Augusto Farfus on BMW, racing against Verstappen and 'being called crazy'

One of those rivals is BMW factory driver Augusto Farfus. The Brazilian has been part of the German manufacturer for more than 18 years and had the opportunity to take part in a Formula 1 test in Valencia for Sauber in 2008, when the team ran BMW engines. He and Verstappen had not met back then, but they did on the Nordschleife. Unfortunately, the #1 ROWE Racing BMW M4 GT3 Evo retired overnight due to a technical issue.

A duel between Farfus and Verstappen never materialised. Next year, it might. The BMW driver would love that. "Amazing. I mean, I think everyone wins in this kind of environment because it shows how humble Max is," Farfus tells GPblog. "He's probably one of, if not the greatest of all time," he emphasises. According to him, it speaks volumes that Verstappen simply decided to take part in the 24h Nürburgring.

"To put himself among, I don't know how many, a thousand crazy drivers around the Nordschleife shows how humble he is and how open he is to a challenge, so chapeau for that," says Farfus, who took victory on the Nordschleife in 2010 and 2025. "It shows how fast he is in any type of car, which is not a surprise, but on the other side it also shows how good some of the drivers are who have not made it to Formula One, who can battle with him on the same level, even if they've not made it to Formula One. I think that was something very nice."

Farfus raced in single-seaters at the start of this century. He won the Formula Renault 2000 Eurocup and Euro Formula 3000 before focusing on TCR and GT championships. The Brazilian has an extensive résumé with impressive results at Le Mans, the 24h Nürburgring, DTM, Blancpain, stock cars, IMSA, WEC, GT World Challenge and more. For him, it was amusing to see how fans reacted to Verstappen’s participation among veterans like Farfus.

"When this hype around Max and the Nürburgring came up, I got asked many times how much faster Max is compared to me," he laughs. "I said that, in that environment, I think we can fight on the same level. People would say, "So he's not faster than you?" I said, "No, I'm not saying that I'm faster than him, but in that specific environment, we can fight on the same level," says Farfus.

Farfus expresses the wish that Verstappen not only returns to the Nürburgring, but also takes part in the 24 Hours of Spa. Verstappen is already seriously considering it. "Hopefully he can come back, not only for the Nürburgring, but to Spa, to Le Mans, and all these big races, because I think he's a racer. It's nice to see Max. He's in Formula One because that's the pinnacle of motorsport. He's an enthusiast of the sport, but he's also a race fan. I'm sure if you invited Max at some point to do the 25 Hours of Fun Cup in Spa, and it fit into his agenda, I would not be surprised if you ended up seeing him there, because he's a racer, and this is what keeps him so sharp."

The 42-year-old sees similarities between Verstappen and himself in that regard. Both are pure racers, love the feeling a car gives them on tracks like Spa-Francorchamps and the Nordschleife, and enjoy developing new talent. "Well, it's an honour for me to compare myself to him, first of all. But I'm a racer," says Farfus. "I do an average of 250 days a year at the racetrack, definitely more than 200 days. Not only for BMW; now I have my racing academy, which is running very well, I have Vicky, and then I have all my duties with BMW."

Farfus’ daughter, Vicky Farfus, is meanwhile working hard to make her Formula 1 dream come true. The Farfus family can be found at a circuit almost every weekend. "There are months where I spend 25 days at the racetrack, and people often tell me, 'You're crazy. How can you do so much?" But I've never refused a race. Never. If BMW says, 'Augusto, you have to do a race in...'" says Farfus.