2026 | Eurocup-3 | Paul Ricard | Official Test Sessions | Al Azhari hold firm as rivals aim to close gap

Karishma Persad04 mins
Al Azhari tops both Friday sessions at Paul Ricard as rivals close in, highlighting a tightly contested 2026 Eurocup-3 field.
Photo Credit: MP Motorsport | Instagram
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Action intensified on Friday at the 2026 Eurocup-3 test at Circuit Paul Ricard, as teams built on Thursday’s data and pushed for outright pace. Across two sessions, drivers improved consistency while continuing to operate within remarkably tight margins. Once again, Keanu Al Azhari set the standard, reinforcing his early dominance and positioning himself as the benchmark heading into the race weekend.

Test 1: Al Azhari leads as MP Motorsport threatens

Al Azhari led the opening session with a 1:55.163, lowering Thursday’s best and immediately asserting control. However, James Egozi stayed within striking distance, just 0.169 seconds behind, while Gianmarco Pradel secured third for MP Motorsport. Notably, MP Motorsport placed three drivers inside the top five, as Ean Eyckmans and René Lammers continued their strong form.

Meanwhile, rookie Alex Powell impressed by taking sixth for Griffin Core, signalling growing confidence among the newcomers. Palou Motorsport also maintained a solid presence in the top ten, with Rafael Perard and Heitor Dall’Agnol contributing competitive laps.

Further down the order, several drivers struggled to extract peak performance. Patrick Heuzenroeder endured a difficult session, while Andrej Petrovic failed to set a time. Consequently, the gaps stretched more noticeably compared to the leading group.

2026 Eurocup-3: Paul Ricard: Friday: Test Session 1: Results

  1. #14 Keanu Al Azhari – Hitech – 1:55.163
  2. #48 James Egozi – Palou Motorsport – 1:55.332
  3. #12 Gianmarco Pradel – MP Motorsport – 1:55.426
  4. #4 Ean Eyckmans (R) – MP Motorsport – 1:55.482
  5. #99 René Lammers (R) – MP Motorsport – 1:55.604
  6. #41 Alex Powell (R) – Griffin Core – 1:55.697
  7. #33 Rafael Perard (R) – Palou Motorsport – 1:55.889
  8. #10 Enzo Tarnvanichkul – Griffin Core – 1:56.057
  9. #7 Chistopher El Feghali (R) – Drivex – 1:56.097
  10. #9 Thomas Strauven (R) – Griffin Core – 1:56.138
  11. #27 Heitor Dall’Agnol (R) – Palou Motorsport – 1:56.190
  12. #23 Stefan Bostandjiev – Hitech – 1:56.497
  13. #39 Santino Panetta (R) – Hitech – 1:56.501
  14. #2 Kacper Sztuka – Tecnicar – 1:56.527
  15. #77 Bart Harrison (R) – Double R – 1:56.743
  16. #37 Filippo Fiorentino (R) – Drivex – 1:56.784
  17. #84 Genaro Trappa (R) – Hitech – 1:56.786
  18. #11 Luca Viisoreanu (R) – TC Racing – 1:56.797
  19. #8 Alceu Feldmann – MP Motorsport – 1:56.815
  20. #91 Lorenzo Campos (R) – Double R – 1:56.850
  21. #44 Rayan Caretti (R) – GRS – 1:56.859
  22. #26 Linus Lundqvist – Double R – 1:56.918
  23. #6 Stylianos Kolovos (R) – Drivex – 1:57.200
  24. #70 Andre Rodriguez (R) – GRS – 1:57.254
  25. #16 Bianca Bustamante – Palou Motorsport – 1:57.657
  26. #31 Renzo Barbuy (R) – TC Racing – 1:57.725
  27. #3 Edouard Borgna – Drivex – 1:58.622
  28. #20 Benjamin Beckley (R) – Tecnicar – 1:58.650
  29. #5 Patrick Heuzenroeder – Griffin Core – 2:00.833
  30. #22 Andrej Petrovic (R) – Tecnicar – No Time

Test 2: Al Azhari maintains dominant streak as Tarnvanichkul finds form

In the afternoon, Al Azhari once again topped the timesheets with a 1:55.220, confirming his consistency rather than outright improvement. Nevertheless, the chasing pack shuffled behind him. Enzo Tarnvanichkul surged to second for Griffin Core, while Egozi remained firmly in contention in third.

MP Motorsport continued to demonstrate depth, locking out fourth to sixth positions. Eyckmans and Lammers again featured prominently, underlining their adaptability across varying track conditions. Additionally, Patrick Heuzenroeder rebounded strongly to seventh after his earlier struggles, marking one of the session’s key turnarounds.

Elsewhere, midfield battles remained intense, with minimal gaps separating drivers from eighth through to the low twenties. Although a few competitors lingered at the back, most of the field showed incremental gains, suggesting teams are converging on optimal setups.

2026 Eurocup-3: Paul Ricard: Friday: Test Session 2: Results

  1. #14 Keanu Al Azhari – Hitech – 1:55.220
  2. #10 Enzo Tarnvanichkul – Griffin Core – 1:55.484
  3. #48 James Egozi – Palou Motorsport – 1:55.511
  4. #12 Gianmarco Pradel – MP Motorsport – 1:55.571
  5. #4 Ean Eyckmans (R) – MP Motorsport – 1:55.585
  6. #99 René Lammers (R) – MP Motorsport – 1:55.617
  7. #5 Patrick Heuzenroeder – Griffin Core – 1:55.862
  8. #2 Kacper Sztuka – Tecnicar – 1:55.973
  9. #27 Heitor Dall’Agnol (R) – Palou Motorsport – 1:55.981
  10. #9 Thomas Strauven (R) – Griffin Core – 1:56.067
  11. #7 Chistopher El Feghali (R) – Drivex – 1:56.091
  12. #41 Alex Powell (R) – Griffin Core – 1:56.121
  13. #39 Santino Panetta (R) – Hitech – 1:56.162
  14. #84 Genaro Trappa (R) – Hitech – 1:56.205
  15. #33 Rafael Perard (R) – Palou Motorsport – 1:56.257
  16. #22 Andrej Petrovic (R) – Tecnicar – 1:56.304
  17. #8 Alceu Feldmann – MP Motorsport – 1:56.425
  18. #26 Linus Lundqvist – Double R – 1:56.488
  19. #37 Filippo Fiorentino (R) – Drivex – 1:56.594
  20. #23 Stefan Bostandjiev – Hitech – 1:56.728
  21. #44 Rayan Caretti (R) – GRS – 1:56.840
  22. #11 Luca Viisoreanu (R) – TC Racing – 1:56.879
  23. #77 Bart Harrison (R) – Double R – 1:57.001
  24. #91 Lorenzo Campos (R) – Double R – 1:57.435
  25. #16 Bianca Bustamante – Palou Motorsport – 1:57.437
  26. #6 Stylianos Kolovos (R) – Drivex – 1:57.553
  27. #70 Andre Rodriguez (R) – GRS – 1:57.605
  28. #3 Edouard Borgna – Drivex – 1:57.678
  29. #31 Renzo Barbuy (R) – TC Racing – 1:58.013
  30. #20 Benjamin Beckley (R) – Tecnicar – 1:58.758

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