GT3 News: Verstappen's Late Heroics Salvage a P9 Finish

Max Verstappen salvaged a nightmarish turn of events as Verstappen Racing finished P9 in the GT World Challenge Europe in Portimão. 

After a disappointing qualifying session that saw them line up on the grid in P15, #3 Mercedes-AMG Team Verstappen Racing actually had a good start to the race. Their car's setup came alive in race trim.

Ben Barnicoat opened the race strongly for Verstappen Racing. From 15th at the start, the British driver quickly gained positions and climbed through the midfield. He was able to steer clear of chaos in front of him, while showing that they have the superior pace over the midfield cars.

Barnicoat, who was a member of the McLaren F1 Young Driver Program from 2010 to 2016, worked the #3 car into the Top 10. He even reached as high as eighth at one point. His incredible opening stint gave the team a fighting chance to potentially get into the Top 5.

Chris Lulham took over the second stint for Verstappen Racing. He actually started nicely, following up on Barnicoat's charge and putting the #3 car as high as sixth. The team was seriously looking at a podium finish at that point, especially with Verstappen readying for the final stint.

However, disaster would strike Verstappen Racing. After a Safety Car period, Lulham planned to overtake Lucas Stolz of #48 Mercedes-AMG Team Manne-Filter. But the cars made contact, with Stolz spinning and taking the brunt of the hit. The stewards investigated the incident, and eventually, Verstappen Racing incurred a costly drive-through penalty.

As a result, Verstappen inherited the car from 24th on the grid.

Instead of taking over a car fighting near the Top 5, Verstappen was handed a recovery job from 24th. He had 45 minutes to recover tons of positions against more experienced GT3 drivers, and he did just that.

10 minutes into his stint, Verstappen already found his rhythm and climbed into 19th place. In one stellar sequence, the Dutchman managed to pass three Pro cars in a single move. 

Then, in the closing stages, Verstappen went wheel-to-wheel with Arthur Leclerc of #50 AF Corse. Arthur is the younger brother of Ferrari Formula 1 driver Charles Leclerc. Eventually, Verstappen passed Leclerc, making up his final move into P9 on the grid. 

In total, Verstappen gained about 15 places in that narrow window of 45 minutes.

Ralf Aron, Maximilian Gotz, and Fabian Schiller of #17 Mercedes-AMG Team GetSpeed emerged victorious in the GTWC Europe. They were followed by Ricardo Feller, Thomas Preining, and Bastian Buus of #80 Lionspeed GP.

This Verstappen guy is really a good racing driver. It's no surprise that he's doing all kinds of racing events outside of F1. The four-time F1 World Champion can adapt to the best of them, as evidenced by his strong performance in GTWC Europe.

If he gets bored of F1 at some point after his current Red Bull contract ends in 2031, Verstappen can definitely try his hand full-time in endurance racing.