An unusual competition took place in the Netherlands.
Red Bull likes to put on unusual competitions for its athletes, and on the eve of the Dutch Grand Prix at the Zandvoort circuit, Japanese Scuderia AlphaTauri driver Yuki Tsunoda and reigning world champion Dutchman Max Verstappen from Oracle Red Bull Racing took place. The pilots were put behind the wheel of DAF subcompacts and sent to the race, in which they had to move in reverse. The test proved challenging for riders accustomed to riding the traditional way at much higher speeds.
A feature of the cars was the branded Variomatic gearbox, which the Dutch company developed for its models. The transmission had only two gears - one forward and one reverse - which made it possible to move in both directions with the same maximum speed.
For Yuki Tsunoda and Max Verstappen, the ability to reverse at speeds of up to 120 kilometers per hour was an unexpected discovery, since they had never had experience of participating in such competitions. Before the race, a special track was created, which had to be overcome backwards.
“I have never experienced something like this before, it was definitely a special event and I had a lot of fun despite the accident,” Yuki Tsunoda said. “I have never driven in reverse so fast before, of course we all reverse from time to time, but very slowly, so it was a new experience,” said Max Verstappen.