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Max Verstappen tested a Nissan GT500 car at Fuji Speedway ahead of the Japanese Grand Prix and was faster than the car's regular driver Atsushi Miyake in wet conditions by his second lap. The footage impressed millions of viewers. It did not impress everyone.
What the Video Showed
Red Bull released the footage last week. In it, Verstappen climbs into a top-level GT500 machine in the rain and by his second timed lap is quicker than Miyake. The car is considered one of the fastest GT vehicles in the world. The images were widely shared and generated significant praise for Verstappen's adaptability.
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The Response From Inside the Series
Brazilian SuperGT driver Joao Paulo de Oliveira, who races a GT300 car for Kondo Racing alongside Iori Kimura, took to X to express his frustration. "The recently published GT500 footage of Verstappen. In wet conditions where the track surface is constantly changing, lap times can shift by almost two seconds within a few minutes."
He did not challenge the raw lap time directly, but objected to the framing. "Despite that, the way this was presented, as if he was approximately two seconds faster than a SuperGT driver within a few laps, felt wrong. Even for promotional purposes, respect for the SuperGT and its active drivers is necessary."
De Oliveira received support from SuperGT fans in the replies, but others pushed back. The Red Bull video itself noted that conditions became wetter around the time Verstappen took over the car, and Miyake himself did not appear to have any issue with how the test was presented. Verstappen did not respond publicly to the criticism.
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