Motorsport was left reeling on Saturday after 66-year-old Finnish driver Juha Miettinen was killed in a seven-car collision during the first qualifying race for the 2026 ADAC 24 Hours of Nurburgring.
The Nordschleife regular was piloting his BMW 325i, carrying the race number 121, when the incident unfolded in the Caracciola-Karussell section around 25 minutes into the scheduled four-hour event. Emergency services were on the scene almost immediately, but resuscitation attempts at the medical centre could not save Miettinen, who was pronounced dead shortly after being transferred.
Six other drivers were caught up in the pile-up and taken to the medical centre and nearby hospitals for precautionary examinations. Organisers confirmed that none of those injuries were life-threatening.
The ADAC issued a sombre statement on behalf of the race control team, which red-flagged the event within seconds of the crash.
"Despite the immediate arrival of emergency services, the paramedics were unable to save the driver involved, Juha Miettinen (BMW 325i, #121); the driver died in the medical centre after all attempts at resuscitation proved unsuccessful," the organising body said.
"Following the collision between several vehicles, race control immediately halted the race to allow for extensive recovery and rescue operations. The other six drivers involved were taken to the medical centre and nearby hospitals for precautionary examinations. None of the injured are in a life-threatening condition."
The race was formally abandoned for the evening, with organisers confirming it would not resume on Saturday. A minute's silence was scheduled before Sunday's NLS race as the paddock absorbed the loss. The FIA added a short statement expressing sadness and extending condolences to the family.
Max Verstappen, who had been due to take over Mercedes-AMG Team Landgraf's GT3 entry alongside Lucas Auer later in the race, paid an emotional tribute to Miettinen on social media. Auer had started the car and was running ninth when the red flag was shown.
"Shocked by what happened today," Verstappen wrote. "Motorsport is something we all love, but in times like this it is a reminder of how dangerous it can be. Sending my heartfelt condolences to Juha's family and loved ones."
For the Nurburgring community, the loss carries a particularly heavy weight. Miettinen's death is the first race fatality on the Nordschleife since Wolf Silvester was killed in a VLN event in June 2013 — more than a decade in which the sprawling 25-kilometre circuit, famous for its 170-plus corners and treacherous sightlines, had been spared.
Tributes for Miettinen from fellow competitors stressed his status as a fixture of the amateur-professional ecosystem that has defined the Nordschleife for half a century. He was remembered as a Nordschleife regular who had spent years chasing lap times on the circuit nicknamed the Green Hell rather than pursuing a professional top-flight career.
Attention now turns to both the investigation into the crash dynamics and the broader question of run-off and barrier geometry in the faster sections of the Nordschleife, where even modest contact can pitch cars across several lanes of traffic approaching at very different speeds.
The 24 Hours of Nurburgring main event is scheduled for late May, and organisers confirmed the qualification format will continue as planned after a review. For the wider paddock, however, the priority on Sunday was simple: stopping, remembering, and making sure a veteran who loved the Green Hell was sent off properly.
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*Originally published on [Motorsports Global](https://motorsports.global/article/miettinen-dies-seven-car-nurburgring-crash-stopped-qualifier). Visit for full coverage.*