Max Verstappen Will Be Participating in Nurburgring 24H and Emilia Romagna Grand Prix on Same Weekend

It is no secret Max Verstappen has a strong desire to become a part of the endurance racing series. He will get a taste of the series once again during the upcoming Emilia Romagna GP weekend. The Dutchman will go racing twice on the same weekend which he revealed in a recent live stream.

The endurance race he will be taking part in is the virtual Nurburgring 24 Hours on the legendary Nordschleife circuit. He will probably become a part of the race from the comfort of his simulator.

The 26-year-old is a sim racing fanatic and spends considerable time racing with his eSports team Redline. Catering to his interests, Verstappen will take part in the race on the coming weekend. He confessed it in his live stream seen on X posted by the user @SCUDERIAFEMBOY.

He said, “Wait, I’m racing.” and added, “No, that’s not what I mean. I am racing the 24.” after his teammate mocked him unknowingly.

max is going to participate in an 24hr race the same weekend as imola. hes crazy! pic.twitter.com/hX0o7028pl

— nini (@SCUDERIAFEMBOY) May 12, 2024

However, this isn’t the first time the avid sim racer has stayed up late to race for Team Redline. During the 2024 Saudi Arabian GP, the Red Bull man stayed up till 4 am racing with his team. It was made evident with his interaction on the live stream.

When quizzed about it, as quoted by the Independent, he confessed, “I stay on European or even UK schedule so I go to bed at like 4am. I wake up late. Also, I have my own sim team so naturally just catching up with them a bit. It’s just unwinding as well.”

Sim racing helps the three-time world champion disconnect from the real racing world. And it does not seem to be hampering his output as he secured a win in the race the following day in Jeddah. However, it could make him quit F1 early.

Max Verstappen discusses his future endurance racing plans

Making endurance racing an active part of his life, albeit in the world of sim racing, Verstappen is fully committed to his favorite pastime. It stems from his infatuation with endurance racing. So, despite being on the top of the F1 world, he probably wants to leave after fulfilling his contract in 2028 to become an endurance racer.

He even dragged Fernando Alonso into the conversation when he admitted the two would make an ideal 24 Hours Le Mans team. The Spaniard having raced and won in the endurance series and given their relationship, is the perfect candidate to become his future teammate.

Apart from fulfilling his personal desires, the Dutch champion is helping others as well. He is setting up a project where he will help sim racers get into the world of real motorsport via Verstappen.com racing.

On the other hand, he already has plans to set up a GT3 team. The investment in the team, apart from his interest, might be a carefully planned step of getting him a racing seat soon after his retirement from F1.