Verstappen crashes out in final Zandvoort Grand Prix as event ends

The five-year era of "Verstappen-mania" at Zandvoort concluded with a dramatic crash, leaving fans with only one glimpse of Max Verstappen at racing speed. His Red Bull, damaged after a hard impact with the final corner wall, was towed away, but Verstappen himself escaped uninjured. He was fortunate that other drivers narrowly avoided his car as it slid across the track.

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You don't suddenly gain half a second just because you arrive in Zandvoort.

This marked the last time the Dutch Grand Prix will be held at Zandvoort. The circuit, a former fixture in Formula 1 from 1952 to 1985, returned in 2021, riding the wave of Verstappen's success. However, as the initial fervor begins to wane, the organization has decided to discontinue the event.

Verstappen himself appeared largely unfazed by the farewell, stating he "can enjoy" his fans but found it "a shame" it was the last race. His primary focus, as always, was on competing for victory, a goal hampered this season not by illness but by his car's performance. He acknowledged that "you don't suddenly gain half a second just because you arrive in Zandvoort," a stark contrast to his victories there in 2021, 2022, and 2023.

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can enjoy

The return of Formula 1 to Zandvoort in the modern, highly commercial era, where teams are multi-billion dollar enterprises and every driver action is content fodder, felt like an anachronism. While the circuit might have fit in during the sport's more amateurish beginnings in the 1950s and 60s, its current iteration contrasts sharply with the professionalism and scale of contemporary Formula 1.

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a shame