Max Verstappen has expressed curiosity in racing in Tremendous GT, however admits the shortage of a real blue riband occasion makes a visitor look tough to justify.
The four-time Formulation 1 champion turned his first laps in a Nissan Z GT500 automobile at Fuji Speedway final month, as a part of a promotional shoot organised by his employer Purple Bull.
It marked solely his second in a recent Tremendous GT prototype following an preliminary outing behind the wheel of a Honda NSX-GT at Motegi in 2022 through the Japanese producer’s end-of -season occasion.
Tremendous GT is taken into account the quickest championship for grand touring vehicles on this planet, with present GT500 machines able to outpacing even the World Endurance Championship’s hypercars over a typical lap round Fuji.
Verstappen mentioned he relished his expertise aboard the Nissan Z, at the same time as heavy rain left the monitor moist and restricted his working round Fuji.
“It was loads of enjoyable,” the 28-year-old mentioned on the eve of the Japanese GP. “Only a disgrace that it was raining fairly a bit, so I could not do this many laps. I might have preferred to do extra laps.
“Nevertheless it’s a incredible automobile, a incredible class basically, and it was a fantastic expertise for me to drive that automobile, and likewise really feel the grip within the moist.
“It is fairly totally different to what we’ve got in Europe.
“Simply with the ability to drive so many alternative vehicles is all the time a great factor.”
Verstappen has more and more been exploring alternatives in sportscar racing, partly on account of his dislike of present Formulation 1 hybrids, and not too long ago contested the NLS2 on the Nurburgring Nordschleife in a Mercedes-AMG GT3.
Whereas he’s open to the prospect of racing GT500 machines, that are considerably extra superior than road-based GT3 vehicles, he pointed to Tremendous GT’s format as a key impediment.
Requested whether or not he would think about coming into a Tremendous GT race, Verstappen mentioned: “Who is aware of, I have to see.
“It is a fantastic class. I want that they had a bit extra of a standout one race, as a substitute of only a championship. If that will be the case, it is simpler to commit to 1; I can’t do a complete championship. And to do one race in a championship generally can also be not the correct factor. So, we’ll see.
“I might like to race these vehicles. It actually jogs my memory of how the previous DTM [Class 1] vehicles was, and that is what you additionally actually preferred watching.”
Why Tremendous GT lacks a standout race
#16 Group Mugen Honda NSX-GT: Hideki Mutoh, Daisuke Nakajima, Jenson Button
Verstappen’s feedback at Suzuka spotlight a serious hole in Tremendous GT’s present construction. The 2026 season calendar options eight races throughout seven venues, however there’s restricted differentiation between these occasions.
Six of the eight races are run over 300km, the identical distance as a grand prix, whereas two endurance rounds are timed to 3 hours. The Sepang spherical stands out naturally as the one abroad race on the calendar, whereas the Fuji GT 3 Hours is the sequence’ de facto showpiece, as it’s scheduled to coincide with the Golden Week vacation season.
Nevertheless, the sequence beforehand boasted a real marque occasion that attracted a number of high-profile names to the championship, not least 2009 F1 champion Jenson Button.
Conceived as a standalone race in 1966, the Suzuka 1000km grew into a serious endurance fixture, becoming a member of a number of worldwide championships together with the World Sportscar Championship and the FIA GT Championship. By the point it grew to become a Tremendous GT spherical in 2006, it was already a longtime occasion, and it helped the sequence attain new heights.
On account of its endurance format, Tremendous GT groups have been allowed to subject a further third driver, which paved the way in which for a number of new entrants into the championship. In its early years, the Suzuka 1000 attracted the likes of future Formulation 1 driver Adrian Sutil and present sportscar veteran Oliver Jarvis, and the development carried on.
However maybe probably the most well-known identify to enter Tremendous GT by means of the Suzuka 1000km route is Button. After stepping away from F1 with McLaren, the Briton entered the 2017 Suzuka 8 Hours, becoming a member of the Mugen Honda crew as its designated third driver.
