Verstappen's protégé on brink of British F4 title as McLaren junior heads to Brands Hatch decider

That leaves the Belgian very close to the title, and close to giving Verstappen Racing its first single-seater crown while Verstappen himself is racing at the Singapore Grand Prix.

He may not even have to wait for the race, as Van Langendonck could clinch the title before race one starts, as long as he takes pole position.

The title fight changed at Silverstone in late September. The Rodin Motorsport driver arrived with a 33-point advantage, took pole and won races one and three. Wherrell spun into the gravel after the first Safety Car restart in the opening race.

Wherrell fought back to finish seventh and second in the other two races, but the gap still grew from 33 to 72 points. Van Langendonck, who has won eight times this season, has had setbacks along the way.

A month before Silverstone he received a one-event ban for exceeding 12 points on his licence. Earlier in the year, Wherrell briefly led the standings after the first Silverstone round, until a double win at Zandvoort put the Belgian back on top.

Verstappen Racing signed Van Langendonck in July. The deal was Verstappen's first move into junior driver management. The teenager remains part of McLaren's junior programme, so the arrangement links the McLaren F1 team with Verstappen Racing.

Speaking at the Belgian Grand Prix media day, Verstappen said: "He has been a big talent for a long time already in go-karting, and I think you can spot quite quickly when someone is a little bit more special than someone else." He said the plan was to help the Belgian decide where he should race and to support him on the simulator side.

That same weekend, GPblog reported that Jos Verstappen and Raymond Vermeulen visited McLaren at the Belgian GP. Van Langendonck endorsed the move and said: "Verstappen Racing provides another layer of support and backing alongside McLaren, which will be important for my career."

Van Langendonck won the junior karting world title in 2023. In 2025 he became the youngest race winner in British F4 history on his debut weekend. He then won the Formula Winter Series with nine victories from 15 races before starting his first full British F4 campaign this year.