Motoring
10 iconic corners facing Max Verstappen at Nürburgring
Max Verstappen races the 24 Hours of Nürburgring, one of the world’s toughest endurance events. The “Green Hell” is notorious for its challenging corners – here are 10 of the most famous.
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At 20.832km in length, the Nürburgring Nordschleife is the longest – and most dangerous – race track in the world. A lap of the legendary circuit, located in the town of Nürburg in Western Germany, includes an incredible 73 bends, with gradients of up to 18 percent and slopes of up to 11 percent. When Max Verstappen and the other teams line up for the ADAC RAVENOL 24h Nürburgring on May 14-17, here are the 10 most famous corners they'll face.
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Why the Nürburgring Nordschleife is so unique
- Location: Nürburg, Germany
- Length: 20.832km
- Number of bends: 73
- Gradient (maximum): 18 per cent
- Lap record: 5m 19.546s (Timo Bernhard, Porsche 919 Hybrid Evo, 2018)
Luca Engstler goes full throttle
© Joerg Mitter/Red Bull Content Pool
Nicknamed 'The Green Hell' by F1 icon Sir Jackie Stewart, a lap of the Nordschleife is relentless compared to the smooth tarmac, low kerbs and generous run-off areas on normal race tracks. With blind crests, changing road surfaces and bends that only open up at the last moment, the hill-and-valley track is also surrounded by dense forests and high hedges, making for a one-of-a-kind experience for the drivers.
Kelvin van der Linde celebrates victory at the Nürburgring 24 Hours
© Sebastian Kraft/Red Bull Content Pool
The flow of the Nordschleife is so iconic and so rewarding when you get it right
Cars in the SP9 class – like Red Bull Team ABT's Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2 – take over eight minutes to complete a lap of the 24h Nürburgring circuit. In addition to the Nordschleife, this also includes a shortened version of the Grand Prix circuit, which is why the length increases to 25.378km. Within the 73 bends, there are 10 particularly iconic key points and corners that are crucial for a good lap.
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Sabine Schmitz bend (Kilometre 1)
The first key section comes right at the start of a lap on the Nürburgring Nordschleife. The Sabine Schmitz bend is not a gentle introduction; it's a statement bend. In June 2021, the section was officially named after racing driver Sabine Schmitz, who passed away earlier that year. She was the face of the Green Hell, had lapped the track countless times and knew every metre by heart.
The #911 Manthey EMA Porsche at the 24h Nürburgring in 2025
© Sebastian Kraft/Red Bull Content Pool
The bend is fast and slightly blind, with an unpredictable slope that immediately penalises the careless. Take the wrong approach here and you'll be fighting the consequences until the next bend.
Watch former F1 drivers Sebastian Vettel and David Coulthard pilot the RB7 and RB8 around the legendary circuit in this video.
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Hatzenbach (Kilometre 2)
The relentless Nordschleife allows no breathing space, as the circuit soon proves. Overtaking is a matter of luck in Hatzenbach and technique is everything. Here, drivers can expect several quick changes of direction in quick succession.
The Nordschleife has a very unique character
© Joerg Mitter/Red Bull Content Pool
In less than a kilometre, the route constantly changes direction: left, right, left, again and again, tighter and tighter. If you take the wrong line here, you'll lose your rhythm for the entire following section. The perfect racing line through the Hatzenbach is the calling card of an experienced Nordschleife driver.
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Schwedenkreuz (Kilometres 4 to 5)
History meets speed – Hans Friedrich Datenberg, then mayor of Kelberg and tax collector of Adenau, was killed here by stray Swedish soldiers in 1638 during the Thirty Years' War. The stone cross still stands to the right of the track today, and the Swedish Cross owes its name to it.
Max Verstappen is still learning about his Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo
© Joerg Mitter/Red Bull Content Pool
The high-speed, left-hand bend that characterises this section is considered one of the most technically demanding on the entire route – turning in too early means too much understeer, too late means too much oversteer. In the wet, this challenge becomes a real risk. Those who get through cleanly here may have the feeling that they have the Nordschleife under control for a short time, but the lap has only just begun.
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Fuchsröhre (Kilometres 5 to 6)
At around 11 percent, this is the steepest gradient on the Nordschleife, and the G-forces can get pretty strong here as drivers are pressed deep into their seats when braking. This is immediately followed by the ascent to Adenauer Forst. The car accelerates almost by itself on the downhill gradient - standard brakes regularly reach their limits here. Particular caution is required on the long downhill sections with very steep gradients, as the brakes can overheat due to the load when braking down from high speed.
The name Fuchsröhre (fox tunnel) comes from when the Nordschleife was being constructed, when a startled fox crawled into a drainage pipe during the construction work. The tunnel feeling is created by the narrow woodland to the left and right, and drivers report that the track literally seems to fall in on them here.
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Adenauer Forst (Kilometres 6 to 7)
There's little respite after the Fuchsröhre, with the chicane in Adenauer Forst only coming into view at the last moment due to the enormous gradient. The race route leads through the forest of the municipality of Adenau and offers a difficult section with several successive bends.
