Nürburgring 24 hours: Max Verstappen stuns Nürburgring 24 Hours field with sensational charge to lead

Thomas Maher
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The Verstappen Racing #3 Mercedes in action at the 2026 24 Hours of Nürburgring

The Verstappen Racing #3 Mercedes in action at the 2026 24 Hours of Nürburgring

A sensational stint from Max Verstappen has seen his entry lead for a significant portion of the first quarter of the Nürburgring 24 Hours.

After a strong opening stint from Daniel Juncadella in the #3 Mercedes, Max Verstappen cut his way through the leading pack to move into the lead, while Jules Gounon put in a consistent stint before Lucas Auer moved the car back to the front.

Max Verstappen leads Nürburgring 24 Hours after stunning opening stints

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At the six-hour mark of the 24-hour endurance race, it is the #3 Verstappen Racing Mercedes-AMG entry that leads from the #80 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG entry.

At present, it is Lucas Auer behind the wheel, after climbing behind the wheel 20 minutes before the six-hour checkpoint as darkness descended upon the Nordschleife.

The Austrian sliced past the #80, being driven by Fabian Schiller, in a move around the outside of Schwedenkreuz, emulating an equally eye-opening move from Max Verstappen during his time behind the wheel.

The four-time F1 World Champion had taken over from Juncadella just an hour into the race, and proceeded to do a double stint that saw him pull off a very risky pass on the #47 Mercedes-AMG with two wheels on the grass, before slicing up the inside of the #911 into the first corner.

Later, he produced a double overtake going down the Dottinger Straight on the leading duo, the #67 Ford Mustang and the #34 Aston Martin, moving into the lead and pulling out a 20-second advantage before ending his stint and handing over to Gounon.

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With Auer currently lapping in the 8:13s, his advantage over Schiller is 1.1 seconds, more than two minutes clear of the third-placed #34.

Notable retirements during the opening quarter of the race included the #16 Audi R8, following a mistake in traffic that saw Alexander Sims suffering catastrophic damage that led to the team withdrawal despite managing to drive back to the pits with an open bonnet. With Sims joining Ben Green and Christopher Haase in the line-up, the car was one of the favourites for the victory.

Another favourite to fall by the wayside was the #911, driven by Kevin Estre, who crashed his Porsche 911 and had to park up further around the lap due to damage. The car has not rejoined the action.

Earlier, the pole car, the #84 Lamborghini suffered an early setback as Mirko Bortolotto suffered a puncture on the first lap, before entering the Nordschleife at the end of the GP circuit. The car is currently in 14th, four minutes behind the lead.

  1. 1,3,Lucas Auer,8:13.690,,38,Mercedes-AMG GT3
  2. 2,80,Fabian Schiller,8:14.337,01.256,38,Mercedes-AMG GT3
  3. 3,34,Mattia Drudi,8:17.432,2:30.542,38,Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3 EVO
  4. 4,99,Daniel Harper,8:18.953,2:41.985,38,BMW M4 GT3 EVO
  5. 5,81,Connor de Phillippi,8:17.045,3:00.506,38,BMW M3 Touring 24h
  6. 6,44,Klaus Bachler,8:17.284,3:08.994,38,Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) Evo26
  7. 7,24,Laurens Vanthoor,8:18.141,4:14.044,38,Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) Evo26
  8. 8,1,Augusto Farfus,8:16.257,+1 lap,37,BMW M4 GT3 EVO
  9. 9,54,Michael Klitgaard Christensen,8:21.411,04.339,37,Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) Evo26
  10. 10,67,Frederic Vervisch,8:16.169,10.871,37,Ford Mustang GT3 EVO (2026)
  11. 11,65,Colin Caresani,8:15.271,43.151,37,Ford Mustang GT3 EVO (2026)
  12. 12,86,Harry King,8:24.189,1:22.560,37,Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) Evo26
  13. 13,26,Marek Böckmann,8:14.685,1:24.799,37,Mercedes-AMG GT3
  14. 14,84,Mirko Bortolotti,8:11.149,1:37.971,37,Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2
  15. 15,77,Robin Frijns,8:14.452,2:24.357,37,BMW M4 GT3 EVO
  16. 16,48,Tobias Müller,8:17.605,2:37.456,37,Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) Evo26
  17. 17,11,Jay Mo Härtling,8:19.388,2:48.800,37,Mercedes-AMG GT3
  18. 18,55,Joel Sturm,8:27.508,3:13.877,37,Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) Evo26
  19. 19,18,Patrick Kolb,8:24.640,4:08.067,37,Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) Evo26
  20. 20,17,Nico Menzel,8:18.394,4:19.107,37,Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) Evo26

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Continue reading – Nürburgring 24 Hours 2026 LIVE BLOG: Timing, updates, results and key moments from the Nordschleife

Max Verstappen

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