"At the time I was like, I don't care": Max Verstappen on his iconic overtake in Spa in 2015

Max Verstappen recalls one of his most daring overtakes at the 2015 Belgian GP in Spa in his 2023 documentary, "Off The Beaten Track". The Dutchman made a bold move around the outside of Turn 18 after the 'Blanchimont' turn during his debut season in F1. Back then, the three-time world champion was a rookie driving for Red Bull's junior team, Toro Rosso (currently RB).

In his 11th race in F1, Verstappen was chasing Felipe Nasr for P11. The youngster was closing in on the Brazilian as both approached the Blanchimont corner. The Dutchman then tried an extremely bold and dangerous move around the outside of the Sauber driver on Turn 18.

Though both cars were side-by-side for several seconds, it was Verstappen who came out victorious as he completed the move in the final chicanes before the start-finish straight.

Speaking in the docuseries on his life and career, Max Verstappen explains how he and his eSports team Redline's head, Atze Kerkhof, practiced certain moves on the simulator in the iRacing game. The Red Bull star then reveals his thought process which led to him going for the daring move.

“I was 17, I was like, 'I’m going for it.' I would’ve easily maybe passed him in the next corner, or whatever, but at the time I was like, 'I don't care, I’ll show everyone that it's possible,'” Verstappen said. "Yeah, it was fun, at the time I enjoyed it a lot."

In the 2015 F1 Belgian GP, Verstappen qualified P15, plowed through the field during the race, and secured P8 in the final standings.

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Max Verstappen on how Helmut Marko scolded him for his audacious move at Spa 2015

Max Verstappen also shares how Red Bull senior Helmut Marko scolded him after he overtook Felipe Nasr in the 2015 F1 Belgian GP. Since the Dutchman was still young, several Red Bull seniors had their eyes peeled and were tracking his maneuvers.

His overtake around the outside of Blanchimont being too daring, Marko met Verstappen after the race to scold him about it. The Red Bull star reveals their exchange in the aforementioned documentary.

"Helmut came (to me) straight after the race," Max Verstappen said. "He told me, 'Never do that again!' I said, 'What do you mean? I passed him, it's okay.' Now I understand why. At that point... I mean, I was 17, I think I was like, 'I'm going for it.' I probably would not do it now. No."

Verstappen retired from several races throughout the 2015 season and stood in 12th place in the drivers' championship at the end of the year. However, his on-track performances had impressed several Red Bull seniors. He eventually received a mid-season promotion in 2016 to the Red Bull Racing team.