Despite being close friends with Norris and sharing a titanic rivalry with Hamilton a few years back, Verstappen chose Fernando Alonso. He simply said: “Fernando, without a doubt.”
He also named Alonso as the best race driver, the most intelligent driver and the best defensive driver in a glowing assessment of the veteran Spaniard.
The feeling appears to be mutual, with Alonso having spoken highly of Verstappen on several occasions. Earlier this year, he said he would welcome the Red Bull driver with open arms if he ever decides to join Aston Martin.
Verstappen, meanwhile, recently suggested he could team up with Alonso for the 24 Hours of Le Mans at some point in the future.
He said they were looking for a third driver to make up their team, adding: “It’s in the back of our minds, we know that we want to do it. [Jos Verstappen] is still very good at it, [but] he doesn’t want to. He just doesn’t want to do it anymore.
“It’s fine, let’s see what happens. A lot of things can happen. There are many great drivers that you can pick from. I have a lot of friends also who race, so it will be hard to pick one.
“The only thing is, for Le Mans, there’s no minimum weight for the driver. I’m quite a heavy competitor so I would have to find light team-mates to compensate.
“Fernando is quite light so that would be very good for us, but we would need to find another one.”
Verstappen currently sits third in the Drivers’ Championship table and will need to close a gap of 94 points to win another title in 2025. Alonso is further down the table in 12th with just 30 points to his name, having finished no higher than fifth.
To be the first to receive the latest tennis news, join our WhatsApp community or newsletter.
