A GT3 driver says he can't remember the last time he 'had this much fun' after Max Verstappen overtook him in a four-hour race at the Nurburgring Nordschleife.
Red Bull driver Verstappen has been granted dispensation to compete in the second round of the 2026 Nurburgring Langstrecken-Serie (NLS2) series this weekend.
He is driving the #3 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 car alongside team-mates Daniel Juncadella and Jules Gounon.
Despite this being his second official race at the Nordschleife - arguably the most feared and difficult race circuit to drive in the world - Verstappen put his #3 car on pole position by 1.9 seconds.
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That feat was made even more impressive by the fact that the #3 suffered technical issues on Friday practice which affected their running, allowing Juncadella to only drive 'a handful of laps'.
Verstappen led the grid for the four-hour race on Saturday morning, and was, predictably, heavily involved in the action.
At one stage in the race, he was battling GT3 veteran Christopher Haase - who is a two-time winner of the 24 Hours of Nurburgring.
Verstappen pulled alongside the 38-year-old down the 1.3-mile Dottinger Hohe - the longest straight on the circuit - and outdragged him, with the pair banging wheels as they entered the next corner.
But the Dutchman, as you would expect, kept his foot on the throttle through the next high-speed corner, and Haase was left with no choice but to cede position on the outside and slot in behind him in second place.
Speaking after he got out of the car for a scheduled driver change, Haase made clear how the regular GT3 series drivers feel about racing against a four-time Formula 1 champion in Verstappen.
"I don't think I've had this much fun a long time," Haase told reporters for the race's official live stream.
"I was completely spent. Max was better in some sections, then I was again. The racing was simply awesome."
Verstappen has, on occasion, received criticism for his aggressive overtaking style in Formula 1 - but has also received praise for the exact same reason.
The Dutchman won the Overtake of the Year award for 2025 after he swept around the outside of Oscar Piastri into the tight first corner at Imola.
And in the opening race of 2026, he produced a similarly fearless overtake around the outside of Alex Albon in turn 9 as he looked to recover from a poor start.
Verstappen finished sixth in Australia before retiring from the Chinese Grand Prix due to a coolant issue.
He has criticised the new 2026 regulations, which focus heavily on battery harvesting and deployment, and claimed in Shanghai: "It's not fun at all. It's like playing Mario Kart. This is not racing."
How to watch Verstappen race at the Nurburgring
As well as live stream coverage of the four-hour race at the Nurburgring, the NLS' official YouTube account is also providing a specific onboard camera view of Verstappen's #3 car, so you can fully focus on the four-time champion and his team-mates Juncadella and Gounon.
After Verstappen stepped out of the car, Juncadella took over duties, before then being replaced by Gounon.
Verstappen returned for his second and final stint with 45 minutes remaining as he looks to win his maiden GT3 race.
Topics: Max Verstappen, Formula 1, Mercedes, Red Bull Racing
Ryan Smart