has expressed curiosity in racing in Tremendous GT, however admits the shortage of a real blue riband occasion makes a visitor look troublesome to justify.
The four-time System 1 champion turned , as a part of a promotional shoot organised by his employer Pink Bull.
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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 in the course of the Japanese producer’s end-of -season occasion.
Tremendous GT is taken into account the quickest championship for grand touring automobiles on the earth, 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 operating round Fuji.
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“It was numerous 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 try this many laps. I might have favored to do extra laps.
“Nevertheless it’s a incredible automobile, a incredible class normally, and it was an ideal expertise for me to drive that automobile, and in addition really feel the grip within the moist.
“It is fairly totally different to what now we have in Europe.
“Simply having the ability to drive so many various automobiles is at all times a very good factor.”
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Verstappen has more and more been exploring alternatives in sportscar racing, partly as a result of his dislike of present System 1 hybrids, and 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 automobiles, 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 must see.
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“It is an ideal class. I want that they had a bit extra of a standout one race, as an alternative of only a championship. If that will be the case, it is simpler to commit to 1; I can’t do an entire championship. And to do one race in a championship typically can be not the precise factor. So, we’ll see.
“I might like to race these automobiles. It actually jogs my memory of how the previous DTM [Class 1] automobiles was, and that is what you additionally actually favored watching.”
Why Tremendous GT lacks a standout race
#16 Group Mugen Honda NSX-GT: Hideki Mutoh, Daisuke Nakajima, Jenson Button
#16 Group Mugen Honda NSX-GT: Hideki Mutoh, Daisuke Nakajima, Jenson Button
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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 collection’ de facto showpiece, as it’s scheduled to coincide with the Golden Week vacation season.
Nonetheless, the collection beforehand boasted a real marque occasion that attracted a number of high-profile names to the championship, not least 2009 F1 champion .
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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 collection attain new heights.
On account of its endurance format, Tremendous GT groups have been allowed to area an extra third driver, which paved the best way for a number of new entrants into the championship. In its early years, the Suzuka 1000 attracted the likes of future System 1 driver and present sportscar veteran , and the development carried on.
However maybe essentially the most well-known title to enter Tremendous GT by way of the Suzuka 1000km route is Button. After stepping away from F1 with , the Briton entered the 2017 Suzuka 1000km, becoming a member of the Mugen Honda staff as its designated third driver.
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The race hardly went his approach and he completed a distant twelfth, however the expertise bought 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 along with his team-mate Naoki Yamamoto in 2018, including a GT500 title to his earlier success in F1.
Nonetheless, this pathway to Tremendous GT was primarily shut in 2018 when collection’ 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 robust Japanese id. However whereas groups competing in Tremendous GT’s GT300 class have been inspired to participate, the format excluded GT500 equipment fully, leaving no risk of top-level manufacturing facility involvement.
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The Suzuka 1000km title nonetheless carries important worth, and SRO revived the format final 12 months when Japan returned to the IGTC calendar. On this event, Tremendous GT’s GTA-GT300 spec automobiles have been allowed to compete alongside GT3 equipment, with efficiency balanced between the 2 lessons. Tremendous GT, then again, has continued to prioritise worldwide growth. In 2025, it efficiently managed to carry again Sepang to the calendar after a chronic absence, with the occasion instantly proving to be successful. 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.
May Max Verstappen nonetheless enter Tremendous GT one way or the other?Begin motion（GT500）
Begin motion（GT500）
One avenue stays open for Verstappen, ought to he be critical about making a Tremendous GT look.
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Following Sepang’s return to the calendar final 12 months, organisers floated the thought of a wildcard GT500 entry in 2026. At the moment, the undertaking was described as a ‘work in progress’, with no producer dedicated to supplying or operating a automobile.
Such an entry might, in principle, enable Verstappen to compete at Sepang on 20-21 June, within the brief hole between the F1 races in Barcelona and Spielberg. Nonetheless, the wildcard idea is primarily geared toward selling Malaysian expertise, that means any involvement from Verstappen would possible rely upon exterior backing – probably from Pink Bull.
Any wildcard programme, with or with out Verstappen, would additionally must safe cooperation from one of many three GT500 producers in Tremendous GT (Honda, Nissan and Toyota) to produce and run the automobile. Nissan might have some capability after scaling again its GT500 programme from 4 to 3 automobiles this 12 months as a result of monetary points. Notably, Nissan was additionally Pink Bull’s producer of selection for Verstappen’s check outing at Fuji.
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Finally, any participation in Tremendous GT might 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 as a result of tremendous clipping.
Suzuka is normally a favorite amongst drivers, so the truth that Verstappen could not take pleasure in it as a lot as he would have favored 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 rules. It is unclear what can be the result of these talks, and if the current-generation of automobiles will be suitably modified to his liking for Verstappen to see out his contract with Pink Bull.
Even when he stays in F1 subsequent 12 months, likelihood is Verstappen will probably be racing sportscars greater than ever, and it might be exhausting for him to withstand the attract of Tremendous GT.
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