Nurburgring 24H Full Results | Verstappen’s race ends in late heartbreak with painful DNF

Everything had been going perfectly for Verstappen Racing, with the four-time world champion comfortably leading through the night with a gap of over 30 seconds to the chasing pack. However, with around four hours remaining, a driveshaft issue brought the Dutchman’s team’s hopes to a heartbreaking end. In the end, the #80 Mercedes factory-backed crew of Maro Engel, Luca Stolz, Fabian Schiller and Maxime Martin went on to claim overall victory.

Verstappen had already survived two scary moments during the race. The first came shortly after the start, when he lost control of his Mercedes-AMG GT3 on his own and ended up dangerously close to the barriers after running onto the grass. Fortunately, he managed to avoid contact and calmly rejoined the race despite the huge scare. The second close call came during the night, when the Dutchman made contact with Engel while battling for the lead. Once again, though, both drivers escaped without any consequences.

Completing the podium in the SP9 class was the #84 Red Bull Team ABT Lamborghini Huracan GT3 Pro driven by Luca Engstler, Mirko Bortolotti and Patric Niederhauser, while the #34 Walkenhorst Motorsport Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3 Pro of Christian Krognes, Mattia Drudi, Nicki Thiim and Felipe Fernandez Laser initially crossed the line in third place.

You can find the full results of the Nürburgring 24 Hours below the image.

Verstappen Racing quickly emerged as one of the main contenders for victory once Max Verstappen climbed aboard the #3 Mercedes-AMG GT3 after Daniel Juncadella’s opening stint. The Dutchman immediately came alive in the mixed conditions, carving through the field from 10th place into the race lead with a series of aggressive overtakes despite surviving a huge scare after nearly losing the rear of the car in the damp.

After completing a double stint, Verstappen handed the car over to Jules Gounon, who managed to keep the #3 entry firmly in contention despite rain returning to the Nordschleife and the pace dropping slightly compared to Verstappen’s earlier charge. Lucas Auer later restored Verstappen Racing to the lead during the night before eventually coming under pressure from Luca Stolz in the sister Mercedes.

As the race entered the later stages of the evening, the battle between the two leading Mercedes entries intensified. Stolz and Juncadella repeatedly traded the lead while navigating heavy traffic, before Verstappen eventually returned to the car around 1:30 CET for his highly anticipated first-ever race stint in full darkness. The Dutchman immediately went on the attack against Maro Engel, with the two fighting wheel-to-wheel for the lead while weaving through lapped traffic.

Verstappen eventually completed the move before the halfway mark on the Döttinger Höhe straight, although the battle also included a scary moment after contact between the two Mercedes sent Engel briefly onto the grass. During the same phase of the race, Timo Glock also lost his Nürburgring permit after receiving additional penalty points for speeding under a Code 60 zone.

Verstappen remained in the car while the #80 Mercedes changed brakes, allowing him to stretch out a significant advantage over Maxime Martin before eventually handing the car back to Gounon with a lead of more than 25 seconds. However, Verstappen Racing’s hopes of victory came crashing down roughly four hours from the finish when a driveshaft failure struck the #3 Mercedes-AMG GT3. The issue ultimately forced the team into retirement after leading for much of the race, handing victory to Engel and the #80 Mercedes crew in heartbreaking fashion for Verstappen Racing.

Head of Customer Racing at Mercedes-AMG Motorsport, Stefan Wendl, explained that the issue began shortly after the driver change from Verstappen to Juncadella, when the Spaniard reported an ABS failure on his outlap. According to Wendl, the team immediately suspected an electrical issue and attempted a reset, allowing the car to continue initially without losing significant time. Mercedes then prepared for a pit stop and repair attempt, but during the following lap Juncadella also began noticing unusual noises and vibrations, forcing him to return slowly to the pits.

Once the car was inspected, the team discovered a broken driveshaft, with the failure also causing extensive damage to surrounding components and requiring lengthy repairs. Despite the disappointment of seeing the fight for victory come to an end after leading for much of the race, Verstappen Racing and Mercedes ultimately chose to repair the car and send it back out for the final laps as a gesture to the fans who had supported the team throughout the event.