Verstappen's competitor says he 'Now knows how Lando Norris feels'

Calvin de Groot is a Dutch racer whose races usually take place out of sight of the Dutch public. For example, he became the champion of the NXT Gen Cup in 2024. It’s not a class for which hordes of Dutch people would fly around the world to cheer him on.

Yet, last Friday, De Groot understood what being an absolute top racer in Formula One was like. The Dutchman was active on the Nordschleife of the Nurburgring, where Max Verstappen also drove his laps in secret (at least, that was the plan). Through an onboard camera of De Groot's vehicle, it was possible to follow how Verstappen in his Ferrari flew past him. On Instagram, De Groot posted a video saying: "Now I know how Norris feels when being past by Max Verstappen."

In the Instagram caption, he also mentioned: "Didn’t expect to be overtaken by @maxverstappen1 today, but it was a good test day today!"

Undoubtedly, De Groot was not the only driver on the Eifel circuit who was amazed, both on and off the track. Once it became clear that Verstappen was participating in the session, both present fans and the other drivers swooped in on the Dutchman. Thanks to security, Verstappen could still move somewhat freely in Germany.