Max Verstappen is arguably the most famous athlete from The Netherlands today. But since it is a country with a rich sporting history, there have been many ‘icons’ in the past, including soccer legend Johan Cruyff, who is often credited with revolutionizing the beautiful game. Sadly, Cruyff passed away in 2016, but just a few weeks before that, he met Max Verstappen, in what can be labeled as a ‘passing the torch’ moment.
Cruyff, known to be a heavy smoker throughout his life, was suffering from terminal lung cancer. With his treatment taking place in Barcelona, his path coincided with Max Verstappen, as revealed by a report published by F1 Maximaal. Verstappen, at that moment, was in Barcelona for testing.
Jap de Groot, who is one of Netherlands’ most reputed journalists, was in touch with Cruyff at the time. De Groot asked the former FC Barcelona star if he wanted to meet Verstappen. Cruyff knew who the Red Bull driver was, and was aware of the talent he possessed. “I would love to [meet him],” Cruyff told De Groot.
Verstappen did meet Cruyff, an interaction that the latter loved. However, Cruyff was not in a good condition physically. De Groot says, “He had a bit of a swollen head, and he spoke a little softly. But he loved it.”
Verstappen, like every single Dutchman, knew who Cruyff was and was very excited to meet him. Their meeting was supposed to last for just an hour. Instead, it took them all afternoon. De Groot described the interaction between Cruyff and Verstappen as, “Nice transfer for myself, from one icon to another.”
Is Max Verstappen at same level as Johan Cruyff?
Max Verstappen is one of the greatest F1 drivers of all time despite being just 26. He is the current three-time reigning world champion, and Jap de Groot, in terms of stature, puts the young Dutchman on the same pedestal as Johan Cruyff.
In the same report, he stated that Cruyff meeting with Verstappen was like, “The baton was passed down from generation to generation.” De Groot added that although Verstappen will deny it, he is at the same level as Cruyff.
Cruyff passed away in March of 2016 before Verstappen embarked on his second season in F1. That year, midway, Verstappen would make his move to Red Bull from Toro Rosso. Interestingly, his debut race for Red Bull was in Barcelona, and he won that, becoming the sport’s youngest race winner ever.
