Max Verstappen recently cleared the air on the Nurburgring, making a possible return to the F1 calendar, deeming the track to be “far too dangerous” for the sport now. Although it used to be a major attraction on the calendar decades ago, there seems to be no possible chance of it returning.
Dubbed as the “Green Hell,” the Nurburgring poses quite a challenge for the drivers throughout its over 22-kilometre length. The elevation changes and narrow width, paired with over 170 corners, are a dare for the drivers. Even though it is considered one of the greatest racing tracks in the world, it is as far from the Formula 1 calendar as one can imagine.
Max Verstappen has run the track countless times on his simulator and also ran it in a GT3 car earlier in May, setting incredible lap times. This gave him a clearer view of the track, and he explained why the modern F1 cars cannot run it.
“That’s really not going to happen with the Formula 1 cars we have now, I’m afraid. With GT3 speed it is okay and still doable. I have seen old footage now and then, also of Formula 1 on the Nordschleife,” Verstappen said (via PlanetF1)
“One thing is for sure: F1 there, that will never happen again. Far too dangerous.”
Why is the Nuburgring unsafe for F1 cars as Max Verstappen said?
Max Verstappen is a well-experienced driver. He has been behind the steering wheel of cars from multiple series, including the GT3. This particular class of racing cars is still safe to run at Nurburgring because of their overall speed and cornering speeds. They accelerate more slowly than F1 cars and are also considerably slower during corners. This makes them much safer in the event of a crash.
Meanwhile, Formula 1 cars are much faster. Their downforce keeps them stuck to the ground, which could be an issue on the track because of the many elevation changes. Moreover, the smallest of errors could send the cars into the barriers, which are not tech-pro, but steel beams. This could turn out to be disastrous and does not fit the FIA safety regulations, either.
As a matter of fact, F1 did race at the full course back in the early days. However, after Niki Lauda’s life-threatening crash in 1976, racing stopped over there. The sport did return to race on the much shorter Grand Prix circuit at Nurburgring later. This was dubbed the European GP. But it was stopped after the 2007 season.
