Dorsman: ‘Verschoor MP Motorsport return already on the right path’

1 December 2024

Richard Verschoor started his latest tenure with MP Motorsport on a great note, finishing on the podium in the Lusail Sprint Race after a measured drive to P3.

The Dutchman was part of the podium battle and DRS train headed up by Victor Martins for the majority of the race. He avoided trouble as several drivers ahead and behind came unstuck, eventually overtaking the ART Grand Prix driver and benefitting from a spin for Isack Hadjar to secure a rostrum spot.

MP Team Principal Sander Dorsman was full of praise for his driver, and explained how pleased the team were to have him back in their colours.

“We are super happy to have him back with us in the team,” Dorsman stated. “He started with us, actually in testing Formula 4 when he was 14. So we knew him as a kid, basically. There’s always a bit of a special relationship so it's super nice he's back.

“Over the years, he’s matured quite a lot, so that's also nice to see. Funnily enough, in Dutch media, it’s quite a bit thing, and then to start with a bang like this is always nice. It gives both him and us a good confidence boost, and hopefully we can build a bit further on this.”

Expanding on why Verschoor is such an asset to the team, Dorsman explained that the Dutchman’s method of working is perfect for the MP team and, along with the driver’s experience in Formula 2, makes for a hugely promising combination moving forward.

Dorsman says Verschoor's experience with the team puts them in a good position going into 2025

Verschoor was confirmed as an MP driver for the 2025 campaign along with the news that he’d race for the team in the final two weekends of 2024. Dorsman says that the extra time to gel serves both parties well as they target a title tilt next year.

“I really appreciate his working mentality. He works very hard himself, he's not really from a wealthy background, and basically all his partners and sponsors - he really achieved that on his own. He doesn't have a management so he's really in charge of his own future.

“He's doing a great job. He's very mature in that and knows what it takes to raise all those funds to be here. Then he wants to perform, also for his partners, but also for his own future, and I really respect him for that.

“On the sporting side, I think over the years, some years ago, when he did a season with us in F2, it was his first year, he was a rookie, not very experienced, and I think that's where he developed himself and matured a lot as well.

Verschoor was in good form in the Sprint and the MP Team Principal is hoping for the same in the Feature

“The title is always what you aim for. But, we need to keep the head down, work hard over the winter, but, this is a nice way to start our working relationship again, so he can get used again to us as a team, and we to him as a driver. It's quite a nice head start to do the two events and then the Abu Dhabi three-day test. We need to work hard and then take it step by step.”

Turning his attentions back to the Lusail weekend at hand, the MP Team Principal is feeling positive about the team’s chances after the Sprint.

Verschoor and teammate Oliver Goethe will be starting inside the top 10 in the Feature Race, and Dorsman says there’s no reason why they can’t bring home more vital points in the Teams’ Standings battle, with the Dutch squad closing in on Campos Racing in second.

“Yesterday was already quite an eventful race, so let's see. Hopefully we have a clean start. Yesterday, the pace looked pretty good. Today, the temperatures are different, but, hopefully we can copy/paste a bit yesterday’s scenario and try to do a bit better.

“It will be an interesting race. I think it's a nice circuit and a lot of drivers love it. Already in the Sprint Race, it produced a lot of action. So I think it will be quite nice.”