Dani Juncadella says that Team Verstappen Racing is gunning for glory at this weekend’s Spa 24 Hours, bidding to make up for its “cruel” near miss at the Nürburgring.
Four-time F1 champion Max Verstappen’s GT outfit came within three hours of victory in May’s Nürburgring 24 Hours, only for a driveshaft issue to end the chances of the Dutchman, along with team-mates Juncadella, Lucas Auer and Jules Gounon.
While Verstappen will be racing at the Austrian GP this weekend, Juncadella will be teaming up again with his Nürburgring team-mate Gounon, with Chris Lulham making up the trio behind the wheel of the #3 Mercedes AMG GT3 Evo run by 2 Seas Motorsport.
The Spaniard had said he thought a Nurburgring win was “meant to be” in the devastating aftermath of that race, having had so many near-misses with other cars on track before the reliability issues struck.
Now he and Gounon have a chance to make amends, but the veteran Spaniard explains he’s learned to move on and sharpen his focus on the next race over the years.
“It’s just hard for a couple of hours,” Juncadella says. “You don’t need to get too carried away by a disappointment where you basically didn’t really play a role in it, because you know this sport sometimes can be cruel, and there are so many things that are just out of your control.
“That’s what I learned with experience. I wouldn’t change anything that happened or that we did. We were lucky many times, we’re extremely lucky when there was oil on track and Jules avoided it.”
The Spa-Francorchamps circuit has been subject to searing heat throughout the practice and qualifying sessions this week, with light rain showers forecast across the weekend.
Now on his third 24-hour race in a month, Juncadella says he feels fit for a gruelling Spa 24 Hours, and that the Mercedes-AMG GT3 EVO is on song in a contest where “anything can happen.”
“It’s quite positive for us, the AMG has always been very competitive in the heat,” he says. “Some other turbocharged cars probably suffer a bit more when it’s this hot.
“The good thing for our car is that it’s eight or nine-year-old, it’s already very well known for the [Mercedes] teams, for the organiser [SRO], in terms of BOP they know our car, they know our metrics.
“It’s raced for many years, so I think we’re a bit of a benchmark in some ways, and they base all the other cars around us.
“Our car has always been strong here, particularly in the heat, it’s always a good car, but I think the competitors are gonna be up there.
“We already saw in qualifying, everything is super tight, even though one lap pace doesn’t really say the whole picture, but it’s a good reference to know which cars are further up.
“Ferrari has always been quick here. Porsche is really good in the rain, it seems like the race might go towards some rain showers at the end, so that spices things up a bit.”
Despite the disappointment of the Nordschleife, that the team came so close to glory shows the success of the Verstappen project, one that has F1 legend’s fingerprints all over it – even when he’s busy with F1 business.
Juncadella says this commitment has made him particularly glad he chose to get on board with the Dutchman, having previously been one of its ‘real-world driver-ambassadors’ for his sim racing operation. He now combines racing for Genesis in WEC’s Le Mans Hypercar class with racing in the GT World Challenge Europe series and other selected endurance races.
“It was a bit of a tough time because I had to choose whether I continue or not with my Corvette contract in IMSA [for 2026], and Max was telling me: ‘Hey, this is my plan, I would like to count on you,’” he remembers.
“I always looked up to him, because I know how good he is, not only in the car, but also his involvement within the project. He’s not the kind of guy that will do something with his name and someone else to manage it. He’s fully involved in it and fully passionate for it, and I love that. In the end, that’s what makes you successful in any environment. And I wanted to make sure I can be there.
“I’ve been telling my wife since 2023 I was gonna reduce my calendar a little bit, but then Max said we need you for all the [2026] races. Then, even my wife had to bow to the Max Verstappen effect!”
Mercedes’ head of customer Racing Stefan Wendl corroborates is Verstappen is “fully integrated right into their structure and technical meetings,” even while racing this weekend in Austria – communicating with some staff handpicked by the Dutchman.
Despite huge success in his GT racing career, Juncadella feels this season has been one of his most interesting and rewarding yet. Having won Spa before in 2022, the Spaniard thinks another win there would top off a special year.
“This season I feel like I’ve reached new highs,” he says. “My first year racing in Hypercar at 35 years old – bit of a rookie year – that was a big challenge for me, and a big dream one day.
“Racing with Max just happened at one of my favorite races of the year. I feel like it [my career] just keeps getting better.
“I love that feeling, and that’s why every race weekend this year is big motivation for me.”
Images courtesy of SRO and Red Bull
