Max Verstappen will continue his racing career outside of F1 this weekend when he takes on the Nürburgring 24 Hours in a Red Bull-branded Mercedes-AMG GT3 machine.
Verstappen has competed at the Nordschleife six times in the past 12 months in preparation for the iconic endurance race, which starts at 2pm on Saturday and can be watched live for free on the Sky Sports app.
Since becoming four-time F1 world champion at the end of 2024, Verstappen has stepped up his ambitions to conquer some of motorsport’s biggest events.
From his early days in F1, after making his debut at the age of 17 in 2015, he had made it clear that he wanted to race in other motorsport categories at an age when he was still fast and competitive.
“What I want to do is all the big endurance races. That’s what my dad used to do when I was a kid,” Verstappen said in March this year.
“I don’t need to be just an F1 driver. I can do other things. I’ve been doing this for a while and I’ve achieved everything I want to achieve. So I want to explore other things, but I don’t want to do it when I’m 40. Now is the perfect age to do it.”
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Watch highlights of Verstappen’s NLS2 race at the Nurburgring
What to expect from the Nurburgring 24 Hour Race
The Nürburgring 24 Hours is one of the world’s biggest endurance races. This year, 161 cars were entered to take on the 15.769-mile circuit that the three-time F1 world champion once dubbed the “green hell.”
The course is unforgiving and considered by many to be the toughest racing course in the world. Formula 1 raced at this circuit until 1976, when Niki Lauda was seriously injured in a fire accident.
There are 23 different vehicle classes in the Nurburgring 24 Hours, and Verstappen’s team races in the top class with some of the fastest cars, including the Mercedes-AMG GT3, Porsche 911 GT3 R, BMW M4 GT3, Ferrari 296 GT3 and Lamborghini Huracan GT3.
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Verstappen explains how to overtake in GT3 car
For top-class drivers, weaving their way through slower cars from other classes is an important part of the race. This is because accidents can easily occur when trying to overtake on the tight Nordschleife circuit. At night, this becomes even more difficult…
The best place to overtake is the 1.333-mile Döttinger Hohe Straight, where cars reach speeds of over 190 mph. Verstappen had a fierce battle with Christopher Haase on this part of the track during one of the NLS races earlier this year, with both drivers attempting to side-draft each other.
During pit stops, drivers may change as teams change tires and add fuel to their cars. If nothing goes wrong, a GT3 car can run for about an hour on a full tank of fuel.
Driver changes are part of an endurance race during pit stops (Red Bull Content Pool)
Verstappen’s achievements outside of F1
Verstappen lives and breathes racing.
He regularly competes in sim races for Team Redline, a professional sim racing team in Europe, and is one of the best sim racers in the world.
“We also spend a lot of time setting up, so we’re ready,” he said.
“I’m not racing an F1 car in the simulator, but it’s like a GT car, so it’s a different driving technique as well.
“I keep testing myself, especially this sim driver… They’re so fast. It’s very interesting to watch them drive because they don’t have any real experience with the car. But somehow, watching the way they brake and the way they control it, it’s just the way it’s supposed to be.”
Verstappen in action at the Nordschleife earlier this year (Credit: Red Bull Content Pool)
Verstappen was part of the team that won the 2024 Nurburgring 24 Hours race, which took place on the same weekend as the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix in Imola. He may have had less sleep than other F1 drivers, but he was still able to hold off Lando Norris for an important victory.
“He’s basically a racing machine,” former Red Bull team boss Christian Horner said at the time.
“It’s common for him to spend his evenings testing different setups and testing this kind of thing. So it’s not unusual for him to do that.”
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Verstappen narrowly beats Lando Norris to win the 2024 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix
What does Verstappen’s future hold outside of F1?
Verstappen has also been testing a prototype car, the category for the overall winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and is keen to compete in the prestigious endurance race in the future.
Ford plans to compete in the top class of the World Endurance Championship in 2027 and race at Le Mans, so perhaps that could happen within the next few years.
Ford is a technology partner for Red Bull and its F1 power unit, so we can see how that connection could lead to Verstappen’s Le Mans appearance.
Verstappen has mentioned other endurance races in the past, such as the Daytona 24 Hours in Florida and the Spa 24 Hours in Belgium, which is one reason why there was talk of the Dutchman taking a sabbatical from F1.
Verstappen has an F1 contract with Red Bull until at least the end of 2028, but there is a release clause (Red Bull Content Pool)
After a disappointing start to the current F1 season and frustrated by the new regulations, Verstappen hinted at the end of March that he was considering his future in the sport.
F1 has since made tweaks to its power unit regulations, with further changes expected next year, which should address Verstappen’s and other drivers’ concerns about the racing and driving styles created by the new engines.
Verstappen is under contract with Red Bull until the end of 2028, but Sky Sports News understands there is a performance clause that could allow him to leave early.
Could the 28-year-old still take a break from F1 completely and spend a year or two racing in other motorsport events before returning to F1? That must have crossed his mind…
F1 then heads to Montreal for the Canadian Grand Prix and another sprint weekend. Watch Sky Sports F1 live from 22nd to 24th May. Stream Sky Sports now – cancel anytime with no contract
