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Max Verstappen is set to take part in his second official race at the Nurburgring this weekend, and Helmut Marko has detailed how the four-time world champion initially wanted to race an F1 car around the ‘Green Hell’ before pursuing endurance racing.
The four-time world champion has ramped up his efforts in the Nurburgring Endurance Series over the past 12 months, with it all beginning with a secret test at the circuit under the pseudonym of Franz Hermann.
It quickly spiralled into a passion for Verstappen, who later took part in a full racing course at the Nurburgring Nordschleife that culminated in him getting the necessary permit in order for him to enter and compete in NLS races.
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After taking part in one endurance race at the iconic ‘Green Hell’ last year, the Dutchman has since ramped up efforts in hopes of taking part in the prestigious 24 Hours of Nurburgring this summer, set to take place between the Miami and Montreal F1 rounds in May.
Verstappen previously declared that F1 machinery is simply too dangerous for the Nurburgring Nordschleife, but close confidante Helmut Marko has revealed that the 28-year-old didn’t always hold that perspective on it.
Helmut Marko reveals he ‘forbade’ Max Verstappen from driving a Red Bull F1 car at the Nurburgring
During an interview with F1 Insider, the former Red Bull chief revealed a previous conversation he had with his star driver over the possibility of doing a show run at the Nurburgring Nordschleife in Formula 1 machinery.
He began with, “Years ago, Max raved to me about the Nordschleife. Back then, he wanted to do a demonstration run with a Formula 1 Red Bull. But all my alarm bells went off at the time.”
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Marko had then realised that Verstappen was hoping to one-up the ultimate lap record at the time, adding, “So much for a demo run! Max had seen that incredible video of Timo Bernhard breaking the lap record in a Le Mans Porsche.
“I think he wanted to top that with the Red Bull. That was too dangerous for me. That’s why I put a stop to it and forbade it.
“Luckily, he can now let loose on the Nordschleife with the Mercedes GT3. But I suspect he still has Timo Bernhard’s lap record in the back of his mind. He’s a racer of the old school, after all.”
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Max Verstappen stunned his driving instructor during his first laps around the Nurburgring Nordschleife
As a four-time F1 world champion, Verstappen probably didn’t need to jump through hoops in order to gain the necessary permit to compete in GT3 machinery on the Nordschleife, with many praising the Dutchman’s character for doing it anyway.
In fact, the driving instructor who was tasked with teaching Verstappen was stunned at the Red Bull star’s race craft on the 15.7-mile-long piece of tarmac in the town of Nurburg.
He went on to make his debut in the NLS category weeks later and managed to pull out a lead of over a minute during his first stint in the car. The feat was dubbed as ‘really unusual’ for the GT3 category, showcased by their eventual winning margin of over 20 seconds at the chequered flag.
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