Following Verstappen's footsteps? This simracing Max dreams of F1

Perhaps Max Verstappen doesn't remember it, but Max Esterson does. The American talent competed against the four-time Formula 1 world champion in the virtual world. "I don't know if I beat him, but yes, we've definitely been in some races together," Esterson explained when talking exclusively to GPblog.

"Anybody can play, and sometimes you're online at the same time and you get put in a race together. So yes, for sure, we've shared the track. Right now, Max is very good. He spends a lot of time on the sim, I think more than me right now," the American says, aware that he is little below Verstappen in the sim. "I think at the top level in iRacing, everyone's quite close."

The advantage of sim racers

Max Esterson's story is different from that of most of his colleagues in Formula 2. Instead of starting karting at a young age, the current Trident driver spent his days sim racing. "Because I grew up in New York City, right in the middle of New York City, so karting was not really such an easy thing to do there," says Esterson, who soon realised he was particularly good at this form of racing and put in many hours in the virtual world.

Esterson thinks that a lot of top players in the virtual world would hold their ground in real racing. He also believes that being a good sim racer helps with car racing. "We see Max is on the sim nonstop. I mean, he has a sim on his plane, I've heard. He gets home from the race weekends and he's on iRacing. So obviously, there's that example."

"I think it's good to stay sharp. The racecraft and stuff, the battling, it is kind of the same. You feel the pressure. When you're on the grid before a race, for sure I'm feeling almost just as stressed as a real race."

Esterson teams up with Scott Dixon

Yet there are also differences. For example, Esterson thinks a sim driver must have a quality that is less applicable to a regular driver: "I think just the ability to not get burnt out. It's very easy to get frustrated because you have to drive so much, and you have to practice so much, just repeating things, trying new things, lap after lap. So I think if you're able to practice efficiently and just stay motivated, I think that's a good quality."

Since the COVID period, sim racing has grown tremendously in terms of popularity. It was during those years that racing drivers sought refuge in the sim en masse in order to stay competitive. Even Scott Dixon, the IndyCar legend from New Zealand, decided to get started in the virtual world. Small problem: He hardly knew anything about it, so he knocked on Max Esterson's door.

A remarkable combination. "He was kind of in the previous generation before all the sims," Esterson laughs. "We've been quite close with Scott for a lot of years now and Chip Ganassi, so he knew that I was quite good on the sim. I've known him for a lot of years now, so he asked, ‘How do I get started?’ He needed a bit of help. He didn't know what to buy for a sim or anything, so I helped him with that, and I did a little bit of training with him just to show him how iRacing works, so that was cool."

Esterson to F1 through competing in Europe?

Perhaps Dixon in return helped Esterson with some tips for racing in real life. The young American has now advanced to a top series in motorsport, after he only had his first car race in 2020, in the American Formula Ford competition. To get more hours under his belt, he soon moved to the Formula Ford championship in England.

"I think between April and October that year, I did 70 days in the car, and that's what I needed because obviously, I had no karting experience or anything. So I just needed to drive, and that was the cheapest and the best place to learn, I think."

Esterson then moved on to GB3. "Obviously, there's super good drivers in the US. But I think in Europe, the field is deeper. The level is higher overall, I think, in the teams and the engineering. And the cost [to race] is not really cheaper in the US. So I think that's why it made sense to be here."

The path to Formula 1 is usually through the European racing series. So for Esterson, it made sense to live and race in Britain. The youngster - also has a British passport - found it a big step to change his permanent address and hearth for England, especially in terms of logistics.

But: "It helped, obviously, in the UK, they speak English, obviously, so that helped. I think if I was moving to a country where I didn't know the language, that'd be a lot harder. But yeah, you learn to survive and take care of yourself. So it's a good experience."

The next American in F1?

Meanwhile, Esterson has advanced to Formula 2, having competed in F3 last year. To move up after just one season is a conscious decision. "I stepped up after only one year in F3 because lots of drivers were stepping up from F3, so it made sense to kind of stay with the same class instead of staying behind[in F3]."

Esterson already has two F2 weekends under his belt in F2, as during the 2024 season, he joined the series after the F3 season concluded. He was satisfied with his performance in Qatar, but called the Abu Dhabi weekend a struggle. "But at the test, we made a lot of progress. I was third on the second day with the same tyre as everybody else. So, for sure, the team made a good step with the car at the test, and I know they're making a lot of changes this winter. So I think if I just qualify in the top 10 frequently, that should leave me in a good spot to score a lot of points."

Because Esterson also knows: To get into F1, a driver in his first year in F2 actually has to be there at the front right away. "Yes. If you can be competitive in your first year, it definitely shows that you're a strong driver. Because like you said, basically no practice. So if you're able to adapt that quickly, that's what people want to see."

Ultimately, Esterson would like to be the next American in Formula 1. "F1 is obviously the ultimate goal. I know I'm still realistic about it, I know it's almost impossible for anybody. It doesn't matter how good you are to make it, it's super difficult."

"But if it doesn't work out, I still want to drive professionally, that is the goal and getting paid for it. So IndyCar, sports cars, Formula E, anything would be good, as long as it's competitive and I'm getting paid."