Photo: Formula Motorsport Ltd
Richard Verschoor says going for the title is the sole logic behind him spending a fifth season in Formula 2, having initially considered racing elsewhere in 2025.
The 24-year-old Dutchman will be driving for MP Motorsport, a team he won two Formula 4 titles and the FIA Formula 3 World Cup with before stepping up to F2 with them.
Although it took only 11 races to become a winner in Formula 1’s primary feeder series with MP, Verschoor left the team mid-season in 2021 and did not return to its ranks until the final two rounds of the 2024 season. That reunion resulted in two third places and two fastest laps.
“It wasn’t necessarily my plan to stay in F2 because I’ve been in F2 for a few years now,” admitted Verschoor.
“To be honest I was thinking about moving on but then they were quite a few good teams calling me and giving me some good deals. So, then I started thinking: ‘Okay, why is that? Is it maybe not too long? Can I be helpful for some teams?’.
“I didn’t have any other finalised deals, so I thought ‘okay let’s give it another shot’. MP came about suddenly, and we started talking. I think it’s my quickest deal I have ever done. So, basically, they came to me and I think within a few weeks they had it all sorted. I think from both sides we really wanted to sign and we did.”
Verschoor came 11th in the F2 standings as a rookie, despite missing a round, and nearly doubled his points tally in 2022 as he joined Trident. Although he started the season with a victory, had three second places and was in the points in each of the last nine races he was only 12th in the standings.
For 2023 he joined Van Amersfoort Racing, which like MP is a Dutch team, and had his highest-scoring campaign highlighted by a feature race win and third place finishes in two sprint races. This time he was ninth in the points table.
Last year he returned to Trident, and in addition to his first two F2 poles he was on a run of four podiums (including a feature win) in his last seven races with the team before he departed for MP. Further podiums were lost to disqualifications.
“Of course we are aiming for the championship [in 2025],” he added. “The only reason to do another year is to go for the championship. Of course, it will not be easy, but we will work hard and be there to fight for it.”