This is when Verstappen could make his Mercedes debut after switch

After his first victory in the NLS (Nürburgring Langstrecken-Serie), Verstappen said in his interview that he would like to compete in more races in the series before making his 24 Hours of Nurburgring debut. He commented: "Of course we need more experience, so hopefully we can enter a few more NLS races next year.”

With the 2026 NLS calendar, however, that would currently not be possible. Currently, the first five rounds ahead of famous race all clash with a Formula 1 Grand Prix. The first one is set to take place during the Chinese Grand Prix, and NLS rounds will take place every time there is an F1 weekend until the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix as well.

The 24 Hours of Nurburgring will then take place from 14 to 17 May.

However, the schedule could still be reviewed, NLS boss Mike Jäger told Motorsport-Total.com, citing a different reason.

He said: "It's not ideal that we have 50 percent of the season's race dates before the 24-hour race – but given the current circumstances, there's no other way. If there's something we can change, we'd like to do so. But that still needs to be examined." For now, there's "nothing concrete" about a change.

In preparation for the 2026 season of Verstappen.com Racing, the four-time world champion flew to Portugal. The Dutchman's team ran two Mercedes-AMG GT3 cars in testing, as the team switches to the German manufacturer’s car for the upcoming season. Factory driver Jules Gounon was also present at the Portuguese track.

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