First impressions, funny moments and reading the room: Correa and Verschoor on being Van Amersfoort Racing teammates

They have a great partnership at Van Amersfoort Racing so you wouldn’t think that on their first impression of each other, Juan Manuel Correa and Richard Verschoor didn’t exactly get along.

Now though, the pair are a great team at the Dutch outfit and have formed a competitive friendship on and off the track. Here is how well they know each other now.

HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR TEAMMATE?

Richard Verschoor: “I mean the first thing that comes to mind is he's funny. He's a funny, good guy.”

Juan Manuel Correa: “Richard’s also funny, but with a Dutch style of humour. You have to get to know him because he can come off bad sometimes. He’s very direct, but also a good guy.”

WHAT IS YOUR TEAMMATE’S BEST QUALITY?

Correa: “I think Richard’s best quality is his motivation. He pushes and he has to work hard, not just in racing but in life too. I think that gives him the edge over most other people.”

Verschoor: “Remember the interview we did back at Van Amersfoort and it took you ages to answer this one? This time it’s the opposite! I was saying it in the car on the way here, but I think he’s very good at talking. He knows how to explain things very well.”

IF YOUR TEAMMATE WASN’T A DRIVER, WHAT WOULD THEY BE?

Verschoor: “Well, you definitely wouldn’t be a padel player.”

Correa: “You wouldn’t be either! Richard would probably own a gym. You like the gym, you like your pre-workout and I could see you getting into it and owning a gym somewhere in the Netherlands.”

Verschoor: “I think you would be a proper businessman. I don’t know what specifically, but you could sell anything.”

WHAT IS THEIR MOST ANNOYING HABIT?

Correa: “I’m thinking which one to choose… Sometimes he cannot read the room. Very Dutch! He drops a bomb when no one else is expecting it.”

Verschoor: “I say whatever I’m thinking whenever I want! I can’t think of one for you mate, what would you say for yourself?”

Correa: “My worst habit? Sometimes I give people too much advice when I should just let them figure things out themselves.”

Verschoor: “Nah I wouldn’t say that for you. I don’t know...”

WHO’S THE FUNNIEST?

Verschoor: “Him.”

Correa: “I think that’s because I can read the room. I pick my moments.”

READ MORE: Would You Rather with Richard Verschoor

WHAT’S THE MOST EMARASSING THING YOU’VE DONE WHILST TEAMMATES?

Correa: “After the test in Barcelona, we ended up having to share a room in the city, very last-minute thing. He just showed up at the door, woke me up and said he needed somewhere to sleep so he crashed in my room.”

IF YOU HAD TO COOK A MEAL FOR EACH OTHER, WHAT WOULD YOU COOK?

Correa: “I would just cook him some white rice and chicken because with him, it’s just the simplest thing, you can’t do anything too nice for him because he just eats like a farmer. He eats what he knows.”

Verschoor: “I love it. If I like a dish, like when we’re in Italy, I always order gnocchi.”

Correa: “He has to have tried it before. Actually, when we were in Melbourne, we took him to a vegan restaurant and he was freaked out for like 24 hours before we even went to the place. He was like ‘what am I going to order?!’ I was saying mate don’t worry, it’s cool you’ll find something you like. Then he tried it and was like ‘oh ok, it’s not bad.’”

Verschoor: “I’d probably cook you some Dutch snacks, because I want you to try. Kroket, frikandel.”

WHO’S THE BETTER LOOKING?

Verschoor: “The girls can decide but I think it’s pretty obvious.”

Correa: “Richard has some things going for him, but I think me because I have better rizz. But Richard is tall, blond, he’s all good.”

READ MORE: Tennis, Nutella and Baku triumphs: Getting to know the real Juan Manuel Correa

WHO KNOWS THE MOST ABOUT CARS?

Verschoor: “We don’t know that much. I love racing, but about normal cars, I don’t know everything. I even studied to be a mechanic for a couple of years, but I don’t know a lot of stuff.”

Correa: “I think it’s pretty even, neither of us are that knowledgeable about them. I think for F2, Richard, because he’s been in the category longer. But in general, technically, it’s pretty even. Sports cars, neither of us know that much to be fair.”

WHO IS ON THEIR PHONE THE MOST AND WHO TAKES THE LONGEST TO REPLY?

Verschoor: “First one I think might be me, second one is definitely him.”

Correa: “Yeah I’m really bad. I need to get another phone or something, I’m swamped. But you’re always on the phone I think.”

WHAT’S THE BIGGEST THING YOU’VE LEARNED FROM EACH OTHER?

Verschoor: “I think it’s what he said earlier, picking the right moment in the room. I’ve still not got it down, but I’ve improved, and I understand more where it comes from. Sometimes I have an opinion about something and sometimes I differ quite a lot, and there’s different ways of saying things. That’s what he’s taught me.”

Correa: “I think from him, I've learned actually a bit of the opposite, which is sometimes, I just sort of say what I think a bit more aggressively because sometimes it's needed. So, I think we complement each other quite well in that way.”

WHAT’S SOMETHING YOU’VE ALWAYS WANTED TO TELL YOUR TEAMMATE BUT HAVEN’T YET?

Verschoor: “We know a lot about each other already.”

Correa: “Yeah there’s no secrets here to be honest.”

Verschoor: “I think that we’ve already spoken about it to each other. When we first met in karting, initially we didn’t like each other.”

Correa: “As soon as we talked to each other, we became friends. But before we talked, we didn’t like each other.”

Verschoor: “We even had some crashes in karting.”

Correa: “But we know that and we’re past it now.”

WHO SPENDS THEIR MOST TIME IN THE GYM AND WHO IS IN THE SIM MORE?

Correa: “Sim, 100% you. Gym, me just because of my rehabilitation.”

WHO WOULD WIN AN ARM-WRESTLING MATCH BETWEEN YOU BOTH?

Verschoor and Correa: “We already did it, it’s on the Van Amersfoort socials.”