Max Verstappen at Nürburgring
© Gruppe C GmbH/Red Bull Content Pool
The Adenauer Forst is a very popular spectator spot, as newcomers to the circuit often tend to misjudge it. For those watching, it's entertainment – but not so much for the drivers, especially novices.
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Bergwerk (Kilometre 10)
No section of the Nürburgring Nordschleife carries as much history as the Bergwerk. In 1976, Niki Lauda crashed his Ferrari on the fast left-hand bend during the European Grand Prix. Lauda survived, seriously injured, but fought his way back and became world champion twice more.
Watch Max Verstappen fly around the Nürburgring in May
© Gruppe C GmbH/Red Bull Content Pool
The name originates from the huge lead and silver mine that was in operation here until around 1900. The bend itself is long, barely visible and demands full confidence in the car's set-up. In the wet, Bergwerk becomes the most dangerous part of the entire circuit, as the tarmac cools down more slowly here than elsewhere, and puddles stand for longer. Be too bold here and you might pay the price.
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Caracciola Carousel (Kilometre 13)
Every iconic racetrack has that one corner which defines it. Spa has the Eau Rouge, Suzuka has the 130R and Laguna Seca has the Corkscrew. At the Nordschleife, it's probably the Caracciola Carousel.
The Caracciola Carousel of the Nürburgring Nordschleife
© ABT Sportsline
A legendary 210-degree bend, popular with fans, which was given an additional steep concrete wall in 1932. Rudolf Caracciola (on the advice of two of his mechanics) first tried out the tactic of driving the carousel on the inside and, in 2006, the carousel was renamed in his honour. If you drive on the outside, you lose time. If you ride inside on the concrete, you gain time. But you pay for it with vibrations that go through the entire vehicle and a rumble that you can still feel in your body kilometres later.
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Pflanzgarten (Kilometres 16 to 17)
The Pflanzgarten section is famous because many vehicles briefly leave the road here, and the two consecutive jumps are known as 'Pflanzgarten 1' and 'Pflanzgarten 2'. The section was named after the gardens of the Counts of Nürburg, which used to occupy the same area.
The Nordschleife has a unique atmosphere, especially at night
© Sebastian Kraft/Red Bull Content Pool
Brake too early here, and traction will be lost on the crest. Brake too late and you'll lose contact with the track. The bumps in the Pflanzgarten are the moment that everyone on the Nordschleife knows. From videos, from memories, from nightmares.
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Stefan-Bellof-S (Kilometres 17 to 18)
Named after the first and only driver to lap the Nordschleife at an average speed of more than 200kph, this section is one for the history books. On 28 May 1983, during training for the 1000km race at the wheel of a Porsche 956, Stefan Bellof recorded the feat and is regarded as one of the greatest German Formula 1 drivers of all time, even though he never won a Grand Prix.
Stefan Bellof died two years later in an accident at Spa, but his record on the Nordschleife is considered immortal due to the fact that the track is no longer used in this form for such attempts today. The S-curve, which has borne his name since 2013, is fast, technically precise and forgives no mistakes. Anyone who drives it cleanly is, for a moment, on the line of an exceptional man.
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Schwalbenschwanz (Kilometres 18 to 19)
Anyone who reaches the Schwalbenschwanz has almost completed a lap of the Nürburgring Nordschleife, but it's not over yet. Named as such because from above, the section looks like the end of a swallowtail, Schwalbenschwanz features a small, steep concrete bend that leads into Galgenkopf.
Anyone who has already reached Döttinger Höhe after Pflanzgarten and Stefan-Bellof-S will be rudely brought back down to earth here. The Schwalbenschwanz combines tight bends with an unexpected steep turn. It's the final test before the long straight ends the lap, and mistakes here not only cost time, but often also the car.
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Bonus: Döttinger Höhe (Kilometres 19 to 20)
After the small hairpin and the Galgenkopf, the Nordschleife slowly releases its grip on the drivers. The Döttinger Höhe offers one of the longest full-throttle sections on a racetrack in Europe. After the Schwalbenschwanz, the track opens up and the accelerator pedal goes through the floor. This is where slipstreaming and top speed separate the results in the race. And here, on this long straight towards the finish, you realise for the first time that you have made it through the Green Hell.
Here's everything you need to know about the 24h Nürburgring
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Livestream and qualifiers replays
Every moment of the ADAC RAVENOL 24h Nürburgring will be live on Red Bull TV. Plus, the three qualifying sessions are now available to watch below.
ADAC RAVENOL Qualifiers 24h Nürburgring Race 1
Catch race one of the qualifiers for ADAC RAVENOL 24h Nürburgring, as racers battle for the best start.
ADAC RAVENOL Qualifiers 24h Nürburgring Race 2
Catch race two of the qualifiers for ADAC RAVENOL 24h Nürburgring, as racers battle for the best start.
ADAC RAVENOL Qualifiers 24h Nürburgring Top-quali
Watch the top-qualifying of ADAC RAVENOL Qualifiers 24h Nürburgring as drivers fight for the best grid spot.
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