50 Years of Van Amersfoort Racing: From spare parts to Max Verstappen and F2 and F3 success

Celebrating 50 years of racing in 2025, Van Amersfoort Racing have enjoyed plenty of highs over the course of their history, endured tougher spells but as eponymous team owner Frits Van Amersfoort told us, the passion for racing remains undimmed.

Reflecting on his and his team’s journey from upstarts in the 1980s to competing on Formula 1 race weekends and celebrating plenty of famous drivers in between, Van Amersfoort says that while things have changed a lot in racing since he started, some things never will.

“It’s a question that I’ve been asked often over the years,” he reflected after being asked how things have evolved from where VAR started out. “It sounds weird, but it feels like yesterday that we got started. Of course, the racing world has changed a lot over the years, but the thrill of racing feels the same.

“It started out with me building up our stock of equipment, then buying a small transporter, organising a small awning and I was pretty proud of it. It only had one car in it, but that’s how it started.

“I’m happy to keep the team alive for 50 years! That was probably the biggest hurdle. It’s not easy all of the time. We’ve had challenging years but since being back in F2 and F3, things have gone well, and I’m proud to be here.

“I think the last two decades especially things have changed. I remember even 10 years ago racing wasn’t the same as it is today. Look at things now, every team is big, they run almost every series they can, and they employ a lot of people. That’s how racing is now – the racing level has increased an incredible amount on and off the track.”

Van Amersfoort were not a part of the inaugural FIA Formula 2 or Formula 3 campaigns back in 2017 and 2019 respectively. But since joining both Championships, the team has achieved success with several race victories, pole positions and points-scoring results.

The team owner says that the challenge both pose is a huge source of motivation even after all of the other categories and championships the team has participated in.

“F2 and F3 are still a big challenge, especially F2. We keep learning every day and maybe in all the years we’ve been a team, it’s the best thing we’ve done. The years we had with Max were great, but in this Championship, everything that’s involved and that goes into it, it’s a different league.

“The driver can’t do it alone without the team, and the team can’t do it without the driver. It’s different to how it was in the past. That’s why it’s so massively interesting. The challenge for the team year after year, and the learnings, it takes so much to compete at this level.”

Van Amersfoort has seen almost everything over the course of his tenure overseeing the rise of the Dutch outfit from upstarts to international racing team.

He says the lessons over the years are as important as ever, with the increased level of professionalism and eye for detail compared to when the team first started out.

He also noted how his experiences when VAR was a smaller operation still count for a lot, with the interaction between team personnel always critical to any success on the track.

“Maybe it’s good that the old man is still there! Now with 50 years of experience, everyone can still learn things and welcome advice. I’ve learned over those years, even with all the money involved in racing nowadays, there’s still the social side.

“I’m still looking at the team nowadays and I want to make sure everyone is able to work at their best. Because if they’re not, I feel like it’s an attack almost – I feel responsible.

“Everyone in the team, whatever they’re doing, I’ve done. Whether it’s a tyre guy, sweeping the floors at the factory, being a team manager, engineer, driving the truck, so I understand you. I understand what you need, your feelings and understand you, so I can help.

“It’s sport, it’s people. To keep the group together and motivated, I think I can still play a role in that. Now I don’t visit all the races in a season anymore, it’s time to relax a little bit more, but I’m more nervous watching on the television than at the circuit!”

Asked to pick out his favourite moments, Van Amersfoort took his time to look back on his experiences and top moments from over the years, and reflected on what the next half century might hold for VAR.

“I recently went to a friend’s birthday celebration, and he handed me an envelope of black and white pictures, and they were of me somewhere on the way to Zandvoort back in 1980 fettling with a Formula Ford car. It reminded me of how it all began.

“It’s very hard to say what has been the best moment over the 50 years. Of course you have the big names. We had the opportunity to sign Max for 2014, and the rest is history. Then we continued that with Charles afterwards too.

“We’ve won in FRECA, F3, F2 and more. Over the years, we’ve found some good people, Rob Niessink, my partner in crime since 1988. I could show you my phone and you’ll see Rob’s number is saved above my wife! And his is the same too.

“The next 50 years – I mean racing will change a lot by then as well like it has done over the years, but the passion will be there as always.”