Verstappen's Portimao hopes dashed after Mercedes collision in GT World Challenge finale
Photo: SRO/JEP
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Henry Eccles is a freelance Formula 1 journalist for GPblog, covering breaking news, live race blogs, and features across the F1 calendar. Since joining in 2026, he has produced high-volume reporting on the sport’s biggest stories, alongside feature pieces including analysis and historical content.
Max Verstappen's hopes of fighting for the win at the GT World Challenge Europe finale in Portimao have been dealt a big blow after his Verstappen Racing teammate Chris Lulham collided with a fellow Mercedes driver after a Safety Car restart.
Verstappen Racing started the endurance race in P13 - bumped up two places after penalties ahead of the race. Driver Ben Barnicoat raced well to gain a further two places at the race start, and was up to P8 by the time of the first pit stop and driver change.
Lulham, whose brilliant move at Turn 7 on the #64 Mustang of Thomas Drouet brought the team up to P6, had put Verstappen Racing in a promising position, made even more so once the Safety Car was out for a collision between the #54 and #9 Porsches with just over an hour to go.
Upon the restart, however, Lulham attempted a move on Luca Stolz, driver for the Mann-Filter Mercedes-AMG team, but clipped the rear of the German's car and send him spinning. Lulham kept the place, but was served with a Drive Through penalty.
With 50 minutes remaining, Verstappen has got into the #3 Mercedes-AMG, but Lulham had to serve the penalty prior to the driver swap. The Dutchman emerged from the final stop in P24. You can follow Verstappen Racing's final stint here.
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