- Verstappen joins a record 150-car grid for his Nürburgring 24 Hours debut in May.
- Eight manufacturers, incl Mercedes & BMW, flood entry list with factory GT3 cars.
- Organisers face selection crisis, turning away teams for the first time in years.
Max Verstappen is coming to the Nürburgring. And the world of endurance racing has noticed. The 54th edition of the Nürburgring 24 Hours, scheduled for May 14-17 in Germany, has drawn a full grid of 150 cars, its maximum capacity.
The four-time Formula 1 world champion’s confirmed debut at the event has driven applications far beyond what organisers can accommodate, forcing them to turn teams away for the first time in years.
A sold-out grid and a selection headache for organisers
Not long ago, filling the Nurburgring 24 Hours grid was a genuine struggle. Rising costs had kept participation down to roughly 130 cars in recent seasons.
In 2025, the field managed 140 entries, the highest in years. In 2026, every spot is gone before the April 22 entry deadline has even passed.
ADAC Nordrhein, the race’s organiser, now faces a problem it would have welcomed a few years ago: too many teams want in. Officials confirmed a formal selection process will follow the entry deadline.
As the organisation stated in an official release, quoted by Auto Motor und Sport, “To ensure a fair process for all teams, the regulations stipulate that a review and selection will take place after the entry deadline.”
Speed and money alone will not decide who makes the cut. Organisers have made clear that class balance and sporting quality will carry equal weight.
A production-spec touring car competing in its class holds as much value to the race’s identity as a GT3 machine. Any team that withdraws after acceptance will trigger a waiting list, giving rejected teams a second chance.
Verstappen’s car, team and preparation programme
Verstappen’s path to the 24-hour race began last year. In September 2025, he entered the Nürburgring Endurance Series round NLS9, driving a Ferrari 296 GT3 for Emil Frey Racing.
He won on debut alongside Chris Lulham. More importantly, that result earned him the mandatory DMSB Permit Nordschleife, the multi-level licence every driver must hold before racing at major events on the circuit.
“The Nürburgring is a special place,” Verstappen said. “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.”
He will race under the Verstappen Racing banner alongside the factory-supported Winward team, driving the number 3 Mercedes-AMG GT3 EVO.
His co-drivers are Lucas Auer, Jules Gounon and Daniel Juncadella. The car carries a Red Bull livery and holds an official Mercedes-AMG factory team designation for 2026.
The line-up is built to compete. Juncadella and Gounon won the 2022 GT World Challenge Europe together and also shared victory at the Spa 24 Hours.
Auer brings seasons of Nordschleife racing to the mix. This is not a celebrity entry. It is a genuine attempt to finish on the podium.
The Dutchman’s preparation reflects that ambition. He combined physical visits to the Nordschleife with extensive simulator work. He also confirmed he will race in the 24h Qualifiers on April 18-19, sharing the car with Auer across two four-hour events.
Race director Walter Hornung of ADAC RAVENOL 24h Nürburgring was direct about how Max Verstappen earned his place.
“He went through the normal qualification process without any special treatment, prepared himself with drives on the Nordschleife, completed the mandatory e-learning and familiarised himself intensively with the track with countless SimRacing laps,” Hornung said via the official website.
A bumper factory line-up at the top of the field
Verstappen is the headline, but the rest of the entry list does not disappoint.
Eight manufacturers, Audi, Aston Martin, BMW, Ford, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Mercedes-AMG and Porsche, will field cars in the top SP-9 GT3 class.
Better scheduling in 2026 has spread the Nürburgring, Le Mans and Spa 24 Hours events further apart, freeing manufacturers to commit more fully to each race.
BMW arrives as defending champion with three works entries. ROWE Racing will field two cars, and Schubert Motorsport will run a third, all with works drivers.
The number 1 ROWE entry retains three members of last year’s winning crew: Augusto Farfus, Kelvin van der Linde and Raffaele Marciello, now joined by Jordan Pepper.
One of the more unusual stories on the grid began as a joke. BMW posted an April Fool’s concept in 2025 of a racing M3 Touring, which drew more than 1.6 million views online.
The board noticed, approved the project, and the car became real. Nordschleife veteran Jens Klingmann will drive it in the SPX class alongside Ugo de Wilde and Americans Connor De Phillippi and Neil Verhagen.
The Max Verstappen effect and what it means for the sport
The scale of interest Verstappen generates at the Nürburgring was already evident in 2025. His NLS9 victory drew close to 300,000 spectators to the 24-hour race that year, a record for the event.
That figure came off just the rumour and excitement of his presence at the circuit. In 2026, he is the main act. Attendance records are widely expected to fall again.
What is happening at the Nürburgring in 2026 is bigger than one driver.
Verstappen’s participation has pulled manufacturers back to the grid in force, filled every available slot and forced organisers to build a queue. That does not happen often in endurance racing.
The 150-car grid will begin its formation lap at 2:40 p.m. local time on Saturday, May 16. The race starts at 3 p.m. CET and finishes 24 hours later on Sunday.
By then, the sport will have a clearer picture of whether Verstappen can win on this particular stage too. For now, the entry list alone tells a story worth telling.
