Winward Racing Prepared to Host Max Verstappen for Rolex 24 as F1 Champion Begins Mercedes-AMG Endurance Program

Winward Racing owner Russell Ward "would love" to run F1 champion Max Verstappen at Daytona. Read how the team is preparing for his 2026 endurance debut.

By: AXL Media

Published: Mar 16, 2026, 4:50 PM EDT

Source: The information in this article was sourced from Sportscar365

Verstappen’s Transition to Endurance Racing via Winward Partnership

The landscape of global sports car racing is bracing for the arrival of its biggest star, as Max Verstappen prepares to make his highly anticipated Nürburgring 24 debut this May. The operation will be spearheaded by Winward Racing, a team that has established itself as a dominant force in both European and American GT3 competition. Verstappen is set to gain critical track time during this weekend’s Nürburgring Langstrecken-Serie (NLS) round, sharing a Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo with factory stalwarts Jules Gounon, Lucas Auer, and Dani Juncadella. Team owner Russell Ward noted that Verstappen’s decision to join their "playground" is a testament to the high-performance culture cultivated across their global operations.

Daytona Aspirations: The Vision for a Verstappen Rolex 24 Entry

While Verstappen’s current focus remains on the Eifel endurance classic, he has publicly voiced interest in other "triple crown" endurance events, specifically the Rolex 24 at Daytona and the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Russell Ward has made it clear that the Houston-based Winward squad—which has secured three Rolex 24 class wins in the last five years—would be the ideal partner for such an endeavor. Verstappen has reportedly signed a multi-year deal with Mercedes-AMG for his sports car pursuits, and while he is currently utilizing multiple teams, Winward is aggressively campaigning to be his primary choice for North American events.

Strategic Division of Verstappen Racing Efforts for 2026

The 2026 season sees a unique logistical split for Verstappen Racing. While Winward handles the prestigious Nürburgring 24 program, the 28-year-old’s GT World Challenge Europe powered by AWS campaign will be managed by 2 Seas Motorsport. This multi-team approach underscores Verstappen’s status as a free agent of sorts within the Mercedes-AMG ecosystem. For Winward, the NLS round serves as a crucial audition; the goal is to provide a "really good machine" that convinces the F1 champion to consolidate his future programs under the Winward banner, particularly as he looks toward expanding his footprint in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.