Verstappen takes surprising new step in his career

That Verstappen and his team are mentoring young talents is nothing new, with the Dutchman having previously taken the likes of Chris Lulham and Thierry Vermeulen under his wing. However, he has never previously set the goal of helping them reach Formula 1, which is the ambition for Van Langendonck.

It appears that Verstappen is following Fernando Alonso's footsteps, who mentors young drivers through A14 Management. Despite taking on this role, Verstappen has no intention of making it a full-time job.

Speaking to the Dutch media, including GPblog, Verstappen said: “Maybe only if I really see potential in someone. These kinds of drivers don’t come around every year. Dries is actually the first one where I think there’s real potential.”

Verstappen paused when asked whether he sees similarities between himself and the young Belgian, who is part of the McLaren Academy. “No one should want to be like someone else. Everyone should do it in their own way, and that’s the beauty of it.”

In any case, Verstappen's own career so far will serve as inspiration as he mentors the young talent. “Yes, but everyone has their own character and that’s a good thing. Otherwise, everyone would be the same, and that would be very boring. Of course, you build up a lot of experience yourself, and you try to pass that on, to share it so the right choices are made for him.”

Verstappen’s focus over the initial period of mentoring the youngster is clear: “Simply how you race and always being there. Being consistent. And of course at such a young age you can still make very big steps, but the basic things you really don’t need to explain. So the starting point is already very good. Now it’s about how the next steps will be taken. But in terms of talent and as a person, it looks good,” he concluded.