It came as a big surprise when Max Verstappen took to the Estoril circuit in Portugal on Tuesday aboard a Mercedes-AMG GT3 from 2 Seas Motorsport. But there is a serious background to this appearance and it could also have an impact on the four-time Formula 1 world champion’s entry in the 2026 Nurburgring 24 Hours.
Behind 2 Seas Motorsport, which fielded an Aston Martin in the 2025 GT World Challenge Europe endurance series under the Verstappen.com Racing banner, is Nick Cristofaro, a close friend of Verstappen. It is also believed that the British-Bahraini squad will become Mercedes-AMG's new performance team in 2026 and will implement the Verstappen.com Racing project in the GTWCE.
The cockpit will be occupied by AMG works driver Jules Gounon, who also tested in Estoril, Verstappen's Nordschleife team partner and sim racer Chris Lulham, and former AMG works driver Daniel Juncadella.
But why is Verstappen.com Racing suddenly focusing on Mercedes-AMG? And what does this have to do with Verstappen's plans for the 24-hour race?
Verstappen in the Winward Mercedes at the Nurburgring 24 Hours
One argument in favour of Mercedes-AMG is that Lulham is understood to prefer the mature GT3 car developed by HWA rather than the Ferrari 296 GT3 used by the Emil Frey team, with which the Briton and Verstappen celebrated their NLS victory at the Nordschleife in September.
Autosport understands that Winward is also Verstappen's first choice, with it being one of the more established Mercedes-AMG racing teams thanks to its DTM involvement and is planning to make its debut at the 24-hour classic in 2026.
But whether it is possible for Verstappen to contest next year’s Nurburgring 24 Hours is still unknown, as the Dutchman said during October’s Singapore Grand Prix weekend that this would depend on “a lot of things”.
“It depends on F1 first of all, I'm suspecting that with the rules next year it's going to be very complicated to start with, some unknowns anyway,” he added, citing the incoming regulation change.
"It probably will be a little bit more hectic than the end of a regulation where things are a bit more straightforward. Plus, there's also the programme of the GT3 team, which car we are going to race next year and stuff like that, so a lot of things that still have to come together before I can really plan it well in advance for just my drivers already in the team, plus myself.
"We want to be back there, I just don't know at the moment how many races I can do next year, but if there is an opportunity and I feel good about it, plus whatever is happening in F1, then for sure."
NLS overlaps with F1 is a hurdle
The Nurburgring calendar poses major challenges: while the date of the 24-hour enduro (14-17 May) does not clash with an F1 weekend, all three NLS preparatory races and the 24-hour qualifiers overlap.
The ADAC Nordrhein, which is responsible for hosting the qualifiers weekend and the 24-hour race, has ruled out postponing the qualifiers despite alleged efforts by Verstappen's entourage - this means that Verstappen's hopes would be limited to the three NLS dates.
Autosport has learned that the 28-year-old would only compete in the 24-hour race if he can at least complete NLS1, the first of eight weekends in the NLS on 14 March, which clashes with the Chinese Grand Prix.
But NLS boss Mike Jager has not ruled out date changes, even if it’s not related to Verstappen’s efforts. Instead, that is due to the strain on teams, as the current schedule has five NLS races (NLS1 to 3 plus the two qualifier races) taking place within 37 days.
“It's not ideal that we have 50% of the championship races for the entire season before the 24-hour race - but there's no other option given the current circumstances,” he said. “If there's anything that can be changed, we'd be happy to do so. But that remains to be seen.”
Jager added: “We would love to have him [Verstappen] back in our racing series because I appreciate his down-to-earth manner and because I believe that he and his entire entourage have a positive influence on our racing series.”
So it will be interesting to see whether the 2026 NLS calendar will be changed to possibly avoid F1, but the Nordschleife is usually well booked even without racing which thus makes planning a challenge. But if that succeeds, Verstappen could actually start in the 24-hour race aboard a Mercedes-AMG.
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