Valentin Khorounzhiy
21 Mar 2026 — 1 min read
Max Verstappen's crew has been disqualified from this Saturday's Nurburgring Langstrecken-Serie race after winning on the road.
Verstappen and team-mates Dani Juncadella and Jules Gounon took a comfortable win in the four-hour event in the Red Bull Formula 1 driver's first competitive outing in the Mercedes-AMG GT3.
But they were swiftly found to have used seven sets of tyres during race day instead of the permitted six.
Christian Hohenadel, team boss of the Winward outfit that operates the #3 Verstappen Racing Mercedes, said the disqualification "hurt" and came due to a "mistake within the team".
"I would like to apologise to everyone who was cheering us on."
Verstappen competed in the race as preparation for his debut in the Nurburgring 24 Hours later this year.
He could yet race in the next round of the NLS series due to Formula 1 grand prix cancellations in April.
Jordan Pepper and Dan Harper in the Rowe BMW have inherited in the win following the Verstappen car's disqualification.
Context:
Verstappen's team was disqualified from Nurburgring win for using seven tire sets instead of six allowed.
Context:
Technical violations can cost victories even for F1 champions in other racing series.
Context:
This was Verstappen's debut in Mercedes-AMG GT3 as prep for the Nurburgring 24 Hours.