The race hardly went his approach and he completed a distant twelfth, however the expertise obtained him hooked on Tremendous GT and he signed a two-year take care of Honda to race within the championship full-time. Button would go on to win the title together with his team-mate Naoki Yamamoto in 2018, including a GT500 title to his earlier success in F1.
Nevertheless, this pathway to Tremendous GT was primarily shut in 2018 when sequence’ promoter GTA joined forces with SRO to launch the Suzuka 10 Hours, a brand new endurance occasion as a part of the Intercontinental GT Problem.
The brand new 10-hour fixture grew to become Suzuka’s sole ‘Summer season Endurance Race’, shifting the highlight away from Tremendous GT and leaving the Fuji Golden Week spherical because the championship’s de facto headline occasion. With the Suzuka 10 Hours, the promoters aimed for a full-blown worldwide occasion with a powerful Japanese id. However whereas groups competing in Tremendous GT’s GT300 class have been inspired to participate, the format excluded GT500 equipment totally, leaving no chance of top-level manufacturing unit involvement.
The Suzuka 1000km identify nonetheless carries vital worth, and SRO revived the format final yr when Japan returned to the IGTC calendar. On this event, Tremendous GT’s GTA-GT300 spec vehicles have been allowed to compete alongside GT3 equipment, with efficiency balanced between the 2 lessons. Tremendous GT, alternatively, has continued to prioritise worldwide growth. In 2025, it efficiently managed to deliver again Sepang to the calendar after a protracted absence, with the occasion instantly proving to be a hit. Tremendous GT has additionally beforehand forayed into Thailand, and each Sepang and Buriram have been on the unique 2020 calendar earlier than the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the schedule and compelled the championship to race solely in Japan for the following 5 years.
Might Max Verstappen nonetheless enter Tremendous GT someway?
Begin motion（GT500）
Picture by: Masahide Kamio
One avenue stays open for Verstappen, ought to he be severe about making a Tremendous GT look.
Following Sepang’s return to the calendar final yr, organisers floated the concept of a wildcard GT500 entry in 2026. At the moment, the venture was described as a ‘work in progress’, with no producer dedicated to supplying or working a automobile.
Such an entry may, in idea, enable Verstappen to compete at Sepang on 20-21 June, within the quick hole between the F1 races in Barcelona and Spielberg. Nevertheless, the wildcard idea is primarily geared toward selling Malaysian expertise, which means any involvement from Verstappen would probably depend upon exterior backing – probably from Purple Bull.
Any wildcard programme, with or with out Verstappen, would additionally have to safe cooperation from one of many three GT500 producers in Tremendous GT (Honda, Nissan and Toyota) to provide and run the automobile. Nissan could have some capability after scaling again its GT500 programme from 4 to 3 vehicles this yr on account of monetary points. Notably, Nissan was additionally Purple Bull’s producer of selection for Verstappen’s check outing at Fuji.
In the end, any participation in Tremendous GT may hinge on Verstappen’s long-term future in F1. The format of the Suzuka Circuit exposes the shortcomings of the present hybrid package deal, with drivers dropping as a lot as 50km/h on 130R on account of tremendous clipping.
Suzuka is often a favorite amongst drivers, so the truth that Verstappen could not get pleasure from it as a lot as he would have preferred was mirrored in his feedback. The Dutchman admitted that he has some “life” choices to make, as his discontent with F1 grows.
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Whereas he could seem resigned by the state of affairs, he’s additionally working intently with F1 and the FIA to refine the laws. It is unclear what could be the result of these talks, and if the current-generation of vehicles may be suitably modified to his liking for Verstappen to see out his contract with Purple Bull.
Even when he stays in F1 subsequent yr, chances are high Verstappen will likely be racing sportscars greater than ever, and it could be arduous for him to withstand the attract of Tremendous GT.
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