The 57th ADAC Barbarossapreis on September 27, 2025, will make history. For the first time, four-time Formula 1 World Champion Max Verstappen will contest a GT3 race in the Green Hell – and he is among the favorites. But the penultimate round of the ADAC Nürburgring Langstrecken-Serie 2025 offers much more than the reigning F1 champion: the GT3 debut in the alternative fuels class, a surprise comeback, new “students,” and even more women power on the world’s toughest racetrack. Tickets are available from €25 here. Youths up to 14 years old enjoy free admission. For those who can’t be there in person, the entire race day will be streamed live for free here.

Max Verstappen fulfills a long-held dream at NLS9 – tackling the Nordschleife in a GT3 car. He will compete in the Ferrari 296 GT3 from Emil Frey Racing alongside Briton Chris Lulham. The duo already tested the Ferrari ahead of NLS3, and two weeks ago, they contested their first joint race in a Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 CS, earning their DMSB Permit Nordschleife in category A. Lulham also raced the KW 6h ADAC Ruhr-Pokal-Rennen in August. Just last weekend, the 22-year-old was crowned Gold Cup Champion of the GTWC Sprint Cup. “I can’t wait!” says Verstappen. “Every lap on the Nordschleife is a special experience. The atmosphere is amazing and there are so many endurance fans here. Racing outside Formula 1 is my hobby. My dream is to one day take part in the 24 Hours of Nürburgring.”

In SP9, Verstappen and Lulham face stiff opposition. The Haupt Racing Team enters two Ford Mustang GT3s – one driven by Nordschleife veterans Frank Stippler and Vincent Kolb, who recently secured the first Mustang win, and the other shared by Fabio Scherer, Dennis Fetzer, and Jann Mardenborough. In the Porsche 911 GT3 from Dinamic GT, Bastian Buus teams up with reigning FIA WEC LMGT3 Champion Joel Sturm. Lap record holder Christian Krognes (7:49.578 min on the NLS layout) will be at the wheel of the Aston Martin Vantage GT3 for Walkenhorst Motorsport.

Premiere: the first GT3 in the AT class
Max Kruse Racing, together with the Fugel Gruppe, will debut the first Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo II in the alternative fuels category. The car runs on Volkswagen’s E20 gasoline, made up of 60% renewable fuel. Driving duties will be shared by Dominik and Marcel Fugel with Benny Leuchter, who just made his GT3 debut in the Falken Porsche at the recent double-header, finishing runner-up twice. “I’m really excited,” says Leuchter. “We’re proud to be the first team fielding a GT3 car with alternative fuel on the Nordschleife. In 2024, we began this journey with the VW Golf in the sustainability class, then expanded to the Audi RS3 and a Cup Porsche. Now we’re taking the next step.”

Klaus Abbelen: back from retirement
He just can’t stay away. Two weeks after announcing his final Nordschleife race, Klaus Abbelen makes his comeback. At NLS8, gearbox failure sidelined his Frikadelli Ferrari 40 minutes before the finish. “I had so much fun driving for such a long stint. Four hours alone on the Nordschleife is both a challenge and a dream. Last time, it wasn’t possible, but the support from our fans showed me how much joy this path still brings. That’s why I want to try again,” says the 65-year-old.

Hup, Holland, hup!
Besides Verstappen, more Dutchmen are on the grid. Tom Coronel partners Jan Jaap Van Roon in a Porsche 911 GT3 Cup for Max Kruse Racing. Coronel is well-known for his 2007 24h Nürburgring runner-up finish in the Zakspeed Viper. Also Porsche-mounted is Marco Van Ramshorst for PB Performance. John Van der Sanden will drive a BMW M240i Racing for PTerting Sports by Up2Race. In the SRS Team Sorg Rennsport BMW 330i, Piet-Jan Ooms and Calvin de Groot will compete. And finally, “Recardo” will race a Porsche 911 GT3 R in SP9 under the Dutch flag.

Former Formula 1 driver Tiago Monteiro, who raced for Jordan, Midland F1, and Spyker in 2005–2006, is also on the entry list. At NLS9, he shares a Honda Civic TCR FL5 with Mike Halder, current leader of the Spanish TCR series.

Prominent “students” at NLS9 include Juliano and Sandro Holzem, ADAC GT Masters regulars who currently sit fourth in the standings before the season finale. They will drive a BMW M2 CS Racing for Schubert Motorsport to log the laps required for the higher-level DMSB Permit Nordschleife. Team principal Torsten Schubert will also return to the cockpit, starting alongside Michael and Stefan von Zabiensky in another M2.

More women power in NLS
The “Girls only – Ready to rock the Green Hell” team has long been a fixture in the ADAC Nürburgring Langstrecken-Serie. At NLS9, Carrie Schreiner and Janina Schall will drive the BMW M4 GT4, which recently scored two podiums at the double-header. GITI Tire Motorsport by WS Racing goes one step further, fielding another all-female car: a BMW 330i to be driven by Elena Egger (Munich), Carmen Kraav (Estonia), and Julia Ponkratz (Wetzlar). For all three, it marks their racing debut on the Nordschleife. “We’re excited to see how our new young girls perform in the highly competitive VT2-RWD class,” says team boss Matthias Möller. “Our goal – also with an eye to 2026 – is to establish a ‘Girls only Talent Pool’ and bring more women power to NLS.”