Max Verstappen's final Dutch Grand Prix ended at the first corner on Sunday, and by Monday morning the entire Zandvoort circuit had been purchased, dismantled and loaded onto 312 flatbed trucks bound for his living room in Monaco.
«If I cannot race on it, nobody will,» Verstappen told reporters while supervising the removal of the final kerb stone, which he personally wrapped in a Red Bull-branded tea towel. The circuit's 14 grandstands, 72,000 seats and 4.2 kilometres of asphalt are now being reassembled in a spiral pattern around his sofa, with the pit lane running through the kitchen.
Local officials confirmed that the town of Zandvoort has been left with a large sand pit and a faint smell of burnt rubber. «We asked if he wanted to keep the circuit as a museum,» said mayor Jan van Zanen, «but he said a museum is for people who finish races.»
Verstappen has hired 400 construction workers to rebuild the track at 1:1 scale, complete with the Tarzan corner and the banked turn three, which now requires guests to navigate a 19-degree incline to reach the fridge. The first lap of the living-room circuit is scheduled for next Tuesday, with Verstappen expected to crash out at the same point, just past the coffee table.
«It is a matter of principle,» Verstappen said, tightening a bolt on the main straight. «I will keep crashing here until I get it right, even if it takes the rest of my life.»