2026 | Eurocup-3 | Portimão | Race 1 | Egozi tops disrupted opening race in Portugal

James Egozi claimed victory in the opening Eurocup-3 race of the weekend at Portimão after a chaotic contest that featured an aborted start, several incidents, two Safety Car periods and multiple post-race penalties.

The Palou Motorsport driver recovered from second on the opening lap, attacked early leader René Lammers, and soon took control of the race. Although the interruptions repeatedly cut into his advantage, Egozi managed each restart well and led the field home ahead of Lammers.

Chistopher El Feghali initially completed the podium on the road. However, post-race penalties later reshaped the classification, promoting Heitor Dall’Agnol to third in the amended provisional result.

Aborted start delays the race

The field first prepared for the start after Christopher El Feghali had secured pole position in a tight Qualifying 1 session. The Drivex driver lined up at the front alongside Hitech’s Keanu Al Azhari, while Lammers and championship leader Egozi sat ready to attack from behind.

However, an aborted start forced the 30-car field into an extra formation lap. Once the drivers lined up again, the race finally got underway — and the order changed immediately.

Lammers launches into the lead as Al Azhari stalls

El Feghali made a slow getaway from pole, while Al Azhari stalled from second. That opened the door for MP Motorsport’s René Lammers, who surged into the lead ahead of Egozi and Griffin Core by Campos driver Alex Powell.

Egozi wasted no time. He immediately challenged Lammers and briefly moved ahead as the field charged downhill. However, Lammers fought back and reclaimed the lead, setting up an early four-way fight between himself, Egozi, Powell and El Feghali.

Behind them, the pack had already begun to shuffle after Al Azhari’s poor launch dropped him down the order.

Powell crashes after contact with El Feghali

The lead battle quickly turned dramatic. As the field crossed the line to complete the opening lap, El Feghali sat in Powell’s slipstream and attempted a move on the Griffin Core by Campos driver.

However, El Feghali misjudged the attack and tagged Powell’s rear-left. The contact sent Powell spinning into the wall and dropped him to 16th. Although he initially recovered, Powell soon pitted and ultimately retired from the race.

Race Control briefly showed double yellows at Turn 3 after another driver lost a front wing. Marshals cleared the debris quickly, which allowed the race to continue without a Safety Car at that stage.

Egozi takes control at the front

After the opening-lap drama, Egozi finally seized the lead from Lammers and began to build a gap. By Lap 7, he had stretched his advantage to more than 1.7 seconds.

Further back, the action continued. Bart Harrison and Ean Eyckmans fought over eighth place, with Eyckmans keeping pressure on the Double R driver. However, that battle ended on Lap 4 when Eyckmans stopped in Sector 1 with a mechanical issue.

Eyckmans pulled into the pit exit and climbed out of the car. Marshals recovered the MP Motorsport entry quickly, again avoiding a Safety Car.

Meanwhile, the leaders began to encounter traffic as they lapped backmarkers, while Rafaël Pérard closed in on Thomas Strauven in the fight for fifth.

Harfield spin triggers the first Safety Car

With around 14 minutes left on the clock, Race Control sent out the Safety Car after Double R’s Tommy Harfield spun into the gravel at Turn 8.

The neutralisation erased Egozi’s lead and brought the field back together. With just under nine minutes remaining, the Safety Car returned to the pit lane and Egozi controlled the restart from the front. He waited late before accelerating across the line, but chaos erupted behind him almost immediately.

Griffin Core teammates collide at the restart

At Turn 1, Griffin Core by Campos teammates Patrick Heuzenroeder and Thomas Strauven collided while running fourth and fifth. The contact pushed Strauven into the gravel with broken suspension and brought out another Safety Car. Heuzenroeder continued, but he picked up damage and lost ground to Pérard. Race Control later penalised him for causing the collision with Strauven.

The Safety Car stayed out into the closing minutes before returning to the pits with around one and a half minutes left. That handed Egozi one final restart to manage.

Egozi holds firm to win

Egozi once again launched cleanly and kept Lammers behind as the final lap approached. Behind them, El Feghali attacked Lammers for second, while Dall’Agnol moved ahead of Pérard to claim fifth on the road.

Further back, Enzo Tarnvanichkul dropped down the order after a late incident, while Al Azhari recovered to eighth after his poor start.

At the front, Egozi kept his composure and crossed the line to win Race 1. Lammers followed in second, while El Feghali finished third on the road before post-race penalties altered the result.

