The 2026 Nürburgring 24 Hours was defined by changing conditions, many accidents and a late mechanical failure that denied the #3 Mercedes-AMG team victory after leading comfortably into Sunday afternoon.
The race began with immediate incidents on the opening lap. The ROWE BMW #99 of Dan Harper spun on the GP circuit after contact, while the #84 Lamborghini driven by Mirko Bortolotti was forced into the pits before reaching the Nordschleife following contact with the #3 Mercedes-AMG of Daniel Juncadella. The Lamborghini required a right-rear tyre change at the end of lap one.
At the front, the Manthey Porsche #911 of Kévin Estre and the #3 Mercedes were involved in several aggressive early exchanges. Estre first battled the #7 Aston Martin before overtaking after contact between the two cars. The #130 entry also received an early penalty for jumping the start.
At the end of the opening hour, the #3 Mercedes handed over from Juncadella to Max Verstappen, while Estre gave the #911 Porsche to Thomas Preining.
Verstappen’s first Nürburgring 24 Hours stint quickly became one of the focal points of the race. The Dutch driver drove aggressively through traffic, regularly using headlights to clear slower cars, and at one point narrowly avoided a major incident after briefly becoming airborne. Despite concerns about possible floor damage, the #3 Mercedes remained competitive and continued moving forward.
The opening hours also featured several major accidents. The #75 Audi crashed heavily, triggering a Code 60, while the #45 Ferrari of Thierry Vermeulen suffered a significant accident during hour three. Shortly afterwards, the #16 Audi of Alexander Sims collided with a slower car and sustained severe front-end damage. Sims managed to return the car to the pits with the bonnet raised before the team retired the entry.
By hour four, the #3 Mercedes-AMG had moved into the race lead. However, conditions became increasingly difficult after rain arrived around the Adenau section of the circuit. During the same period, the Manthey Porsche #911 crashed into the barriers and was recovered to the pits following an oil spill. The #64 Ford of Arjun Maini also crashed, creating another oil spill.
The weather changes reshuffled the order and tyre strategies became increasingly important. The #67 Ford briefly led with Dennis Olsen at the wheel, while the #3 Mercedes continued cycling through Verstappen, Jules Gounon and later Lucas Auer.
Several Code 60 periods interrupted the race through the evening and overnight hours. The #80 Mercedes-AMG emerged as the main challenger to the sister #3 car, with Fabian Schiller, Luca Stolz and Maro Engel consistently running near the front.
One of the more unusual moments came during hour six when the #81 BMW M3 Touring overtook both Winward Mercedes-AMGs in wet conditions. Elsewhere, the #17 Menzel entry crashed, the #33 Audi spun, and multiple frontrunners switched onto wet tyres as conditions continued to evolve.
Attrition steadily reduced the number of contenders. By hour eight, only seven cars remained on the lead lap, while the defending BMW #1 eventually retired from the race.
The overnight and early morning hours were comparatively stable at the front, with the #3 Mercedes building a comfortable advantage over the #80 sister car. The combination of Verstappen, Juncadella, Gounon and Auer avoided major mistakes and appeared firmly in control heading into the final phase of the race.
Max Verstappen #3 Mercedes-AMG retires at 21st hour
While leading the race, the #3 Mercedes slowed and returned to the pits with a technical issue initially believed to be related to the rear-right corner of the car. The car was eventually pushed into the garage, effectively ending its challenge for victory.
After the race, Juncadella explained that the issue began with intermittent ABS warnings during his stint: “I went out of the pits, everything felt normal, and then after like half or one third of the lap, I saw an ABS failure message popping on and off,” he said.
Juncadella continued driving despite the loss of ABS before hearing additional mechanical noises: “So I drove slowly back to the pits, and we encountered an issue in the driveshaft, which then created some extra collateral damage in the rest of the car.”
The retirement handed the lead to the #80 Mercedes-AMG, which controlled the final hours of the race without major pressure from behind.
In the final hour, Stolz handed the #80 Mercedes back to Engel for the run to the finish, securing overall victory for Mercedes-AMG. The recovering #84 Lamborghini of Bortolotti finished second despite its opening-lap delay, while the #34 Aston Martin driven by Mattia Drudi completed the podium in third.
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