Auer recovers from Verstappen quali drama to secure P5 in Top Quali at the Nurburgring
Red Bull driver Max Verstappen faces the media at the 2026 Japanese Grand Prix
Max Verstappen’s bid for a strong position in qualifying for the Race 2 qualifier for the Nürburgring 24 Hours was saved by his teammate in Top Qualifying as he bounced back to secure P5 for the team.
The Red Bull F1 driver and his teammate Luca Auer had been running up in P1 during qualifying for Race 2 but plummeted to 32 in the final 20 minutes.
Max Verstappen qualifying at the Nurburgring
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On a cold and grey morning at the Nürburgring Nordschleife, Verstappen had been sitting up in P1 heading into the final 20 minutes of the session before pulling into the pits.
As he sat stationary, he dropped down the order from first to third, before falling outside the top ten.
Christian Krognes in the Aston Martin put in a late effort to clinch pole position with an 8:18.515.
Verstappen and Auer were 40s off the pace, with a fastest lap of 8:58.834.
“We just drove on a wet track,” Verstappen told his official website. “Hopefully it will get a bit drier, but there can always be some wet spots, and the grass is still wet.
“So you have to be a bit more careful when going offline and overtaking cars. It is good for me to experience all the conditions.”
The onboard of the fasted lap by max pic.twitter.com/G7zgTtHNdQ
— Ana 🦁 (@maxvcalloway) April 19, 2026
Auer was behind the wheel for Top Qualifying, with the driver getting one warm-up late followed by two timed laps.
He was P27 on his first flying lap, but improved to fifth where he was 3.076m off the pace set by Terry Vermeulen.
He posted a fastest lap of 8:13.351.
The second of two four-hour Nurburgring 24 Hours qualifier races is scheduled to begin at 1300 local time in Germany.
The first was cancelled on Saturday night after a seven-car crash resulted in the death of Juha Miettinen.
Despite efforts from paramedics, the BMW driver was declared dead in the circuit medical centre.
“Shocked by what happened today…” Verstappen wrote on social media.
“Motorsport is something we all love, but in times lie this it is a reminder of how dangerous it can be.
“Sending my heartfelt condolences to Juha’s family and loved ones.”
The six other drivers involved in the incident were treated either at the medical centre of transferred to nearby hospital for precautionary checks, though none are in a life-threatening condition.
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Read next: Max Verstappen offers condolences after Juha Miettinen dies in Nürburgring crash
