GriffinCore Campos Racing salvages valuable points from a chaotic weekend in Portugal
The second round of the 2026 Eurocup-3 season, held at the Algarve International Circuit, proved far from favourable for the GriffinCore Campos Racing drivers, who became embroiled in a series of incidents during an exceptionally eventful and combative weekend on track. At least Thomas Strauven, Patrick Heuzenroeder and Red Bull Junior Team driver Enzo Tarnvanichkul managed to salvage strong performances in Sunday’s race, finishing fifth, sixth and tenth respectively. However, if there was one driver who received no luck whatsoever, it was Alex Powell. The American, a clear podium contender in both races, was eliminated from contention on each occasion as a consequence of incidents caused by rival drivers.
The two free practice sessions allowed the drivers and engineers to fine-tune the setup of their single-seaters. American driver Powell ended the day second fastest overall with a lap of 1m36.872s. Heuzenroeder and Strauven also featured inside the top ten, placing seventh and ninth with best laps of 1m37.046s and 1m37.169s respectively. Tarnvanichkul was close behind as well, the Thai driver recording a best time of 1m37.220s.
Saturday morning’s qualifying session represented the first crucial moment of the weekend. With twenty-one drivers covered by a single second, a couple of tenths either way could make a tremendous difference. Powell eventually set the fourth-fastest time in Q1 with a lap of 1m36.312s. Australian driver Heuzenroeder secured sixth place with a time of 1m36.365s, placing him immediately ahead of Strauven, who was just six thousandths of a second slower. Tarnvanichkul never found the ideal feeling and had to settle for sixteenth on the grid for Race 1 with a lap of 1m36.699s.
The opening race of the weekend, held later that afternoon, would ultimately prove disappointing for GriffinCore Campos Racing, though events initially unfolded positively. At the start, Powell climbed into third position. Unfortunately, as the field crossed the line for the first time, he was struck on the main straight by Christopher El Feghali, sending the American into a high-speed 360-degree spin. Although Powell brilliantly regained control of his car, the suspension damage sustained after hitting the barriers forced him to pit and subsequently retire. From that moment onwards, Heuzenroeder and Strauven became the team’s leading representatives in fourth and fifth positions. However, with twelve minutes remaining, the safety car was deployed. Following the restart, a racing incident also eliminated Strauven from contention. Heuzenroeder then remained firmly inside the top five and crossed the finish line in fourth place. Afterwards, however, he received a penalty from the stewards that dropped him out of the points. Tarnvanichkul suffered the same fate and was similarly deprived of a points finish on Saturday.
Sunday began with the second qualifying session, once again characterised by the extraordinary competitiveness seen the previous day. Powell emerged as GriffinCore Campos Racing’s fastest driver with a lap of 1m36.243s, securing fifth place on the grid for the race scheduled at midday. Strauven, continuing his upward trend, recorded the seventh-fastest time with a lap of 1m36.547s. Tarnvanichkul narrowly missed out on a top-ten position, qualifying eleventh with a 1m36.664s lap, while Heuzenroeder would start fourteenth after posting a best effort of 1m36.772s.
When the lights went out, Powell immediately moved up to third place, while Strauven also gained a position by the end of the opening lap. The safety car was then deployed after a car became stranded in the gravel. Following a couple of neutralised laps, racing resumed only for the safety car to be called out again almost immediately. With the field repeatedly bunching up after each interruption, the next restart proved disastrous for Powell. While battling Ean Eyckmans for third place, Rafaël Pérard attempted a move up the inside, lost control of his car and collided with Powell, sending the American into the gravel trap and ending his race. Thereafter, Strauven and Heuzenroeder became GriffinCore Campos Racing’s leading representatives, with the Australian charging back through the field. Both drivers exchanged positions on several occasions with Gianmarco Pradel before eventually taking the chequered flag in fifth place for Strauven and sixth for Heuzenroeder. Tarnvanichkul secured a valuable point in the closing stages by finishing tenth.
The next round is scheduled to take place at Imola on the weekend of 3–5 July.
