Portimao closed the TSR Autumn Multiclass 2026 season with dry skies, warm conditions and a 75-minute race that rewarded control as much as outright speed. The Algarve circuit is never short of places to lose time, particularly when traffic starts to overlap, and the final round produced three very different class victories.
Ciro Iadicicco completed the cleanest job of the evening in LMP2 ELMS - PRO/AM, converting pole into victory, fastest lap and the championship lead strengthened beyond reach. Per Tufvesson did much the same in LMGT3 - AM, while Alan Axon came through to win LMGT3 - PRO on a night when the fastest car in the class did not finish first.
LMP2 ELMS - PRO/AM podium
🥇 Ciro Iadicicco – Oreca 07 ELMS
🥈 Luca Sallustro – Oreca 07 ELMS
🥉 Josh Castle – Oreca 07 ELMS
Iadicicco started from pole after a 1:33.210 in qualifying and carried that advantage all the way to the flag. His race time of 1:16:20.598 put him 3.920s clear of Luca Sallustro, and his 1:33.746 was also the fastest lap in class. It was a compact winning margin rather than a romp, but it was exactly the sort of measured drive that wins championships.
Sallustro moved from third to second and kept Iadicicco within sight, while Josh Castle also gained one place to complete the podium, 18.879s from the winner. Jonas Knoefel had qualified second and set a strong 1:34.207 best lap, but finished fourth, 32.960s back. With eight listed non-starters, the LMP2 contest was reduced to four runners, though all four reached 47 laps.
LMGT3 - AM podium
🥇 Per Tufvesson – Lexus RC F GT3
🥈 Francesco Perrelli – BMW M4 LMGT3
🥉 Ranjiv Kalsi – Lexus RC F GT3
Tufvesson was the benchmark in LMGT3 - AM from the outset. He took pole with a 1:44.178, won the race in 1:17:18.638 and added the class fastest lap with a 1:44.942. His winning margin over Francesco Perrelli was 29.700s, which tells the story of a race kept firmly under control.
Behind him, the podium was shaped by progress through the field. Perrelli gained four places to finish second, while Ranjiv Kalsi also gained four places and came home third, 40.339s behind Tufvesson. Mike Landreth matched that four-place gain to finish fourth, one lap down, ahead of Richard Veenema, who was also one lap down in fifth. Adam Elwell completed the classified finishers in sixth on 39 laps, with Edmunds Simanis and Hassan Armien Armien listed as did not start.
LMGT3 - PRO podium
🥇 Alan Axon – BMW M4 LMGT3
🥈 Ian Paskin – McLaren 720S GT3 Evo
🥉 Xander Huizing – Ferrari 296 GT3
Alan Axon took the LMGT3 - PRO win in the BMW M4 LMGT3, completing 43 laps in 1:17:42.578. The race classification credits him with a gain of four places from his starting position, and that proved decisive on an evening when finishing position and raw lap speed told different stories.
Ian Paskin was second in the McLaren, one lap down, with a best lap of 1:45.411. Xander Huizing had been on pole by just 0.027s over Paskin and later set the fastest lap in class, a 1:44.744, but finished third, two laps down. The remaining eight cars in the class were listed as did not start.
Championship picture
In LMP2 ELMS - PRO/AM, Iadicicco finishes the round on 174 points, 48 clear of Jonas Knoefel on 126. Castle’s podium keeps him third on 110, with Sallustro fourth on 92 and Tomas Stanek fifth on 76.
The LMGT3 - AM table ends with Tufvesson on 171 points. Perrelli is second on 149, 22 points back, while Kalsi’s podium leaves him third on 130. Mike Landreth is listed fifth on 77, with Richard Veenema sixth on 73.
Huizing remains at the head of LMGT3 - PRO on 169 points despite finishing third at Portimao. Axon’s victory moves him to 139 points, 30 behind, with Paskin third on 123. Mehmet Şenocak is fourth on 88, ahead of fatih sarı on 81.
Martin's strategy notes
LMP2 was about execution at the front. Iadicicco had pole, fastest lap and the win, but the 3.920s gap to Sallustro shows he still had pressure to manage. Knoefel’s 1:34.207 was quicker than both Sallustro and Castle managed, yet he finished behind them, which is a useful reminder that single-lap pace only solves part of the problem.
The AM GT movers were clear. Perrelli, Kalsi and Landreth were all credited with four places gained. Tufvesson did not need the comeback drive; he started first, set the fastest lap and won by 29.700s.
PRO was the odd one on pace versus result. Huizing had pole and the class fastest lap, but Axon won the race and Paskin finished second. Axon’s four-place gain was the biggest move at the front of LMGT3 - PRO.
No penalty figures were supplied in the results. The deciding numbers here are therefore the finishing laps, gaps, fastest laps and places gained from the grid.
That brings the championship to a close after six rounds. Portimao gave us tidy drives at the front, a few hard-earned recoveries behind, and enough late-season arithmetic to keep everyone honest. You can see the full results and the championship standings on the TSR site.