One race. Four hours. And still plenty to fight for.
After five rounds, podiums, a pole position and several races in which performance has not always been rewarded as it deserved, IDEC SPORT heads to Portimão with one final opportunity to turn its season around.
For the #18, everything remains open: fourth in the championship and just two points off the podium, Jamie Chadwick, Laurents Hörr and Valerio Rinicella can still fight their way up to second place in the final standings.
For the #28, fresh from second place at Silverstone, the aim is to carry forward the strongest momentum of its season.
And for the entire team, one ambition remains unchanged: to claim the victory that has so far eluded it in 2026.
From 8 to 10 October, everything will be decided at the Autódromo Internacional do Algarve.
#18: from the podium to second place, everything is still open
At Portimão, the #18 is not simply coming to defend fourth place. It is looking ahead.
With 52 points, Jamie Chadwick, Laurents Hörr and Valerio Rinicella sit just two points behind third-placed Algarve Pro Racing. And mathematically, second place in the championship is still within reach too.
After a season spent regularly running among the front-runners, the Portuguese finale therefore gives the crew a genuine opportunity to reshape the championship standings over the final four hours of 2026.
Since Barcelona, the #18 has shown it has the pace to fight at the front: fourth in the season opener, fourth again at Le Castellet, in contention for the podium at Imola, then on pole position at Spa-Francorchamps.
The performance is there. The opportunities have been there too. But not all of them have yet been converted. At Portimão, only one remains.
Jamie Chadwick : “We have shown several times this year that we have the pace to fight with the best. What we have sometimes lacked is the ability to turn that performance into a result across a complete weekend. We have one race left and we really want to put everything together to finish the season the way we know we can.”
#28: not stopping at Silverstone
For the #28, the picture is different.
Paul Lafargue, Paul-Loup Chatin and Job van Uitert arrive in Portugal buoyed by their second place at Silverstone, their best result of the season.
In particularly difficult conditions, the crew finally converted into a podium the potential it had shown on several occasions since the start of the year.
A reward, certainly. But by no means the end goal.
Portimão offers one final chance to extend that momentum and put the #28 back into the fight at the sharp end.
Paul-Loup Chatin : “Standing on the podium at Silverstone was important because it rewarded all the work we have put in since the start of the season. We have had the performance several times without necessarily getting the result to match. A finale is about going after the maximum, and that is exactly the mindset we are taking to Portimão.”
Portimão leaves little room for calculation
For this final battle, IDEC SPORT returns to one of the most demanding circuits on the calendar.
Elevation changes, fast corners, blind braking zones and constant traffic: at the Autódromo Internacional do Algarve, four hours of racing can quickly turn the order on its head.
Speed will be essential. But it will not be enough.
Tyre management, strategy, traffic and consistency: the finale will also be decided by the ability to let nothing slip away.
One victory is still missing
Six drivers. Two LMP2s. Five rounds already completed.
Podiums. A pole position. Pace, and cars regularly capable of fighting at the front.
But with the European season just days away from its conclusion, one line is still missing from IDEC SPORT’s 2026 record: a victory.
Nicolas Minassian, Team Principal IDEC SPORT : “We approach this final race with the same objectives: to do everything we can to win, because we have podiums but no victories. I know the team and the drivers are all in the same mindset, attacking together, just as we have done since the start of the year.”
At Portimão, there will be no next round.
For the #18, a podium to fight for – and even second place within reach.
For the #28, momentum to carry forward after Silverstone.
For IDEC SPORT, one final chance to win in 2026.
One race. Four hours. Right to the final lap.
