For most of the race, the two Winward Mercedes have been direct competitors. The #80 and the #3 alternated their driver changes, meaning Verstappen and Engel only battled for one stint during the night.
Engel vs Verstappen
Engel stepped into the car one stint before Verstappen and battled with Daniel Juncadella for his first stint. The #80 Mercedes built up a 10-second gap while Engel fought Juncadella and traffic behind the wheel.
Both Mercedes sliced through traffic and the rest of the field to stay on each other’s tails. It was toward the end of Engel’s second stint and Verstappen’s first that the fight heated up.
As the two approached traffic, both were dedicated to being first. Verstappen and Engel both went to the left of the track. It was then that the two touched. Luckily, Engel was able to regain control of the #80 and quickly get back on track.
Soon after this, it was time for a pit stop where Maxime Martin stepped in for Engel as Verstappen continued his double stint.
Engel had fun being elbows out with Verstappen
After his stint and battle with Verstappen, Engel said, “Yeah, good double stint, the car’s running well. [I] had a lot of fun out there with Max.”
“Obviously, the Nordschleife is always special at night. It’s a cool place, and I just enjoyed pushing our AMG GT3 through the night with Max. I hope we entertained the fans a little bit, those of them who stayed awake.”
Both Engel and Verstappen battled during the middle of the night. For Verstappen, this was a career first.
Engel added, “I will go for some sleep, and my teammates take over, and then we’ll see how the race progresses.”
As it stands, Verstappen Racing leads the race, with Verstappen set to step back in during the 18th hour.