The Nürburgring 24 Hours kicked off in style as the legendary endurance race saw Max Verstappen slot into third place during the opening qualifying session, setting the stage for an action-packed weekend ahead. The four-time Formula 1 world champion, piloting a Mercedes-AMG GT3 shared with Lucas Auer, Jules Gounon, and Dani Juncadella, clocked an impressive 8m18.539s lap around the daunting Nordschleife—a time that placed him firmly in contention from the get-go.

However, it was the Winward Mercedes that stole the show, topping the session with a blistering 8m14.957s lap from Fabian Schiller, who shared the #80 car with Maro Engel, Maxime Martin, and Luca Stolz. Splitting the pair was the #1 BMW, driven by Raffaele Marciello, Jordan Pepper, Kelvin van der Linde, and Augusto Farfus, which posted an 8m18.069s to secure second place. While the times suggest a tight battle, don't read too much into them just yet—this was more a shakedown than a true qualifying shootout.

Here's the twist: Thursday's session, despite being labeled "Qualifying 1," is actually a practice run for the top contenders. It will determine grid positions 50 through 161 for Saturday's main event, while Friday's Top Qualifying session will decide overall pole and the front-row spots. So for Verstappen and his rivals, Thursday was all about gathering data and dialing in the setup.

The Dutchman eased into the session, logging a nine-minute lap as he was the first to hit the track in his Mercedes. It wasn't until 25 minutes in that the leaderboard saw its first sub-nine-minute time, with Benjamin Leuchter setting an 8m54.259s in the Max Kruse Audi R8. That benchmark fell quickly as a host of cars upped the pace, but it was Verstappen who took control with 55 minutes remaining, his 8m18.539s holding strong through much of the final hour despite a flurry of caution flags.

Then, with 26 minutes left, Schiller unleashed that 8m14.957s to catapult Winward to the top, followed a minute later by Marciello's BMW—last year's race winner—slotting into second. The Nürburgring, true to its unpredictable nature, threw in a late rain shower that froze the times, ensuring no one could challenge the top three. For Verstappen and his crew, it's a solid foundation to build on as they eye Friday's pole shootout and Saturday's ultimate prize.