GT3 News: Verstappen needs just one lap to claim NLS2 pole at the Nordschleife
The Green Hell lived up to its fearsome reputation on Saturday, March 21, 2026, as qualifying for the second round of the Nürburgring Langstrecken-Serie (NLS2) turned into a chaotic battle against traffic, Code 60 neutralizations, and a string of red-flag interruptions. Yet for four-time Formula 1 World Champion Max Verstappen (pictured), it took just one clean flying lap to claim pole position for the four-hour endurance race in the #3 Winward-Mercedes AMG GT3 EVO.
–by Mark Cipolloni–
Sharing the car with Daniel Juncadella and Jules Gounon under the Verstappen Racing banner, the Dutchman waited patiently through a session marred by incidents. A massive shunt at the Hohenrain-Schikane triggered a 45-minute orange-flag period for barrier repairs, while further crashes at Aremberg and Hohe Acht killed any hopes of a late shootout just eight minutes from the end. The 20-minute green-flag window was fragmented by slow zones, but Verstappen needed only one uninterrupted run to strike.
His time? 7m51.751s — nearly two full seconds faster than anyone else on the 20.8 km Nordschleife. That gap is the equivalent of half a second on a normal 5 km circuit. Verstappen himself called it pure luck: “You always need a bit of luck with traffic. I think that was literally the only lap of the day without a Code 60 slowing me down.” He added with typical Verstappen candor: “The AMG feels hooked up, but honestly, today is a glorified test session for us. I still need to get the muscle memory down for the driver changes at the pit stops. We don’t exactly do those in F1.”
The rest of the field was left scrambling in the disrupted conditions. Second place went to the Scherer-Phx Audi #16 (Haase/Hantke) almost two seconds adrift, while the Rowe BMW #98 completed the top three.
Here are the official NLS2 qualifying results (Top 10):
| Pos | Team / Car | Drivers | Time | Behind |
| 1 | Winward-Mercedes #3 | Verstappen / Juncadella / Gounon | 7m51.751s | 0.000 |
| 2 | Scherer-Phx-Audi #16 | Haase / Hantke | +1.974 | 1.974 |
| 3 | Rowe-BMW #98 | Farfus / Marciello / van der Linde | +2.855 | 2.855 |
| 4 | Walkenhorst-Aston Martin #34 | Krognes / Drudi | +3.503 | 3.503 |
| 5 | Winward-Mercedes #80 | Schiller / Martin | +3.914 | 3.914 |
| 6 | KCMG-Mercedes #47 | Fukuzumi / Krohn / Pittard / Tsuboi | +4.070 | 4.070 |
| 7 | Rowe-BMW #99 | Harper / Pepper | +4.905 | 4.905 |
| 8 | Kondo-Ferrari #45 | Perel / Vermeulen / Neubauer | +5.061 | 5.061 |
| 9 | HRT-Ford #65 | Haupt / Schumacher / Stippler | +5.664 | 5.664 |
| 10 | Falken-Porsche #44 | Muller / Heinemann | +5.770 | 5.770 |
This is Verstappen’s first competitive outing in the Mercedes-AMG GT3 EVO ahead of his confirmed entry in the 2026 Nürburgring 24 Hours (where he’ll also team with Auer). The session was effectively a high-speed test, but the pole lap showed once again why he’s considered one of the most complete drivers on the planet — even when the Nordschleife throws every obstacle in his way.
The four-hour ADAC Ruhrpott-Trophy race gets underway at 12:00 CET (11:00 GMT). With Verstappen starting from pole and the Mercedes looking “hooked up,” expect the #3 car to be a major player when the lights go green on the legendary 20.8 km circuit.
One lap. One moment of clear air. One pole position. The Green Hell just got a whole lot faster.
Watch the Race Live here