Max Verstappen’s efforts on the Nurburgring Nordschleife have rightly attracted a lot of attention in recent weeks – and it’s good for Formula 1 and motorsport as a whole, as well as the Dutchman himself.
Now that he has the required DMSB Permit A, Verstappen can contest a Nurburgring Langstrecken-Serie race in a full-house GT3 car. And, more importantly, he can do likewise in the Nurburgring 24 Hours, a race that the 27-year-old has expressed an interest in.
While some might argue that he should be focused on F1, Verstappen’s performances in 2025 haven’t exactly suffered. Indeed, Michael Schumacher was one of several drivers to point out the potential benefits of racing outside F1, with his Group C sportscar outings making him a more-rounded driver even before he got his big break.
Experiencing different cars and circuits can only be a good thing when it comes to adding to a driver’s repertoire or skillset. It gives them more in the mental library from which they can draw when required.
There’s also a fallacy among some fans that current drivers aren’t as versatile and adaptable as their predecessors – that they would somehow struggle in other cars.
It’s true that few current F1 drivers attempt other categories – their schedules are often too full for that – but that doesn’t mean they wouldn’t be any good at them if they tried. Fernando Alonso demonstrated as much with his competitive 2017 Indianapolis 500 showing, plus his two Le Mans victories and World Endurance title with Toyota.
Fernando Alonso, Andretti Autosport Honda
Photo by: Steven Tee / Motorsport Images
Anyone who has seen current stars grapple with older machinery, with no downforce, H-pattern gearboxes and crossply tyres at events such as the Goodwood Revival will also know that top drivers are top drivers whatever the car underneath them.
Verstappen’s Nurburgring lap record pace in his Emil Frey Racing Ferrari 296 GT3 test, whatever the exact specification of the car at the time, shows something similar. And, let’s be honest, it’s pretty cool.
On the one hand, this shouldn’t be a surprise. F1 is the pinnacle of the sport and four-time world champion Verstappen is already one of the greats. But on the other, it’s worth remembering how motorsport has changed since F1 drivers regularly competed elsewhere in the 1950s and 1960s.
Many of the drivers of the day appeared in different disciplines. In other words, if Jim Clark was faster than Roy Salvadori in a grand prix car, it’s not really a shock that he’d be quicker in a touring car, GT or sportscar.
But now there are many specialists at a high level across different championships. Some of those drivers got very close to getting into F1 themselves, should have done, or made it to F1 before heading elsewhere. Think people such as six-time IndyCar champion Scott Dixon, Le Mans legend Tom Kristensen or sportscar ace Sebastien Buemi. Rocking up and beating them at their own games, in the sorts of cars they know inside out, is not a given, even for F1’s elite.
GT3, which is now two decades old, probably has more professional drivers in the world than any other category. With Balance of Performance in theory keeping the cars evenly matched (four different marques have won the 24 Hours over the past five editions), manufacturers have employed the best pros they can. The margins are usually measured in hundredths or thousandths of a second.
#980 Lionspeed GP, Porsche Cayman GT4 – Max Verstappen, Chris Lulham
Photo by: Nürburgring GmbH
There’s not a whole heap of time left in the cars for anyone – Verstappen included – to suddenly find. As with F1 itself, it’s all about stitching together small gains and being consistent.
Perhaps one area in which Verstappen will need to be careful is dealing with traffic, which will be almost constant. Some of the drivers in the 24 Hours are amateurs or those with far less experience than the 225-time grand prix starter. Verstappen could find himself in trouble if he tries an unorthodox move; he can’t rely on everyone having an Alonso or Lewis Hamilton-level of awareness to avoid shunts like he could have had at the Hungaroring this year.
But Verstappen is smart enough to know that. His wheel-to-wheel antics have always been about deliberately playing with the line of acceptability rather than a lack of ability to stick to it. He’ll surely dial it back for an event that is for enjoyment rather than a world title.
Verstappen dabbling in GT racing is also good for the other branches of the sport. F1 has grown so big as to dwarf the interest in other parts of motorsport. New fans, who have perhaps come to F1 via Drive to Survive, might not even have heard of GT3 or (perish the thought!) the Nordschleife. But now they will.
Interest in Indycar racing spiked when reigning world champion Nigel Mansell ventured across the pond for 1993. Autosport’s own online traffic showed how much interest there was in Alonso’s Le Mans debut in 2018, even though Toyota had no meaningful opposition.
Verstappen racing in GT3 could widen the horizons of some F1 fans, once again demonstrate the quality of top grand prix drivers and enhance the reigning world champions CV, even if he’s only doing it for fun. It’s a win-win-win, with one caveat.
#980 Lionspeed GP, Porsche Cayman GT4 – Max Verstappen
Photo by: Jan Brucke/VLN
Thanks to the nature of the greatest circuit in the world and the big pace disparities between the multiple classes there, the Nurburgring 24 Hours is one of modern motorsport’s more risky endeavours. Nobody wants to see a repeat of the sort of crash Robert Kubica suffered in the 2011 Ronde di Andora Rally.
Such incidents, and the 1985 deaths of rising F1 stars Stefan Bellof and Manfred Winkelhock in sportscar crashes, have understandably sometimes caused F1 team bosses to be less than enthusiastic about their drivers indulging in extra-curricular motorsport.
But the sport is safer than it once was and Red Bull is doing everything it can to keep Verstappen happy, so it’s not a surprise it hasn’t stopped these GT3 outings. The risk of Verstappen leaving the team is probably higher than of him getting injured.
So, hat’s off to Verstappen for doing something different. Next year’s Nurburgring 24 Hours doesn’t clash with an F1 round, so let’s hope he takes the plunge. And, if it goes well, perhaps the Dutchman should consider taking on the challenge of the triple crown that Alonso hasn’t quite managed yet…
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