2026 Eurocup-3: Portimão: Saturday: Race 1: Results: Provisional Classification

1. #48 James Egozi – Palou Motorsport
2. #99 René Lammers (R) – MP Motorsport
3. #7 Chistopher El Feghali (R) – Drivex
4. #5 Patrick Heuzenroeder – Griffin Core by Campos
5. #27 Heitor Dall’Agnol (R) – Palou Motorsport
6. #33 Rafaël Pérard (R) – Palou Motorsport
7. #2 Kacper Sztuka – Tecnicar by Amtog
8. #14 Keanu Al Azhari – Hitech
9. #77 Bart Harrison (R) – Double R
10. #84 Genaro Trappa (R) – Hitech
11. #10 Enzo Tarnvanichkul – Griffin Core by Campos
12. #39 Santino Panetta (R) – Hitech
13. #12 Gianmarco Pradel – MP Motorsport
14. #23 Stefan Bostandjiev – Hitech
15. #8 Alceu Feldmann – MP Motorsport
16. #16 Bianca Bustamante – Palou Motorsport
17. #22 Casper Stevenson – Tecnicar by Amtog
18. #6 Stylianos Kolovos (R) – Drivex
19. #37 Filippo Fiorentino (R) – Drivex
20. #70 Jakob Bergmeister – GRS
21. #3 Edouard Borgna – Drivex
22. #20 Benjamin Beckley (R) – Tecnicar by Amtog
23. #44 Rayan Caretti (R) – GRS
24. #91 Lorenzo Campos (R) – Double R
25. #31 Renzo Barbuy (R) – TC Racing
26. #11 Luca Viisoreanu (R) – TC Racing

Not classified:

• #9 Thomas Strauven (R) – Griffin Core by Campos
• #26 Tommy Harfield (R) – Double R
• #4 Ean Eyckmans (R) – MP Motorsport
• #41 Alex Powell (R) – Griffin Core by Campos

2026 Eurocup-3: Portimão: Saturday: Race 1: Results
Amended Provisional Classification — Pending technical scrutineering

1. #48 James Egozi – Palou Motorsport
2. #99 René Lammers (R) – MP Motorsport
3. #27 Heitor Dall’Agnol (R) – Palou Motorsport
4. #33 Rafaël Pérard (R) – Palou Motorsport
5. #2 Kacper Sztuka – Tecnicar by Amtog
6. #14 Keanu Al Azhari – Hitech
7. #77 Bart Harrison (R) – Double R
8. #84 Genaro Trappa (R) – Hitech
9. #7 Chistopher El Feghali (R) – Drivex
10. #39 Santino Panetta (R) – Hitech
11. #12 Gianmarco Pradel – MP Motorsport
12. #23 Stefan Bostandjiev – Hitech
13. #8 Alceu Feldmann – MP Motorsport
14. #16 Bianca Bustamante – Palou Motorsport
15. #22 Casper Stevenson – Tecnicar by Amtog
16. #6 Stylianos Kolovos (R) – Drivex
17. #37 Filippo Fiorentino (R) – Drivex
18. #70 Jakob Bergmeister – GRS
19. #3 Edouard Borgna – Drivex
20. #20 Benjamin Beckley (R) – Tecnicar by Amtog
21. #44 Rayan Caretti (R) – GRS
22. #5 Patrick Heuzenroeder – Griffin Core by Campos
23. #10 Enzo Tarnvanichkul – Griffin Core by Campos
24. #31 Renzo Barbuy (R) – TC Racing
25. #11 Luca Viisoreanu (R) – TC Racing
26. #91 Lorenzo Campos (R) – Double R

Not classified:

• #9 Thomas Strauven (R) – Griffin Core by Campos
• #26 Tommy Harfield (R) – Double R
• #4 Ean Eyckmans (R) – MP Motorsport
• #41 Alex Powell (R) – Griffin Core by Campos

Notes

• James Egozi won Race 1 at Portimão ahead of René Lammers, while Heitor Dall’Agnol inherited the final podium position in the amended provisional classification.
• Chistopher El Feghali received a five-second time penalty and dropped from third to ninth.
• Patrick Heuzenroeder received a five-second time penalty for causing a collision with Thomas Strauven. He initially dropped from fourth to 12th.
• Heuzenroeder then received an additional 10-second time penalty for exceeding track limits and gaining a lasting advantage over Rafaël Pérard. In the amended provisional classification, he is listed 22nd.
• Enzo Tarnvanichkul received a 30-second time penalty because his car was still on the jacks with no tyres fitted before the three-minute board ahead of the race. In the amended provisional classification, he is listed 23rd.
• Lorenzo Campos received a 10-second time penalty and dropped to 26th.
• Filippo Fiorentino and Rayan Caretti were both given five-second time penalties for track limits, while Casper Stevenson received a reprimand.