Mercedes AMG GT3 wins Nürburgring opener
The Nürburgring Langstrecken‑Serie kicked off with the #3 Mercedes‑AMG GT3 taking victory — drivers listed include Max Verstappen, Maximilian Götz (with team notes on Juncadella), and Jules Gounon — ahead of a BMW M4 GT3 EVO and a Porsche 911 GT3 R. Podium mix highlights multi‑manufacturer GT3 depth right out of the gate. (x.com)
Stewards disqualified the No. 3 Winward entry after officials found the team had used seven tyre sets during NLS2, breaching the series’ six‑set limit. (autosport.com) The post‑race exclusion promoted ROWE Racing’s No. 99 BMW M4 GT3 EVO—driven on the entry by Dan Harper and Jordan Pepper—to the official victory. (pitdebrief.com) On qualifying the Winward car had set a 7:51.751 lap and taken pole by about 1.9 seconds, and it crossed the line on track nearly a minute clear before the later disqualification. (msn.com) Winward team principal Christian Hohenadel issued a statement calling the ruling “tough to take,” saying an internal error led to the infringement and apologising to fans and partners. (gpfans.com) The NLS participant portal shows a sequence of steward decisions and the amended official results published on 21 March 2026, with the final “Gesamtergebnis offiziell” posted at 19:46 CET. (teilnehmer.vln.de) With the No. 3 excluded, the reshuffled podium lists ROWE’s BMW as winner, Falken Motorsport’s No. 44 Porsche (Tim Heinemann and Sven Müller) promoted to second, and the No. 48 Black Falcon/Losch Porsche in third. (gpblog.com)
