Max Verstappen will contest the nls2 four-hour GT3 race at the Nurburgring Nordschleife on Saturday, March 21, 2026, in a Red Bull-backed Mercedes as part of his build-up to the Nurburgring 24 Hours later this year. Qualifying is scheduled for 07: 30 UK (02: 30 ET) and the race begins at 11: 00 UK (06: 00 ET); the event is set as a four-hour fixture on the Nordschleife calendar. Verstappen returns after winning on his NLS debut last season, stepping back into the series for this weekend’s contest.
Nls2 schedule and start time
The official timetable lists qualifying at 08: 30 local time (07: 30 UK) with the four-hour race starting at 12: 00 local time (11: 00 UK). For readers tracking in Eastern Time, those slots correspond to qualifying at 02: 30 ET and a race start at 06: 00 ET. The entry on the grid will be a Red Bull-liveried Mercedes GT3 driven by Max Verstappen, who is using the Nls2 race to sharpen preparation ahead of his Nurburgring 24 Hours debut later this year.
Event format: a short qualifying session followed by a scheduled four-hour race on the Nordschleife. Verstappen’s presence elevates attention on the weekend’s running, given his prior win on the NLS debut last season and the GT3 machinery under a Red Bull banner.
Why Verstappen is racing and what to watch
Verstappen’s entry is explicitly framed as preparation for the Nurburgring 24 Hours later in the year; the nls2 outing gives him extended running on the track in race conditions. Key elements to watch include his adaptation to GT3 traffic over four hours, pitstop strategy for the Red Bull-backed Mercedes entry, and how quickly the team extracts pace compared with his prior NLS victory.
Secondary context from endurance racing governance shows movement across calendars: the World Endurance Championship has postponed its 2026 season opener in Qatar in response to an escalation of military conflict in the Middle East. That development sits alongside growing discussion in prototype classes about driver line-up size and manufacturer strategy, but the immediate focus at the Nordschleife this weekend is Verstappen in GT3 machinery.
No official reaction quotes are available in the provided event materials; the on-track timetable and entrant list form the factual basis for timing and expectations ahead of the race.
What’s next: watch for final grid confirmations in the hours before qualifying and for on-track pace in the opening stint to indicate how the Red Bull-backed Mercedes will fare over four hours. The nls2 weekend will set the narrative heading into Verstappen’s planned Nurburgring 24 Hours campaign later this year, and teams will use this race to refine strategy and driver rotation ahead of that endurance target.
