Verstappen Confirmed for N24 Debut; Will Contest NLS2

Max Verstappen’s widely anticipated debut in the Nürburgring 24 with his own team has been confirmed by Mercedes-AMG, with the four-time Formula 1 world champion set for an extra outing on the fearsome Nordschleife in this month’s NLS2.

The German manufacturer announced on Monday a two-car Performance team lineup for the Eifel classic on May 14-17, including the No. 3 Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo that Verstappen will share with Lucas Auer, Jules Gounon and Daniel Juncadella.

Together with the driver lineup, the livery of the Red Bull-backed No. 3 machine, which will be run by Winward Racing, was also revealed (pictured top).

As part of his preparations for the N24, Verstappen will also contest NLS2 on March 21, after the race was rescheduled to avoid a conflict with the Dutchman’s F1 schedule.

It will mark his third NLS start following his outings last year in NLS7 and NLS9, which he won driving an Emil Frey Racing-run Ferrari 296 GT3 with Chris Lulham.

“The Nürburgring is a special place,” commented Verstappen. “There’s no other track like it. The 24H Nürburgring is a race that’s been on my bucket list for a long time, so I’m really thrilled we can make it happen now.

“Last year, I was able to get my DMSB Permit Nordschleife and participate in NLS9, that we won. That preparation is very valuable, as we have learned a lot that we can take into our program this year with NLS2 and the 24-hour race.

“We’ve got a strong line-up with Dani, Jules and Lucas and great support from Red Bull and Mercedes-AMG Motorsport. Now it’s about putting in the right preparations before the events, so we can maximize everything in the races.”

In addition to the No. 3 Verstappen Racing car, Winward will also field an entry under the Mercedes-AMG Team Ravenol banner, the No. 80 car (bottom), that will be shared in the N24 by Maro Engel, Maxime Martin, Fabian Schiller and Luca Stolz.

Both cars will participate in NLS1 on March 14 as well as NLS2, and the N24 Qualifiers on April 18-19 ahead of the N24, with the No. 80 car set for selected appearances over the course of the remainder of the NLS season beyond that.

The driver lineups for each car in NLS1, NLS2 and the N24 Qualifiers has not yet been finalized beyond confirmation that Verstappen will contest NLS2.

Mercedes-AMG’s head of customer racing Stefan Wendl said: “With our Performance line-up, we are excellently positioned for the traditionally strong field of the 24h Nürburgring.

“Together with Ravenol and Verstappen Racing, we put together a balanced driver pairing whose different strengths complement each other perfectly.

“We are very proud that Max Verstappen and his team are also part of the AMG line-up. Together with the operational team Winward Racing and tire partner Michelin we have analysed the Mercedes-AMG GT3 in detail once again to tap into further performance potential.

“With the start of an intensive test programme in southern Europe at the end of February, the foundation has been laid for a successful outing at the Nürburgring.”