F1 champion Max Verstappen set for new seven-time champion rival at Nurburgring

Davidson over Mercedes-duo Verstappen en Antonelli: 'Zou heel goed werken' — Photo: © IMAGO

Max Verstappen

Max Verstappen set for new seven-time champion rival at Nurburgring

Max Verstappen may have to face off against Valentino Rossi soon

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Tuesday 14 July 2026 23:15

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Max Verstappen may have to face off against a seven-time world champion at the Nurburgring Nordschleife in the future, according to reports.

It's being reported that Valentino Rossi is attempting to attain a permit to race around the iconic track, which was the home of Verstappen's attempt earlier this year to claim 24 Hours of Nurbrugring success.

Nicknamed 'The Doctor', Rossi claimed seven MotoGP championship victories across his illustrious career, but actually won nine motorcycle championships all-told, between 1998-2021.

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Rossi is largely considered to be one of the best racers of all time, in any series, and has recently switched his attention to racing sportscars, competing in the World Endurance Championship (WEC) in 2024 and 2025 and this year racing in the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup in his BMW M4 GT3.

Now, Motorsport.com are reporting that the 47-year-old is trying to get his permit to race around the Nurburgring Nordschleife.

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Rossi attempts to gain Nordschleife permit

Rossi has the desire of one day racing in a 24-hour event, and therefore wants to obtain his permit to race around the Nurburgring by the end of this 2026 season.

Any driver who wants to compete in the 24-hour race at the Nordschleife must first have a 'Permit A', something which required Verstappen last year to take a written test and complete rigorous testing and short races throughout 2025 at the track.

However, the rules have since been relaxed, meaning that Rossi could strictly speaking get the permit sorted within one weekend of racing in NLS races at the track.

Rossi only needs to complete one race and eight laps during an NLS event or the 24-hour qualifiers, as well as avoiding any driving infractions during the race.

Speaking at the 24 Hours of Spa GT3 event recently, Rossi told media of a potential 24 Hours of Nurburgring 2027 participation: "Yes, because it now looks like you can get the permit done in a single weekend. We are in talks with BMW to organise everything.

"The Nurburgring 24 Hours is definitely on my bucket list. I hope we can make it happen with BMW."

Will we get Rossi vs Verstappen at the Nurburgring?

Verstappen has competed in eight different races at the Nurburgring Nordschleife, but the most high-profile event was the 24-hour race in May.

Verstappen made his NLS debut at the track last September, claiming GT3 victory at the Nordschleife.

But the 24-hour event in May did not go to plan for the four-time F1 world champion. Verstappen and his No.3 Mercedes-AMG team were struck down by a technical issue during the final hours of the race, taking them out of podium contention.

Verstappen, Lucas Auer, Dani Juncadella and Jules Gounon therefore finished down in 38th, 21 laps behind the lead of the race.

Therefore, there is every chance that Verstappen will try and claim victory at the event again in the future, after describing quite how much he enjoyed it.

A 2027 entry may well pit him directly up against Rossi, in what would be a clash of two motorsport legends, if Rossi can get his permit in time.

Rossi also suggested during last weekend's Goodwood Festival of Speed that he would be interested in an attempt at claiming Le Mans success, hinting that he would like to team up with Verstappen's F1 rival Lando Norris in a joint entry.

When did F1 last race at the Nurburgring Nordschleife?

The most recent F1 race to have taken place on the Nurburgring Nordschleife was the 1976 German Grand Prix, which was won by James Hunt.

F1 has raced on the modern circuit layout since then however, regularly between 2009-2013 and again in 2020 for the Eifel GP as part of the COVID-hit F1 season.

The last time an F1 car was driven around the Nurburgring Nordschleife layout was in 2023, when David Coulthard and Sebastian Vettel raced old Red Bull F1 cars around the track in a special event.

Why F1 will never return to the Nurburgring

The 1976 German GP saw one of the most infamous moments in F1 history. World champion Niki Lauda lost control of his Ferrari before the right-hand Bergwerk curve, and crashed into an earth bank, before the car bounced back onto the track, engulfed in flames.

Brett Lunger hit Lauda's stricken car, while Harald Ertl then hit into the back of Lunger's car. Lauda's rivals stopped and helped him out of his burning Ferrari car, but Lauda had suffered serious burns and was rushed by helicopter to the Bundeswehr hospital in Koblenz.

He almost lost his life in the days following the incident, but remarkably made a full recovery, and was back racing in F1 by the 1976 Italian GP, before claiming the title in 1977.

Lauda, Ertl and Lunger weren't the only drivers to crash during the race, with Ronnie Peterson, Patrick Depailler and Vittorio Brambilla also crashing out, while the inability for the helicopter to get to Lauda's location on the track within five minutes led to a lot of criticism.

It was deemed that organisers just did not have the resources to manage such a long circuit, and that was not satisfactory for F1, who never returned to the full-length circuit again.

Written by

Sam Cook - Digital Journalist

Sam Cook is a talented young sports journalist and social media professional who now specialises in Formula 1, having previously worked as a football journalist and a local news reporter for a variety of different brands.

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F1 Red Bull Max Verstappen Nürburgring MotoGP Valentino Rossi