Max Verstappen is closing in on the lap record at the Nurburgring after securing a dominant lead on his GT3 debut.

Driving the #31 Ferrari 296 GT3 machine, Verstappen dived for the lead at the start of the four-hour race, and cleared off, pulling away from the chasing pack. 

On Lap 11, he holds a 50-second lead over the #6 Ford Mustang of ‘ring ringer Frank Stippler, and is closing in on the track record of a 7:49.578 for GT3 cars on this configuration, set in 2022.

It is expected that after the second stint, Verstappen will also take charge of the third leg of the race. 

For the final 60 minutes, it is expected he will hand over driving duties to team-mate Chris Lulham, who will be tasked with bringing the car home.Â