Max Verstappen banned from Nurburgring qualifying by his own team

Credit for photo: Gruppe C x GPFANS — Photo: © IMAGO

Max Verstappen

Max Verstappen banned from Nurburgring qualifying by his own team

Sheona Mountford F1 Journalist

Motorsport journalist working in F1 since 2024.

Tuesday 21 April 2026 08:27

Max Verstappen has revealed that his team didn't want him to take part in the Top Qualifying session at the 24h Nurburgring Qualifiers on the Nordschleife.

The four-time F1 champion had a busy weekend at the Nurburgring, with both the NLS4 and NLS5 races, qualifying for each race and the Top Qualifying session. The NLS4 race was cancelled however, after a tragic accident took the life of Juha Miettinen on Saturday, but the scheduled NLS5 race went ahead as planned on Sunday.

Verstappen started the race from P5 after his team-mate Lucas Auer had secured that starting spot in Top Qualifying prior. During the race, Verstappen battled for the lead with Christopher Haase, a rivalry that had already heated up during the NLS2 race in March.

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Unfortunately, Verstappen's hopes for victory faded when he pitted with damage about forty minutes into the second stint and the No.3 Mercedes-AMG GT3 team finished P39.

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Verstappen prevented from taking part in Top Qualifying

Speaking to Viaplay, Verstappen revealed why it was Auer who took part in Top Qualifying on Sunday and that his team refused to let him drive.

The Dutch driver wasn’t bothered by the decision, pointing out that a pole position might even work against him in a 24-hour race.

He explained that 'they wouldn’t let me get in the car, and I was fine with that', with the move likely a precaution to prevent the organisers from applying Balance of Performance rules, which could slow the car down for the 24-hour race.

In the end, it was Thierry Vermeulen - protégé and son of Verstappen's team manager Raymond Vermeulen - who grabbed pole position for Sunday's NLS5 race.

Verstappen added: "It’s great to see everyone starting with a full tank and then watching Thierry take pole. It was really cool to witness."

Max Verstappen Nürburgring Nurburgring Nordschleife