Verstappen at the Nürburgring 24 Hours: Mayländer’s advice, successful in 2000

Verstappen at the Nordschleife How do you race at the 24 Hours of the Nürburgring? The advice to give to a four-time Formula 1 world champion like Max Verstappen can almost take a backseat for the Dutchman from Red Bull, who will take part in the prestigious race in the Green Hell of the Nordschleife in mid-May. Added to this are the two participations in the 4 Hours of Nürburgring in the last two years, both won by Verstappen himself (only to suffer a disqualification in the last edition), but the upcoming 24 Hours at the wheel of the Mercedes GT3 will constitute his absolute debut in full endurance races. Who can give him advice? Another driver present in the world of Formula 1 today, but not behind the wheel of a single-seater, provided the most appropriate advice to best tackle this type of competition: Bernd Mayländer. The German won the 24 Hours in 2000 before embarking on a new adventure in the Circus as a Safety Car driver, with which he recently reached 500 GPs: “I follow everything he does at the Nürburgring – he commented in an interview with RacingNews365 – it’s fantastic to have a Formula 1 champion taking part in the 24 Hours. It’s good for the sport, for the fans and for the championship. I tried to win that race seven times. I came very close twice, once I had an accident while we were leading. Only in 2000 did everything go right and we won.” Talent is not enough. So what is the most important advice for best tackling this challenge on a 22 km long circuit? For Mayländer, everything is in the discipline: “In 2000 we had a perfect team and a perfect car, but during every briefing the message was always the same: the drivers must collaborate with the team. If you know that the car is good and that the speed is there, think about the checkered flag. Don’t risk too much. With the rules and situations of Code 60 (mandatory slowdown zones, ed.) it’s always a question of luck. You can get a penalty that way. But the most important thing is rimanere in pista. Il traffico è la lezione più importante che ho dovuto imparare. Non spingere troppo all’interno. Negli ultimi 30 anni, abbiamo visto che anche le macchine più veloci non ce la fanno se si prendono troppi rischi. Nel 2000 avevamo un pilota che si prendeva molti rischi. Dovevamo davvero contenerlo e dirgli: ‘Ehi, guida con prudenza’. Siamo in pole position, ma non devi essere primo dopo la prima curva. La gara è incredibilmente lunga. Se non sei in testa dopo il primo giro, magari lo you will be in the fiftieth. This possibility always exists, as long as you manage to keep the car intact.”