Circuit Zandvoort has issued a statement to shut down reports of damage to the circuit as “fake news”.
Track officials have apparently completed a thorough examination of the track after it was claimed that exceptionally heavy rain had triggered severe damage, with a video appearing online perpetrating to show a huge crack in the circuit
Is Circuit Zandvoort truly damaged?
The Dutch coastal town of Zandvoort was hit by torrential downpours on Tuesday, with online rumours suggesting that Circuit Zandvoort – home of the Dutch Grand Prix – had been damaged as a result.
In the below video and image, a huge split in the track is shown to have formed heading into the final corner.
Ondertussen op het F1 Circuit van Zandvoort#MaxVerstappen #Redbull #McLaren pic.twitter.com/ToMhPj7vQd
— Jef (@rallyjef3) July 22, 2025
However, the venue has brushed this off as “fake news”, insisting that the track has not been damaged.
Further, it was claimed that the all-female F1 Academy series has been in testing action at the venue.
In a social media response to the rumours, Circuit Zandvoort wrote: “Track update: Yesterday’s heavy rain sparked some fake news about damage to the circuit.
“Early this morning our team inspected the entire layout and found no damage, no delays.
“The surface is dry, clean, and 100 per cent race-ready.
“In fact, since this morning, the F1 Academy has been out on track for their scheduled practice sessions without any issues.
“All sessions are running exactly as planned. See you at the circuit!”
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Formula 1 will be hoping that Circuit Zandvoort is indeed in full health, as the Dutch Grand Prix is due to take place there in a little over a month.
The 2025 Dutch Grand Prix will be the penultimate staging of the event, as it has been confirmed that Zandvoort will drop off the calendar after F1 2026.
“There were several options on the table to continue. We could rotate with other circuits, there were also options to continue annually,” the event’s director Robert van Overdijk said of the news when speaking with NOS.
“We made a lot of considerations and this is the outcome.
“In the end, it is only our choice. Maybe the F1 top brass is surprised, but they certainly respect and understand us. They know how we have to work.
“You might say: if it’s successful, you just keep going, right? But it’s a message from strength. We are going out with a bang. Of course it also gives a wistful feeling, but most of all we are proud.
“In 2026, we will close an iconic era in Dutch sports history. Max Verstappen has of course been the big trigger in that. As far as I am concerned, the greatest Dutch sports hero ever.
“Let’s especially enjoy that there are two more race weekends coming up.”
The Dutch Grand Prix has become quite the spectacle as Verstappen’s ‘Orange Army’ pack out the grandstands, though the four-time World Champion was cost the chance to go undefeated at the event when Lando Norris took the chequered flag in 2024, ending Verstappen’s dominance.
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