Last Updated:
Max Verstappen says he refuses to be “only an F1 driver” as the four-time world champion prepares for the brutal Nürburgring 24 Hours challenge.
Max Verstappen is set to compete in the 24 hours of Nurburgring, as he aims to become just the second F1 driver ever to win the esteemed race (X)
Max Verstappen has never cared much for outside noise.
Criticism, controversy, accusations that he’s distracted from Formula 1 — none of it seems to matter to the four-time world champion, whose obsession with motorsport stretches far beyond the F1 grid.
And this weekend, Verstappen is taking on one of racing’s most brutal tests yet: the legendary 24 Hours of Nürburgring — where the Red Bull Racing ace will compete in a Red Bull-backed Mercedes-AMG GT3 car.
Max Verstappen would become the first driver to win the Nurburgring 24 Hours as a Formula 1 world champion.That’s because Niki Lauda won the 24-hour race before his F1 world title.
History awaits. pic.twitter.com/2T3Mj69He1
— Daniel Valente 🏎️ (@F1GuyDan) May 16, 2026
Verstappen’s Need For Speed Never Stops
For many drivers, juggling side projects while fighting for F1 titles would seem risky. But for Verstappen, it feels completely natural.
Why? Because to Max, motorsport was never meant to be confined to one category.
“All the big endurance races I want to do, it’s something that when I was a kid, my dad was doing them,” Verstappen told Sky Sports earlier this year.
He then summed up his entire outlook and mindset in one sentence.
“I don’t need to be only an F1 driver, I can also do other things.”
Why Verstappen Refuses To Wait
At 28, Verstappen has already achieved almost everything possible in Formula 1 — talk about multiple world titles, countless wins and records falling season after season.
Now, his hunger is shifting toward fresh challenges.
“I’ve done this already for a while, achieved everything I want to achieve,” Verstappen explained.
“That’s why I want to explore other things and I don’t want to do them when I’m 40 years old. Now is the perfect age to do it.”
And the Nürburgring, famously labelled “The Green Hell” by Jackie Stewart, may be the ultimate proving ground for Verstappen, who has spent the past 12 months preparing extensively.
Not His First GT3 Success Story
The move into endurance racing hasn’t exactly been a struggle either.
Last September, Verstappen stunned the GT3 world by winning the NLS 9 four-hour race on debut in a Ferrari 296 GT3 for Emil Frey Racing.
Earlier this year, his team crossed the line first again at the Nürburgring before later being disqualified over a technical infringement.
Now comes the biggest challenge yet — one that may just be another playground to conquer for ‘Mad Max’.
Read More
Source link
[ad_3]
