Four-time Formula 1 world champion Max Verstappen has announced he will race a Mercedes...in this year’s Nürburgring 24 Hours.
Fresh from being whupped over the weekend by the Mercedes-AMG F1 team—alongside the rest of the grid, to be fair—the Dutch F1 superstar will swap out of his V6 hybrid Red Bull and into a V8 Mercedes-AMG GT to run the famous, terrifying 24-hour race in May.
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“The Nürburgring is a special place,” he said about his new challenge. “There’s no other track like it. The Nürburgring 24 Hours is a race that’s been on my bucket list for a long time, so I’m really thrilled we can make it happen now.
“Last year, I was able to get my DMSB Permit Nordschleife and participate in NLS9—that we won.
“We’ve got a strong lineup with Dani (Juncadella), Jules (Gounon), and Lucas (Auer), and great support from Red Bull and Mercedes-AMG Motorsport,” he added.
He’s been a fan of the Green Hell for a while, as you’ll remember: Last year, he not-so-secretly tested a Ferrari 296 GT3 under the pseudonym Franz Hermann.
So it’s not entirely a reaction to this year’s sweeping regulation changes, even if Verstappen had some...let’s say ‘choice’ words to say after the Australian GP: “If you enjoy that, okay, but that’s what I do at home and I play Mario Kart. For me, personally, I didn’t enjoy that. The way that you were racing is not really proper.”
N24’s pretty proper. Roll on May.
More images of Max Verstappen’s Mercedes-AMG GT3 for the Nürburgring 24 Hours:
NOTE: This article first appeared on TopGear.com. Minor edits have been made.
