Franz Hermann RETURNS as Max Verstappen conducts secret track test

'Franz Hermann' - AKA F1 champion Max Verstappen - has made his return to the track during a test outing at Spa this week.

The Dutchman first adopted the pseudonym in an effort to conceal his identity as he carried out a test drive at the Nordschleife circuit earlier this month in a Ferrari 296 GT3.

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That decision prompted Daniel Ricciardo to poke fun at his former Red Bull team-mate on social media, but Verstappen has been the one laughing all the way to the bank after Hermann-inspired merchandise quickly sold out on his own website.

On Tuesday, the Red Bull star was behind the wheel of an Aston Martin, with footage of him in action surfacing on YouTube.

His surprise appearance came after he opted to skip the premiere of the new F1 movie in New York on Monday evening, insisting he would rather spend time nearer his family.

Verstappen has made no secret of his desire to gain experience in endurance racing, and has previously participated in virtual events in the Nurburgring Langstrecken-Serie (NLS).

But he may well be eyeing up a place in the real thing, with the 27-year-old reportedly planning on obtaining a Nordschleife permit this year.

Verstappen looking forward to Austrian GP

The Red Bull star's attention will now turn back to F1 duties, with the Austrian Grand Prix coming up next weekend.

Verstappen has celebrated victory at the track on four occasions already, and will be looking to add a fifth to his collection as he aims to narrow the gap to championship leader Oscar Piastri.

He currently sits third in the standings behind both the Australian and his McLaren team-mate Lando Norris following Sunday's Canadian GP, with race winner George Russell in hot pursuit.

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