+ Charlie Hart and McKenzy Cresswell secure Silver crown after epic duel
+ Joakim Walde and Victor Bouveng get Schubert across the line in Pro-Am
+ Paul Petit and Gregory Guilvert round out the year with a win for Team Speedcar
+ Historic Am title for Kronberg and Blickle
+ Result: Race 2, Portimão
McKenzy Cresswell and Charlie Hart claimed the 2026 GT4 European Series Silver title after finishing second in a breathtaking season finale at Portimão.
Paul Petit and Gregory Guilvert took a hard-earned victory, but the biggest story was the battle behind the Audi as Hart engaged in an incredible duel with his main title rival, the #111 SR Motorsport by Schnitzelalm Mercedes-AMG in the hands of Enrico Förderer. The destination of the championship hung in the balance by just two points at times, but Hart fought his way ahead to send Elite into raptures on the pitwall.
It was similarly tense in Pro-Am, with Sacha Bottemanne and Viny Beltramelli doing everything they could to snatch the title with a commanding drive to victory. However, Joakim Walde and Victor Bouveng did just enough behind them, finishing seventh in their Schubert Motorsport BMW to put the crown beyond Team Speedcar’s reach.
Daniel Blickle and Max Kronberg got to celebrate a joint Am drivers’ title after Blickle opted to drop points to allow Kronberg to share the prize with him. It makes Kronberg the first driver to win three GT4 Europe titles, following his Pro-am success in 2024 and Am crown last year.
Heart in mouth for Hart
The final race of the season proved a truly intense showdown, with the destination of both the race win and both the silver and Pro-Am championships uncertain until the chequered flag fell.
Cresswell lined up on pole and with a five-point championship lead over the #111 started by Cedric Fuchs, but things were far from comfortable when both Petit and Jay Mo Härtling blew by the #78 McLaren into Turn 1.
Härtling grabbed the early lead until Petit fought back with a superb move around the outside of the hairpin to put the Audi back ahead as Cresswell watched on in third with Henry Joslyn’s sister Elite McLaren right behind as a buffer.
Things stayed this way until the pit stops, when the pressure intensified hugely. Joslyn and Yani Stevenheydens dropped back after picking up a penalty for speeding in the pits, allowing Förderer to take over the #111 and close on Hart in the #78.
Things got even more dramatic when Joel Mesch voluntarily slowed the #110 Schnitzelalm car in an attempt to help his team-mates’ title hopes. This bunched the leaders hugely, allowing Förderer to attack Hart and briefly slip past to close to within 2pts of the title with all the pressure on the McLaren. Hart rose to it though, cleanly timing a dive around the outside of Turn 3 to sweep back ahead of Förderer and secure the title in dramatic fashion.
Up front Guilvert built on Petit’s great work to win ahead of Hart, Förderer and Mesch. Lucas Cartelle and Hudson Schwartz ended the year in fifth in their CRT-Sport Toyota ahead of Gabriele Piana and Thomas Rackl’s Borusan Otomotiv Motorsport BMW.
Schubert denies Speedcar at the finish
With 21pts separating the #3 Team Speedcar Audi and the #98 Schubert Motorsport BMW ahead of the start, all of the emphasis was on Bottemanne and Beltramelli, who simply had to win. And they did all they could, but still fell agonisingly short.
Bottemanne started from pole and crafted a narrow lead ahead of Ravi Ramyead, until the McLaren found a gap and muscled through to lead right before the pit window opened. Beltramelli then took over and managed to fight back to pass Charlie Robertson over the second half and snatch a fifth win of the year.
That meant Schubert had to respond. Walde held a spot inside the top 10 across the first half to keep a few points in reserve against Bottemanne and Beltramelli, but when Bouveng took over and charged up to seventh, it was game over. The title was just reward for the pair, who produced a supremely consistent campaign, scoring points in every race across the year.
A decision pre-race allowed new Am class champion Daniel Blickle to drop the points he scored without Max Kronberg, who skipped the opening event of the season. That meant the drivers began this race level on points and already confirmed as class champion. Although Joachim Bölting led, two track limits penalties set him back and allowed the W&S pair to score a seventh win of the year to cap a perfect weekend.
The GT4 European Series returns for its 11th season in 2027, starting at Circuit Paul Ricard over April 15-18.
