Max Verstappen’s inaugural run at the Nuerburgring 24 Hours endurance race came to a disappointing end on Sunday when a driveshaft malfunction knocked his team out of the running after they had held the lead for multiple hours.
The four-time Formula One world champion from Red Bull was driving alongside teammates Dani Juncadella from Spain, Jules Gounon, a French driver based in Andorra, and Austria’s Lucas Auer in a Mercedes-AMG GT3 at the German track.
The participation of the Dutch racing star in the 54th running of the endurance event generated unprecedented excitement, with weekend passes completely sold out for the first time ever and organizers reporting a record-breaking attendance of 352,000 spectators.
Victory at the ‘Green Hell’ went to another Mercedes team featuring Maro Engel, Luca Stolz, Fabian Schiller and Maxime Martin, who climbed from 25th on the starting grid to claim the win.
This marked Mercedes’ first triumph in the Nuerburgring 24 Hours since 2016, when Engel was also among the winning drivers.
Coincidentally, that same year on May 15, Verstappen secured his inaugural grand prix victory with Red Bull in Spain.
Verstappen’s squad appeared headed for victory on Sunday until mechanical trouble struck with three hours and 20 minutes left in the race, forcing the number three car to slow down and return to the garage for lengthy repairs.
The team managed to get back on track and was still running when the checkered flag fell.
“We had a good start, great stints, the decision for rain tyres at the right moment. We had a two-minute lead over everyone else,” said Juncadella.
“Just a dream race, but unfortunately it was three hours too short and three hours too long for us. But that’s just the way it is in racing.”
Verstappen expressed interest in making another attempt at the race, though it would depend on his other racing obligations.
The Dutch driver will now focus on the upcoming Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal next weekend.
