Daniel Juncadella prefers to temper expectations around Verstappen’s chances of victory at the 24 Hours of Nürburgring, even though the crew entered by Verstappen.com Racing is among the favorites.
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With eight participations under his belt, Juncadella knows the Green Hell of the Nürburgring perfectly.
His experience could indeed be valuable for Verstappen, who is competing this year in his first true 24-hour endurance race despite his immense experience in Formula 1.
“Winning the lottery”
Even though his best result at the Nürburgring remains a third place obtained in 2021, Juncadella already has a solid endurance record, notably thanks to his victory at the 24 Hours of Spa in 2022 and his success at the 24 Hours of Daytona the following year. Yet, despite the team’s competitiveness, the Spaniard refuses to get carried away.
“We all want to win, and Max is an extremely aggressive competitor, but you have to keep an open mind, he explains. I always say that the Nürburgring chooses its winner, because there are a lot of luck factors in many situations. It can sometimes feel like a lottery.”
This caution reflects well the unique reputation of the Nürburgring: unpredictable weather, constant traffic between different categories, incidents, neutralizations, and changing conditions make the race particularly difficult to master, even for the best crews.
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Despite this, some historic figures of the event believe that Verstappen has a real chance to shine immediately. Markus Winkelhock, four-time winner of the 24 Hours of Nürburgring, considers that the Dutchman could even aim for victory: according to him, Mercedes-AMG has historically been, along with Audi and Porsche, one of the absolute references on the Nordschleife in endurance.
A shock crew
Winkelhock also highlights the exceptional quality of the crew lined up around Verstappen.
The Dutchman will indeed share the Mercedes-AMG GT3 with three extremely experienced official drivers: the Spaniard Daniel Juncadella, the Frenchman Jules Gounon (son of former F1 driver Jean-Marc Gounon), and the Austrian Lucas Auer (nephew of Gerhard Berger).
For Winkelhock, this combination of a potentially competitive car and a very solid crew gives Verstappen all the necessary tools to fight at the front throughout the race. It remains to be seen if the Nürburgring will allow a new motorsport superstar to conquer its myth on his first attempt.