Max Verstappen tears up the Nordschleife, fast-tracks Permit A for Nürburgring 24
Ask anyone who’s hustled a GT car around the Eifel forest: the Nordschleife has a way of humbling you. Max Verstappen didn’t get that memo.
The reigning F1 World Champion spent the free weekend between Monza and Baku at the Nürburgring, sitting an exam and then pounding out laps to tick off his Permit B and, ultimately, secure the coveted DMSB Permit A — the ticket to entering next year’s Nürburgring 24 Hours. He did it in proper fashion too: a detuned Porsche GT4 Cayman, slicks bolted on, and the circuit doing its usual impression of three weather systems at once.
Andreas Gülden, the ‘Ring veteran charged with leading Verstappen through his reconnaissance laps, admitted he had to push. Hard.
“It was fantastic to drive a few laps ahead of the world champion,” Gülden told De Telegraaf. “Luckily I had a lot more power, otherwise it might not have worked out. We were in contact over the radio and I gave him some tips, but in the end we were also fooling around a bit. He was driving on slicks, I was on regular street tyres, and I was really pushing tremendously. He thought that was funny, and I think he appreciated it too.”
The Red Bull driver’s GT4 was dialled back to around 300 bhp — standard for drivers yet to earn their Nordschleife permit — versus the usual 425 bhp. It didn’t slow him much. After collecting his Permit B, Verstappen qualified seventh in Cup3 for NLS7 and, inside his Cup3 subgroup of identical CUP3(G) cars, he was a striking 25 seconds clear of the next best.
He took the opening stint in the #980 entry on Saturday, lapping the ‘Green Hell’ 14 times before handing to Chris Lulham, who brought the car home seventh in class. Verstappen was slated to complete additional mileage in the #89 entry to seal Permit A, but that car was damaged in qualifying and never made it out. No matter: the DMSB ultimately approved Verstappen for a Permit A based on his performance and the running he’d banked.
Gülden sounded as impressed by the preparation as he was by the pace. “In that bus ride around the track, he looked very interested. For example, about what line to drive in the rain, and I was able to tell him a bit about the different types of asphalt and the flag signals, which are different from those in other racing series,” he said. “I think we learned something from each other. He’s a really nice guy. A huge enthusiast, too. It’s wonderful to see him smiling behind the wheel, driving on the most beautiful circuit in the world. I’m really hugely impressed with Max… He is a real world champion, a real racer.”
Verstappen enjoyed himself, which tends to happen when there’s commitment and grip to chase. “I’m happy it all went smooth, and I got my DMSB Permit Nordschleife,” he told his website. “I really enjoyed myself, but that’s always the case around here. It was good to drive stints in the race with traffic, both with faster and slower cars. There was also a ‘code 60’ race neutralisation, double waved yellows and a standard yellow flag. I drove in the wet, the dry and in mixed conditions. I’ve gained experience in where the grip is and isn’t and completed a start procedure. It was really good to gain more experience on this circuit.”
He added the part everyone expected: “To contest a 24-hour race here, in a GT3 car, would be amazing.”
That could come sooner than later. There are whispers he might be back on September 27 for another NLS run, potentially in a Ferrari 296 GT3. Whether that materialises or not, Verstappen’s intent is obvious: he wants to do the 24, and he wants to do it properly.
The subtext here is intriguing. Plenty of F1 drivers have dipped a toe into the Nordschleife, fewer have properly embraced the labyrinth — codes, flag sets, and mixed-condition racecraft included. Verstappen’s approach this weekend was meticulous, not glitzy. Sit the exam. Drive the detuned car. Learn the lines in the rain. Do the race start. Work the traffic. Get signed off. It wasn’t a vanity parade; it was a statement.
The Nürburgring has a way of stripping away reputation and leaving you with nothing but the lap in front of you. Verstappen left with a Permit A — and the feeling that the world’s most punishing circuit just found itself a very serious new habit.
