Four-time Formula One World Champion Max Verstappen has launched his own racing team for the 2025 GT World Challenge Europe season.
Verstappen, a keen sim racer, has recruited British Team Redline sim racer Chris Lulham as one of the team’s three drivers.
Verstappen.com Racing will compete in 10 rounds of GT World Challenge Europe, which begins April 11th, 2025 at the French circuit Paul Ricard. Notably, the team will also run in the 24 Hours of Spa at the end of June for the first time.
According to a press release, Verstappen ‘handpicked’ Lulham to be part of the team, marking the Team Redline driver’s transition to real-world racing after representing the team since 2021. Lulham will continue to participate in sim racing competitions alongside the real-world driving.
In addition to a full season of GT World Challenge Europe, Lulham will also compete in the GT3 Sprint series under the Emil Frey Racing banner.
Alongside Lulham, Verstappen’s racing team in the GT World Challenge Europe championship will feature Thierry Vermeulen and Harry King.
Team Redline is one of the most successful names in all of sim racing. Lulham was part of the driver line-up, which won the 2023 Spring season of ESL R1, a competition operated by ESL FACEIT Group.
Can Sim Racers Compete In Real-World Motorsports?
Sim racing is one esport that contains several skills that transfer over to real-world sports — motorsports.
The most famous example of sim racers becoming real-world drivers is Jann Mardenborough, the winner of the inaugural GT Academy in 2011.
After winning the competition, Mardenborough finished on the podium at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2013, along with competing in several open-wheel and sportscar disciplines.
With Verstappen actively supporting sim racers’ transition onto the real race track, it will be interesting to see if Lulham can become the next virtual racer to make a successful switch.
