Every F1 Driver to Race the Nurburgring 24 Hours Before Verstappen
More than 30 Formula 1 drivers have raced the Green Hell’s greatest test since 1970. Verstappen joins a list that includes world champions, race winners, and some of the most celebrated endurance drivers the sport has produced.
When Max Verstappen lines up for the start of the 2026 Nurburgring 24 Hours on May 15, he becomes the latest in a tradition stretching back to the race’s very first edition in 1970. Over more than five decades, more than thirty Formula 1 drivers have made the journey to the Nordschleife for what many consider the purest, most demanding test in motorsport. Some came as reigning or future world champions. Some came as established veterans looking for a new challenge. A few came simply because the Green Hell called to them. Verstappen, characteristically, comes with the objective of winning.
What Makes Verstappen’s Entry Unique
- 4 world championships — more than any previous F1 driver to start the Nurburgring 24h (Lauda, Piquet and Brabham are closest, with 3, 3 and 3 titles)
- 230+ grand prix starts — more F1 experience than any previous participant in the race’s history
- NLS9 2025 — debut win on the Nordschleife, in a Ferrari 296 entered by Emil Frey Racing, with Chris Lulham
- NLS2 2026 — won with Gounon and Juncadella, then disqualified for exceeding tyre set allocation
- 24h Qualifiers 2026 — completed night running preparation with Lucas Auer
- 2026 team — Mercedes-AMG Team Verstappen Racing; co-drivers: Daniel Juncadella, Jules Gounon, Lucas Auer
- Race objective — overall victory; rated 5.0/5 favourite by Motorsport.com analysts
The F1 World Champions Who Came Before
Only one Formula 1 world champion has ever won the Nurburgring 24 Hours — and he did it before he was champion. Niki Lauda triumphed in 1973 as a promising young driver in a BMW, three years before his first world title with Ferrari. It is a record that has stood for 53 years. Should Verstappen win on debut, he would become the first reigning or former world champion to take the outright victory — a result that would immediately enter the sport’s folklore.
Beyond Lauda, several other champions made the trip. Nelson Piquet participated in the race during his career, as did Jack Brabham — both bringing prestige to the grid but leaving without overall victory. The 24h of Nurburgring has a habit of humbling even the greatest talents on their first visit; the sheer complexity of the Nordschleife, combined with the multi-class traffic and unpredictable conditions over 24 hours, means raw speed is a necessary but far from sufficient condition for success.
The F1 Drivers’ Record at the Green Hell
| Driver | F1 career | 24h starts | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Niki Lauda 🏆 | 171 GPs, 3× champion | Multiple | 🏆 WIN 1973 |
| Hans-Joachim Stuck | 74 GPs | 19 (record) | WIN ×3 |
| Pedro Lamy | 32 GPs | Multiple | WIN ×5 (most by ex-F1 driver) |
| Markus Winkelhock | 1 GP | 16 | WIN ×3 |
| Emanuele Pirro | 37 GPs | Multiple | WIN |
| Christian Danner | 36 GPs | Multiple | WIN |
| Johnny Cecotto | 18 GPs | Multiple | WIN |
| Bernd Schneider | 9 GPs | Multiple | Multiple podiums |
| Heinz-Harald Frentzen | 157 GPs | Multiple | Competed, no win |
| Nelson Piquet 🏆 | 204 GPs, 3× champion | Competed | Competed, no win |
| Jack Brabham 🏆 | 126 GPs, 3× champion | Competed | Competed, no win |
| Bernd Maylander* | F1 Safety Car driver | Multiple | WIN 2000 |
*Maylander is not a grand prix driver but is associated with Formula 1 as the Safety Car driver. Several other former F1 drivers have competed in earlier eras of the race not listed above.
What the Records Show
The Context: Verstappen’s Road to This Moment
Unlike most predecessors on this list, Verstappen arrived at the Nurburgring 24 Hours with significant preparation behind him. He obtained his DMSB Permit Nordschleife in 2025, won on NLS debut at the September NLS9 round, and has competed in multiple further NLS events and private tests across both dry and wet conditions. He has already duelled at the front with Christopher Haase — one of the Nordschleife’s most experienced specialists — on multiple occasions, and emerged with credit from each encounter. He comes to the 24-hour race as a genuine contender, not a novice celebrity entry.
“The Nurburgring 24 Hours is one of the standout events on the motorsport calendar. Every time I come here, it reminds me what real motorsport is like. I jump out of the car feeling happy.”
— Max Verstappen, ahead of the 2026 Nurburgring 24 Hours
The 2026 edition is the most high-profile in the race’s 56-year history in terms of external attention, with tickets for the full weekend selling out for the first time ever — a development the organisers have directly attributed to Verstappen’s entry. For the sport of endurance racing, that exposure is invaluable. For Verstappen personally, it represents a chapter entirely separate from the 2026 F1 season that has caused him so much frustration. Whether he wins or not, he will leave the Nordschleife having learned something new. That, by his own account, is reason enough.