Juncadella: N24 an “Amazing Opportunity” for Verstappen

Verstappen Racing driver Daniel Juncadella says Max Verstappen’s entry into the Nürburgring 24 is an “amazing opportunity” for the four-time F1 champion and his GT racing team.

Juncadella is a veteran of the 24-hour race at the Nürburgring, with eight participations to his name.

He will share the No. 3 Verstappen Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo with the Dutchman, alongside Lucas Auer and Jules Gounon.

“[Max is] an extremely passionate human being for motorsport and for this kind of racing and we just have to maximize everything we can from that opportunity,” Juncadella told Sportscar365.

“In terms of driving and pure potential there’s nothing you need to say to Max. He’s obviously extremely natural from the very first lap.”

Speaking on his part in helping Verstappen adapt to GT3-style racing at the Nürburgring, the Genesis Magma Racing Hypercar driver said: “My role has been more on the patience side of endurance racing, which is something he naturally lacks because he hasn’t experienced it.

“In a 24-hour race things happen in the first 2-3 hours and sometimes that’s not ultimately what’s going to decide the race outcome.”

Juncadella added that “staying calm and managing risks” was part of Verstappen’s learning curve.

“He’s been extremely aggressive in traffic, and it’s paid off and it works for him because he’s just very intuitive and even taking way more risks than us, but at the same point that’s something you need to have in mind for the 24 hours,” he said.

“He’s probably not going to approach the race the same way he would an NLS four-hour race because there’s many more risks.

“Racing at night, that’s also where I can bring some experience from the past.”

The Spanish driver appeared to downplay the team’s chances of victory in the race, saying it needed to be “in the right place at the right time” to win.

“We all want to win and [Max is] an extremely competitive character, but you have to be very open-minded,” said Juncadella.

“I always say Nürburgring chooses its winner because there’s so much luck involved in many scenarios so it can be a bit of a lottery sometimes.”

The Verstappen team competed in several NLS rounds to prepare for Nürburgring’s headline 24-hour race.

Verstappen, Juncadella and Gounon won NLS2 on the road (pictured above), but were stripped of the win after a post-race penalty.

Auer joined Verstappen for the N24 Qualifiers in April. The duo were fighting for victory for much of the second race of the weekend, before mechanical damage dropped them out of contention.

Despite this setback, Auer told Sportscar365 that the team is “very well prepared” for Max’s debut.

“Even though I’m already experienced at the Nordschleife, you need laps in order to get back into a rhythm on such a tough track,” he said.

“It’s all about, as a driver, fine-tuning setup to feel confident. All four drivers need to feel confident in just racing there.

“As drivers we try to always communicate. If somebody learns something in one corner obviously you communicate that.”

The Mercedes-AMG factory ace explained that the Nürburgring 24 presents unique challenges for drivers, adding: “The traffic management makes it such a tough race, but this makes it special.

“You have to have the right speed, to have the right balance, to survive all the different weather conditions.

“We have a shot [to win], but a lot of other manufacturers are also very well prepared, so there will be a lot of cars in the mix.”

GT Racing in “Golden Era” Because of Verstappen

Auer believes that GT3 racing is in a “golden era” because of Verstappen’s involvement in the discipline, adding it was “an honor” to share the car with the F1 driver.

The Austrian said: “You know it’s also really special because we had a lot of ex-Formula 1 drivers doing something like that, but never an active Formula 1 champion who is doing this next to his F1 season.

“So, for me it’s just huge respect because the F1 calendar is tough with all the traveling and finding the time to do this is incredible.”

The 31-year-old explained that the added attention from Verstappen’s presence in the team did not create added pressure to perform.

Speaking about the increased focus on the Winward Racing-run entry, Juncadella said: “Obviously the first days it feels a bit overwhelming because suddenly all eyes are on you. So much fan attention, so much media attention, everything.

“You just need to understand that and just go back to focusing on the things you can control.

“It’s obviously a lot of attention in all areas and it’s going to be a huge event, probably the biggest one yet at the Nürburgring, but nothing really changes in the approach for me.

“I’ve been racing there for so many years. I haven’t had the pleasure of winning it yet, but we’ll try this year and if not, we’ll try again.”