Physical Address
304 North Cardinal St.
Dorchester Center, MA 02124
Max Verstappen will take to the Nurburgring 24 Hours this weekend in a Red Bull-branded Mercedes-AMG GT3 car as he continues his racing exploits outside of Formula 1.
Verstappen has made six outings at the Nordschleife in the past 12 months for the iconic endurance race which starts at 2pm on Saturday and will be free to watch live. Sky Sports App
Since becoming a four-time F1 world champion at the end of 2024, Verstappen has accelerated his pursuit to win some of motorsport’s biggest events.
Since his first F1 days since making his debut as a 17-year-old in 2015, he has made it clear that he wants to race in other motorsport categories at an age where he is still fast and competitive.
“All the big endurance races I want to do, it’s something that when I was younger, my dad used to do them,” Verstappen said in March earlier this year.
“I don’t just need to be an F1 driver, I can do other things. I’ve already done it for a while, I’ve achieved what I want to achieve so I want to explore other things and I don’t want to do them at 40. Now is the right age to do it.”
Please use the Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Watch highlights from Verstappen’s NLS2 race at the Nürburgring
What to expect from the Nurburgring 24 Hours
The Nurburgring 24 Hours is one of the world’s greatest endurance races. This year, 161 cars are entered to tackle the 15.769-mile circuit that the three-time F1 world champion once dubbed “The Green Hell”.
It is relentless and considered by many to be the toughest racing track in the world – which F1 raced on until 1976 when Niki Lauda was seriously injured in a fiery crash.
The Nurburgring 24 Hours features 23 different car classes and Verstappen’s team races in the top class, which includes the fastest cars – including several Mercedes-AMG GT3, Porsche 911 GT3 R, BMW M4 GT3, Ferrari 296 GT3 and Lamborghini GT3 cars.
Please use the Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Verstappen explains how he overtakes in a GT3 car
For the top class drivers, weaving their way through slower cars from other car classes is a major part of the race, as accidents can easily happen when they try to overtake on the tight Nordschleife circuit. At night, it just gets harder…
The best place to overtake is the 1.333-mile Dottinger Hohe The cars reach speeds of over 190mph straight away. Verstappen had a great battle with Christopher Haas in one of the NLS races on this part of the track earlier this year as the pair tried to sidedraft each other.
During pit stops, drivers may change as the team changes tires and adds fuel to the car. Without any problems, a GT3 car can run for about an hour on a full tank of fuel.
Driver changes during pit stops as part of endurance races (Red Bull Content Pool)
Verstappen’s exploits outside of F1
Verstappen lives and breathes racing.
He regularly competes in sim racing for the European professional sim racing team Team Redline and is one of the best sim racers in the world.
“It keeps me ready to go, because I’m also spending a lot of time on setup,” he said.
“I’m not racing a Formula 1 car in the simulator, but it’s like a GT car, so it’s also a different technique to drive.
“I just keep testing myself, and especially these sim drivers… they’re so fast! It’s very interesting to watch them drive because they have no real driving experience but, somehow, when you see how they brake, how they control, it’s how it should be.”
Verstappen at the Nordschleife earlier this year (Credit: Red Bull Content Pool)
Verstappen was part of the team that won the Nürburgring 24 Hours erasing event on the same weekend as the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix at Imola in 2024. He may have had less sleep than other F1 drivers but that didn’t stop him from holding off Lando Norris to take an important victory.
“He’s basically a racing machine,” said former Red Bull team principal Christian Horner at the time.
“It’s often in the evening that he’s testing different setups and things like that. So it’s not unusual for him to do that.”
Please use the Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Verstappen narrowly holds off Lando Norris to win 2024 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix
What about Verstappen’s future outside of F1?
Verstappen also tested the prototype car – the category from which the overall winner of the Le Mans 24 Hours came – and is keen to compete in the famous endurance race in the future.
Perhaps it will come within the next few years as Ford enters the top class of the World Endurance Championship and will compete at Le Mans from 2027.
Ford is a technical partner with Red Bull and their F1 power units, so you can see how that link could lead to a Le Mans outing for Verstappen.
Other endurance races such as the Daytona 24 Hours in Florida and the Spa 24 Hours in Belgium have also been mentioned by Verstappen in the past, part of which has prompted the Dutchman to take time off from F1.
Verstappen has a Formula 1 contract with Red Bull until at least the end of 2028, but has a release clause (Red Bull Content Pool)
After a disappointing start to the current F1 season and frustration with the new rules, Verstappen suggested at the end of March that he was considering his future in the sport.
F1 has since introduced changes to the power unit regulations and will make further changes from next year which will address the concerns of Verstappen and other drivers about the racing and driving style the new engine will produce.
Verstappen has a contract with Red Bull until the end of 2028, though Sky Sports News Understands there is a performance clause that allows him to leave earlier.
Could the 28-year-old still step away from F1 and spend a year or two racing in other motorsport events before returning to F1? It must have crossed his mind…
Formula 1 next heads to Montreal for the Canadian Grand Prix and another sprint weekend. Watch live on Sky Sports F1 from 22-24 May. Stream Sky Sports now – no contract, cancel anytime
