Max Verstappen to race Nürburgring 24 Hours

Max Verstappen is set to add one of endurance racing’s hardest assignments to his schedule this weekend, with the Red Bull Formula One driver due to start the 2026 Nürburgring 24 Hours on Saturday, May 16. Sky Sports reported on Thursday that Verstappen will contest his first real-life 24-hour race in a Red Bull-branded Mercedes-AMG GT3, with coverage beginning at 1:30 p.m. (skysports.com) UK time and the race starting at 2 p.m. on the Sky Sports app. (24h-rennen.de) The ADAC RAVENOL 24h Nürburgring runs from May 14 to May 17 in Germany, according to the event’s official site. Organizers have billed this year’s edition as a festival-style meeting on the Nordschleife, with 161 cars entered and Verstappen listed among the headline newcomers. (skysports.com) Verstappen’s appearance follows months of preparation on the Nordschleife. Sky Sports said he has made six outings at the circuit over the last 12 months as he built toward the race. ### Which car and team is Verstappen racing with? Mercedes-AMG Team Verstappen Racing has entered Verstappen in a Mercedes-AMG GT3 for the 2026 event, according to Nürburgring organizers. (skysports.com) The official event site said he will share the car with Lucas Auer, Jules Gounon and Daniel Juncadella. Sky Sports also reported that Verstappen’s car carries Red Bull branding even though he is competing in a Mercedes-AMG machine rather than a Formula One car. (24h-rennen.de) The lineup places him in the top GT3 category, where the field includes other Mercedes-AMG GT3s as well as Porsche 911 GT3 R, BMW M4 GT3, Ferrari 296 GT3 and Lamborghini Huracan GT3 entries. (skysports.com) ### Why is this race different from Formula One? The Nürburgring 24 Hours is a multi-class endurance race rather than a single-seater grand prix, and Sky Sports said the 2026 field spans 23 classes. The race is held on the combined Nürburgring layout, which the broadcaster described as a 15.769-mile circuit. (24h-rennen.de) The official event preview said 41 GT3 cars are entered within the broader 161-car grid, underlining how much traffic the leading crews will have to manage over a full day and night. In practice, that means faster GT3 entries such as Verstappen’s must work through slower-category cars while preserving the car and avoiding incidents. Sky Sports said managing overtakes through traffic is a central part of the challenge on the tight Nordschleife. (skysports.com) ### What has Verstappen said about racing outside F1? Verstappen said in March that he wants to tackle major endurance races while he is still at an age when he feels fully competitive. “All the big endurance races I want to do,” he said, according to Sky Sports, adding that he did not want to wait until he was 40 to explore other categories. (skysports.com) Sky Sports said Verstappen has been open since his early Formula One years about wanting to race beyond F1. The broadcaster framed the Nürburgring start as part of a broader push into other forms of motorsport after he secured his fourth world title at the end of 2024. (24h-rennen.de) ### How big is the event around him? Nürburgring organizers said demand for 2026 tickets surged before race week, with all multi-day tickets sold out and only selected single-day tickets still available as of May 10. The event site also said the first-come, first-served campsites opened earlier in the week as fans arrived for the four-day meeting. The official preview said Verstappen’s debut is drawing global attention, but placed it inside a much larger race weekend built around one of Europe’s biggest endurance events. (skysports.com) That weekend began on Thursday, May 14, with qualifying before the race start on Saturday. ### When does the race start and where can viewers watch? Saturday, May 16 is the key date for viewers following Verstappen’s debut. Sky Sports said its coverage starts at 1:30 p.m. (skysports.com) UK time, with the Nürburgring 24 Hours beginning at 2 p.m.; other published schedules list the race start as 3 p.m. local time in Germany, which is the same moment. (24h-rennen.de) The Nürburgring’s official weekend runs through Sunday, May 17, when the 24-hour race is due to finish. Before that, qualifying sessions are scheduled for Thursday and Friday, followed by a Saturday warm-up and formation procedures ahead of the start. (24h-rennen.de) (skysports.com) (24h-rennen.de)