Racing
© Eterna
Max Verstappen says he is fully prepared for his first 24 Hours of Nurburgring, but believes Balance of Performance and simply keeping the car intact will decide whether his Mercedes-AMG GT3 crew can fight at the front.
The four-time Formula 1 world champion heads into the May 16 race after spending recent months building experience on the Nordschleife in GT machinery. He will share a Mercedes-AMG GT3 EVO in the SP9 GT3-Pro class with Lucas Auer, Dani Juncadella and Jules Gounon.
“We have prepared as well as possible, but at the end of the day, of course, it also depends on the BoP, where we’re going to be at,” Verstappen told media, including RacingNews365. “I think from the driver’s side, we’re good, the team is strong. We just need to make sure that the car stays in one piece, especially for the 24-hour race.”
That caution sits alongside growing evidence that Verstappen has adapted quickly to one of endurance racing’s toughest environments. Markus Winkelhock, a multiple Nurburgring 24 Hours winner, said Verstappen’s level after jumping from Formula 1 machinery into a GT3 car at the Nordschleife was “insane” and “unbelievable.”
Winkelhock said the most striking part was Verstappen’s understanding of traffic, a skill that often defines races on the Nordschleife. After watching onboard footage from one of Verstappen’s recent outings, he said: “Max understands how to take the flow through the traffic... it was crazy to see the amount of experience he already has. Really, really awesome.”
Traffic remains the biggest unknown in Verstappen’s first 24-hour race. Winkelhock noted that there can be “160, 180 cars on track” with speed differences of “80 kilometres per hour, or even more,” turning traffic management into a constant mental test rather than a secondary detail.
Verstappen made clear this weekend is not a one-off ambition. He said he wants to add more endurance events if his Formula 1 schedule allows it, and pointed to Spa as a race he would already have done this year with a free weekend. “And then the rest, I want to do more, of course, but it also depends a bit on the calendar,” he said. “For example, if there was a free weekend for the 24 hours of Spa, I would have done that already this year as well. So it’s just whatever allows me to race; I would love to do so.”
That leaves his Nurburgring debut as both a test of how quickly his Nordschleife learning translates over a full day and a clearer measure of how far he can push his endurance racing plans beyond Formula 1.