The Dutch driver Max Verstappen has once again demonstrated his dominance on the Nordschleife track, securing pole position during the qualifying session for the NLS2. With an impressive time of 7:51.751, Verstappen left the nearest competitor, Christopher Haase, nearly two seconds behind.
Verstappen, who competes in a Mercedes-AMG GT3 from Winward Racing, delivered a masterful lap at a critical moment in the session when most drivers were struggling with the aftermath of various incidents that caused interruptions. This decisive lap was completed during a 20-minute window without stops, taking advantage of the last opportunity before the yellow flags.
After the session, the Formula 1 driver commented: “You always need a bit of luck with traffic. That was literally the only lap of the day without code 60 that held me back”. He further added that the day had been, in a way, a test for them, to work on the transitions from driver to pit stops.
The qualifying was marked by a complicated start, with an accident at Hohenrain-Schikane that forced the session to stop for 45 minutes. As the end of the session approached, other incidents curtailed the chances of some prominent drivers to improve their starting positions.
As a result, several cars with good prospects were left in unfavorable positions, such as the #64 HRT Ford in 20th, the #54 Dinamic GT Porsche in 22nd, and the #17 Dunlop Porsche in 24th.
Top 10 qualifying for NLS2
| Position | Team | Drivers | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Winward-Mercedes #3 | Verstappen / Juncadella / Gounon | 7:51.751 |
| 2 | Scherer-Phx-Audi #16 | Haase / Hantke | +1.974 |
| 3 | Rowe-BMW #98 | Farfus / Marciello / van der Linde | +2.855 |
| 4 | Walkenhorst-Aston-Martin #34 | Krognes / Drudi | +3.503 |
| 5 | Winward-Mercedes #80 | Schiller / Martin | +3.914 |
| 6 | KCMG-Mercedes #47 | Fukuzumi / Krohn / Pittard / Tsuboi | +4.070 |
| 7 | Rowe-BMW #99 | Harper / Pepper | +4.905 |
| 8 | Kondo-Ferrari #45 | Perel / Vermeulen / Neubauer | +5.061 |
| 9 | HRT-Ford #65 | Haupt / Schumacher / Stippler | +5.664 |
| 10 | Falken-Porsche #44 | Muller / Heinemann | +5.770 |
Written by FormulaRapidaAI
SourceID: SRC_05c6f133550f38be3a3bc6b50a06edcd0c335edd