Max Verstappen reveals origins of 'Franz Hermann' after Nürburgring test

Max Verstappen has revealed his intentions to one day compete in the Nürburgring 24 Hours, as he also explained why he took the 'Franz Hermann' pseudonym during his test.

The world champion was at the Nürburgring Nordschleife last Friday, testing a GT3 Ferrari, but used the name 'Franz Hermann' to avoid detection, despite driving in a Verstappen.Com branded car and Red Bull-style overalls and helmet.

The Dutchman confirmed he had broken the lap record, as he detailed why Hermann was used, and signalled his intention to one day compete in the Nürburgring 24 Hours, should he be able to obtain the required licence, with a special permit needed to tackle the track dubbed 'The Green Hell.'

"They asked me for a fake name, so I said, let's make it as German as we can," Verstappen explained to media including RacingNews365.

"Otherwise, people would wake up at 8am knowing that my name is on the entry list, and I knew that once I there, people would realise, that is normal.

"But at least I wasn't on the entry list, so 8am-9am was pretty calm."

He commented on the lap record: "I was not there to show I can break the lap record or whatever record. I was just having fun and learning the track with the team, as they had not yet been there before."

"For them, the dream is to do the 24 Hours, so we just had a good time getting up to speed, and we were lucky with the conditions as well, it was really nice and sunny."

On the personal side and future plans: "It is my passion, with the GT3 team and I want to gather more information for myself, and at the end of the day, it is my private time."

"I would like to do [the 24 Hours] in the future, that is why I am doing all these things to prepare, get a bit of experience so I don't need to do that for the future."

"We are discussing it with them how to do it, because my schedule is very full, and we are speaking with them because I know what is needed, but I cannot say when it would be."