singapore, it will be the first time a sprint weekend takes place, with the latter in particular generating online debate, as many consider it not an ideal track for hosting a sprint race.

Lando Norris, 2024 Singapore GP. Photo: Race Pictures

Verstappen earns praise as 'the most friendly, funny, personal guy'

Max Verstappen’s lead engineer, Matt Caller, believes the Dutch driver is often misunderstood on social media but is actually the opposite of how he is portrayed.

Appearing on The Inside Track podcast, Caller stated: ''I think a lot of people said it, but he's so misinterpreted across social media and the F1 audience. I think there's a perception of him that's demanding and angry, but he couldn't be any further from that. He's the most laid -back, friendly, funny, personal guy.''

The British engineer believes that Verstappen is extremely competitive at work because his only goal is to reach the top step of the podium on Sundays, but outside of that, he is actually a very down-to-earth guy.

''He knows what he wants to do. He wants to win. And so do we. So there's a mutual respect there. We're going to work really bloody hard to give you the race car that you want. And you're going to go out there and get us race wins. So we can have some champagne on a Sunday.''

''But outside from that, you can chat to him about anything. And he's genuinely very incredibly funny, witty, smart. He's switched on. He's a nice guy to work with,'' he finally added.