George Russell teases Max Verstappen Nurburgring 24 partnership - 'I'd relish the opportunity'

George Russell has said he would "relish" partnering Max Verstappen in a future Nurburgring 24 Hours effort, although the Red Bull driver did not share his excitement level.

Verstappen captured the imaginations of Formula 1 fans and drivers alike last weekend as he took on the fearsome Nordschleife in a GT3 car, with a late-race reliability issue ending what appeared to be a race-winning charge.

Last year, after a series of close-fought on-track battles, the relationship between Russell and Verstappen was strained at times, but the Mercedes driver had nothing but admiration for his rival's latest outing. 

Asked if he could one day take on the challenge himself, Russell said: "Yeah, definitely one day. 

"To be honest, like Pierre [Gasly] said, watching Max at the weekend was pretty cool to see. I’ve followed the race in the past and those 24-hour races – there, Bathurst as well – they’re just brutal races. And all of us are in a slightly different position to Max. 

"Obviously, we’re also pursuing to win a World Championship, but obviously, he’s in a luxurious position to do what he enjoys, and that’s great for him. He did a great job."

Verstappen's efforts came at the wheel of a Mercedes-AMG GT3 car, something that does little to cool speculation that the four-time champion could one day join the Silver Arrows in F1. 

Suggested that he could partner Verstappen in the Nurburgring one day, Russell added: "Never say never. Who knows? As I said, never say never.

"Max is obviously one of the best. I was asked a lot last year about being team-mates with him, but more in Formula 1 rather than sharing a seat. I’m up for it and would relish the opportunity to always go against the best, and that’s how I felt when I was team-mates with Lewis, and still how I feel about Max. As any driver, you want to go head-to-head with the best."

For Verstappen, however, who partnered with experienced endurance racing hands Jules Gounon, Daniel Juncadella, and Lucas Auer, adding Russell to his line-up is not something that he envisages, agreeing that the pair are at different places in their F1 careers. 

"I think I'm also in a bit of a different situation," said Verstappen. 

"Championships in F1 and, of course, I competed with my whole GT3 project, so I think we are a little bit in a different position on that. I think, for him, his focus is at the moment fully on F1. 

"But it's cool. A lot of drivers were texting me and following it, so I think it's always nice to see that."