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Time to go back racing! The 2026 season of the International GT Open is ready to roll next weekend (18-19 April). As per tradition, it will be the Autódromo do Algarve in the hills of Portimão to host the first round and provide contenders the challenges of its beautiful and technical 4,684-km layout. After a fantastic 20th edition last year, the series enters its third decade of life with great confidence: all the ingredients are there for another great season, combining quantity and quality, spectacular action, and a close fight at the top.
Again, the series will include eight events, with Spa and Monza hosting a GT Open 500, i.e. a single endurance race of 500 km, and Misano as a novelty in the calendar. Twenty-nine cars are entered in the first round, and up to ten could be added in Spa. Eight car brands will be represented full-season (Aston Martin, Audi, BMW, Ferrari, Lamborghini, McLaren, Mercedes and Porsche). The field is this year more evenly spread across the classes (Pro, Pro-Am, Am), thus further strengthening the competitiveness level in each of them.
Looking at the season about to start, Jesús Pareja, CEO of GT Sport, reflects: “We are happy to see that GT3 racing stays healthy and that the upward trend that the International GT Open has experienced over some years remains solid. It proves that our fundamentals are strong, but we need to continue working in the right direction. The international situation reminds us that market conditions can change rapidly. We are particularly happy to see that this year we have an interesting turnover of contenders, and that teams and drivers are getting more international, with an increased presence of South American drivers and with new countries like Poland joining the club of ‘motor racing powers’. It is also rewarding to see that the three classes, Pro, Pro-Am and Am, are more balanced in numbers and level, which will make the show and the fights even more intense and attractive for fans.”
PRO (9 CARS) – MOTOPARK DEFENDS TITLES AGAINST STRONG COMPETITION
Nine cars are entered in Pro at Portimão. Reigning champions Team Motopark’s three Mercedes AMGs are all entered in the top class this year. One of the cars will be shared by Maxi Götz, who played a key role in the conquest of the Drivers’ title by Levi Révész last year, and Christian Mansell, the young Australian who starred in the Euroformula Open and F.2 in the past and is making his GT debut after a short career break. Mexico’s Marcelo Ramírez, paired with Dominik Baumann, will be in another car, while the third pair has not been disclosed yet.
The Ferrari camp is well represented as well. AF Corse fields two new 296 GT3 EVOs for vice-champion Tommaso Mosca, this year associated with young Spaniard Rafael Durán, while Ukrainian young star Yaroslav Veselaho will share the wheel with French star Thomas Neubauer. British squad Elite Motorsport will continue its great journey in the series with an unchanged line-up, formed by fast boys Tom Emson and Tom Lebbon.
Three other brands are present in the top class. Faithful Greystone GT will continue to defend McLaren’s colours, with the 720 S entrusted to Zak Meakin and Dean Macdonald. The top Lamborghini Huracan is fielded this year by Villorba Corse, who has joined the Lamborghini Squadra Corse family, and enters two young talented drivers, Italy’s Leonardo Moncini (the son of Emanuele, a former vice champion in the series) and Portugal’s Rodrigo Testa, who will hence be in the local hero role at Portimão. Last but not least, Porsche is also present in Pro thanks to ZRS Motorsport. The Italian squad, a regular top contender in the GT Cup, makes its debut in the series with a top pair, Alex Fontana-Pietro Armanni.
PRO-AM (12 CARS) - SIX CAR BRANDS IN CONTENTION
Once again, the Pro-Am class will be the most crowded one, with 12 cars in Portugal, and extremely competitive, as six different brands are in the fight.
There will be four Ferraris, with AF Corse fielding two, for returnees Laurent De Meeus-Vincent Abril and the new pair composed of Norikazu Shibata and 2023 Charlie Fagg. Polish outfit Olimp Racing remains faithful to the series and the pair formed by former class champions Marcin Jedlinski - Karol Basz. On their side, Into Africa Racing by Dragon, after tasting the waters last year, is back for a full campaign with Xolile Letlaka and Axcil Jefferies.
The Audi R8 LMS remain very competitive racers, and two are back with the same outfits as in recent seasons: ISR Racing from Czechia fields Libor Milota and Filip Salaquarda, and France’s Saintéloc Racing returns with Michaël Blanchemain and Jim Pla.
Two McLarens 720S are in the starting blocks, thanks to Greystone GT with returnees Andrey Borodin-Oliver Webb and Track Focused, who, after debuting last year, is back with the father-and-son pair composed of Darren and James Kell.
Porsche also has a double presence in the class. Swiss team Fach Auto Tech is making its debut in the GT Open, and its Pro-Am car is entrusted to Alexander Schwarzer and Alexander Fach, while back for a full season is Italy’s Dinamic GT, with Philipp Sager paired with Christian Engelhart.
CBRX by SPS is another faithful GT Open contender, fielding its Mercedes AMG for Dexter Müller and Yannick Mettler, the top Swiss duo embarking in their fifth campaign in the series.
Last but certainly not least, an Aston Martin Vantage GT3 will be campaigning the whole season, brought by new entry Blackthorn Racing, in the hands of Charles Bateman and former overall champion Henrique Chaves, the other Lusitanian hero at Portimão.
AM (8 CARS) – MORE DIVERSIFIED AND WITH A POLISH-SOUTH AMERICAN TASTE
With 8 cars (of 5 different brands) entered in Portimão, the Am class is in very good shape, and big –and familiar- names are present. With three cars, Ferrari will be the best-represented brand. At AF Corse, Marcelo Hahn is making another comeback to the series. The Brazilian, a former Pro-Am champion, will be aiming at another class title, this time associated with Galid Osman. Also back after a break is former GT Cup Am champion Andrzej Lewandowski. The Pole will race with his son Adrian in a 296 GT3 entered by Baron Motorsport, while faithful to the class is the other Polish pair, Stanislaw Jedlinski-Krystian Korzeniowski, in the Olimp Racing car.
The competition to the Prancing Horse will be led by two Porsches, one fielded by Fach Auto Tech for Joel Monegro, the first Dominican driver to contest the GT Open, and another by Portuguese outfit AF Motorsport, a new entrant that fields André Fernandes from Portugal and Angelo Fontana from Venezuela.
Confirming the success of the series in Poland, a new team sporting the white-and-red flag will make its debut: Sendom Racing Team enters the sole Lamborghini in the class for Seweryn Mazur. From Poland also comes the only Aston Martin in Am, the one entered by Good Speed Racing Team, already seen in the GT Open in the past. The team has upgraded and switched to Aston machinery, with Piotr Wira again at the wheel and exceptionally racing solo in Portugal. Also racing solo and back for a second consecutive campaign is Mexico’s Alfredo Hernández, in the Grupo Prom Racing Team Mercedes.