- Verstappen led Nürburgring 24 Hours on debut before driveshaft failure intervened.
- A record 352,000 fans watched Mercedes-AMG GT3 dominate for most of the race.
- Verstappen has already set his sights on returning to the Nordschleife in 2027.
Max Verstappen led the Nürburgring 24 Hours for most of his debut appearance, only for a driveshaft failure to end his bid for victory with fewer than four hours remaining.
The four-time Formula 1 world champion shared the #3 Mercedes-AMG GT3 with Jules Gounon, Dani Juncadella and Lucas Auer.
After finishing off the podium, Verstappen has confirmed he intends to return to the Nordschleife.
A debut that lived up to the hype
A record 352,000 spectators attended the race in the Eifel region of Germany. Weekend passes sold out for the first time in the event’s history. Global media interest in the race reached levels the Nordschleife had never seen before.
Juncadella started from fourth on the grid and handed the car to Verstappen after the opening hour. The Dutchman needed little time to settle in. He built a lead of 23 seconds after just three hours of racing.
The track did test him early. A heavily fuelled car briefly lifted its front wheels off the circuit and pushed him towards the barriers, but he recovered and pressed on.
He produced several decisive overtakes through dense multi-class traffic in the process.
“I like the competition and the endurance style racing where you share with team-mates,” Verstappen told Sky Sports. “The 24-Hour race here… the track is super challenging, so the whole combination [I enjoy].”
The overnight masterclass that put Verstappen in command
The night hours on the Nordschleife brought cooler temperatures and greater difficulty. It was during this phase that Verstappen produced his strongest contribution to the race.
At around 1:30 a.m. local time, he passed Maro Engel for the lead. Engel briefly ran onto the grass as they fought through traffic.
Verstappen then completed a double stint to extend the advantage before handing back to his co-drivers.
By Sunday morning, the #3 car held a lead of more than 30 seconds. The sister #80 Mercedes run by Winward Racing was its nearest challenger. The rest of the field was well adrift.
After his final daylight stint on Sunday, Verstappen reflected on his approach to Sky Sports.
“My stint was good. Back in the daylight, I was trying to keep it safe while, of course, maintaining a decent pace. The car was working well, and I just tried to stay out of trouble.”
Three hours from glory, then heartbreak
With fewer than four hours left, the #3 car held a commanding lead. All four drivers had kept it out of serious trouble through a race that had already eliminated several frontrunners.
The #911 Manthey Porsche, for instance, was out after Kevin Estre hit oil and struck a barrier in the early stages.
Then Juncadella received an ABS alarm. He initially believed it was manageable and stayed out. Noises and vibrations soon followed, and the car had to slow sharply before limping back to the pits.
Mercedes-AMG customer racing boss Stefan Wendl explained the sequence of events to ESPN.
“We tried to recover in two laps and left him out because it was not so much influencing the driving,” Wendl said.
“But then he recognised more and more noise, vibrations, and suddenly had to slow down to save the car, and limped it to the pits. And here in the pits, we saw that the whole rear axle had major damage resulting from a driveshaft failure.”
The damage to surrounding components required lengthy repairs. Any realistic chance of a competitive result was gone.
The team eventually sent the car back out for a final lap as a gesture to the fans who had stayed throughout the weekend.
“It’s a very bitter pill to swallow,” Verstappen said via Red Bull’s official website. “From the moment we took the lead, the drive shaft gave out, and our battle for victory was over.”
Later on Instagram, he offered a more measured reflection.
“Very unfortunate and frustrating ending, but these things can happen,” he wrote. “I still really enjoyed the experience together with @jules_gounon, @luggiauer and @dani_juncadella. Thanks to the team and everyone around the track for your support.”
The #80 Winward Racing Mercedes of Maro Engel, Luca Stolz, Fabian Schiller and Maxime Martin took victory. It was Mercedes’ first Nürburgring 24 Hours win since 2016.
The #84 Lamborghini finished second, and the #34 Walkenhorst Aston Martin completed the podium.
Verstappen already plotting his return to the Nordschleife
Verstappen made his intentions clear when asked by Sky Sports whether he would come back.
“I will for sure try,” he said. “It always depends a bit on my schedule.”
He also later responded to his teammate Jules Gounon’s emotional social media post about the heartbreak and said, “We will be back, mate.”
The desire to compete outside Formula 1 has been a consistent thread through his career. He has previously named the Le Mans 24 Hours as a major ambition.
For his Nürburgring debut, he spent almost a full year preparing, earning a special racing permit and fitting preparatory races around his F1 schedule.
What the weekend confirmed is that his talent carries across disciplines. In a relatively unfamiliar car, on a 25-kilometre circuit with 159 rivals, he was among the fastest and most composed drivers throughout.
The victory got away, but the unfinished business at the Nordschleife now shapes up as one of motorsport’s more compelling storylines heading into 2027.
