{"id":531616,"date":"2026-03-12T14:57:09","date_gmt":"2026-03-12T14:57:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/531616\/"},"modified":"2026-03-12T14:57:09","modified_gmt":"2026-03-12T14:57:09","slug":"max-verstappen-insists-his-nurburgring-24-hours-plans-dont-mean-hes-leaving-f1-soon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/531616\/","title":{"rendered":"Max Verstappen Insists His Nurburgring 24 Hours Plans Don\u2019t Mean He’s Leaving F1 Soon"},"content":{"rendered":"

Max Verstappen has continued to articulate his frustration with the 2026 Formula 1 rules as the season has gotten underway\u2014but he says the recent confirmation that he will race in the Nurburgring 24 Hours this year<\/a> isn\u2019t necessarily a sign that he’s ready to quit his day job.<\/p>\n

Verstappen raced at the Nordschleife for the first time last year, and made it clear that the round-the-clock event was always going to be his main target. This year, it falls in the gap between the Miami and Canadian GPs. When he was asked why he was so keen to do it, he made his feelings about the event clear.<\/p>\n

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\u201cBecause it\u2019s one of the best races in the world,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s one of the best tracks. I mean, honestly, in a GT car\u2014for me, that\u2019s the perfect speed around there. I think if you go anything faster, it can be a bit dangerous in places. But yeah, it\u2019s just everything. I\u2019ve been watching, of course, for a long time. I know a lot of my friends that have been racing in it already. They say it\u2019s one of the best things ever.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"1000km<\/p>\n

Verstappen at least year\u2019s 1000-km race at the \u2019Ring. picture alliance – Getty Images<\/p>\n

Verstappen<\/a> downplayed the suggestion that he\u2019s doing the race because he\u2019s not getting what he needs from F1. \u201cThis was, of course, already planned regardless of what I\u2019m driving this year,\u201d he said. \u201cYeah, I wish I had a bit more fun at the moment, of course, here [in F1]. But at the same time, I\u2019m also very happy that the team here, they let me do all these things.”<\/p>\n

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The Dutchman made it clear that he\u2019s not ready to walk away from Formula 1 just yet, despite his obvious distaste for the 2026 cars. \u201cI don\u2019t want to leave, really,\u201d he said. \u201cLike I said\u2014I wish I had a bit more fun, for sure, but I\u2019m also doing other stuff that is a lot of fun. I get to race the Nordschleife. I hope in the coming years I can do Spa, hopefully Le Mans<\/a>. So I\u2019m combining stuff, to find other stuff that I find really fun as well.<\/p>\n

“But at the same time, it\u2019s a bit conflicting. Because I don\u2019t really enjoy driving the [F1] car, but I do enjoy working with all the people in the team and from the engine department as well,\u201d he added. \u201cI think I don\u2019t need to be only a F1 driver. I can also do other things, especially [since] I\u2019ve done this already for a while and I\u2019ve achieved everything that I wanted to achieve. So that\u2019s why I want to explore, also, other things. And I don\u2019t want to do them when I\u2019m 40 years old, so now, I think this is the perfect age to do it.\u201d<\/p>\n

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