Portimão Unveils 32-Car GT3 Grid, New Prototypes & €10 Paddock Access

Portimão wakes up to the deep growl of racing engines this weekend, on January 18 and 19, 2025, as the Autódromo Internacional do Algarve opens its gates for the first major motorsport event of the year. A record-breaking entry list, a handful of top-flight Portuguese drivers and the promise of new prototype machinery on the horizon set the tone for the European GT calendar.

What makes this opener different?

• A 32-car GT3 grid – the largest the Winter Series has ever seen

• Tickets from €10 with paddock access, a rarity at international events

• Full live streaming in English and Portuguese on YouTube, produced by Alpha Live

Algarve’s economic engine warms up

For the local tourism board, every major race at the AIA is more than a spectacle; it’s an economic stimulus. Previous studies linked comparable meetings to tens of millions of euros in hotel nights, restaurant bookings and shuttle hires. With teams arriving from Germany, Poland, Italy, the UK and Spain – and bringing along engineers, families and sponsors – Portimão’s winter lull abruptly ends. “Motorsport fills the gap between the holiday seasons,” a spokesperson for Turismo do Algarve told us, highlighting the international exposure generated by online broadcasts.

Star power in GT3

Champions SR Motorsport by Schnitzelalm Racing return as the squad everyone will chase. Mercedes stalwart Kenneth Heyer partners rising talent Jay Mo Härtling in car 11, while former series winner Michael Sander shares the sister entry with Moritz Wiskirchen. They are not short of rivals:

• PTT Racing fields Polish GT champion Przemyslaw Bienkowski in another Mercedes-AMG

• Orange Racing by JMH brings McLaren’s updated 720S GT3 Evo for Simon Orange and Marcus Clutton

• Four factory-supported Ferrari 296 GT3s arrive from AF Corse and Olimp Racing

• Haupt Racing Team rolls out a pair of snarling Ford Mustang GT3s, a welcome American accent to the grid

• Audi, Porsche and Lamborghini each send single entries, ensuring a seven-brand mix that should keep Balance of Performance engineers busy.

Trophy classes tighten the field

While GT3 grabs headlines, three single-make cups pack the timetable with door-to-door action. The Cup 2 field counts six freshly built Porsche 992 GT3 Cup cars, including a Portuguese entry from Nacente Racing. Over in Cup 1, five Ferrari 296 Challenge machines – one driven by Friedrich Müller for LIQUI MOLY Team Engstler – audition for future GT3 seats. The Lamborghini Super Trofeos of Cup 4 return with crowd favourite Miloš Pavlović sharing pit space with compatriot Alessio Ruffini.

Prototypes on the horizon

Slated to debut in 2026, the Sports Prototypes Winter Series will introduce lightly regulated, lower-budget cars intended to bridge the gap between track-day specials and Le Mans machinery. Organisers GEDLICH Racing see it as an entry route for teams eyeing European Le Mans or Ultimate Cup. The Algarve round doubles as a public shakedown; engineers talk of “valuable high-grip data” unavailable at most January test venues.

Practical guide for track-side fans

Admission: Day tickets cost €10 and grant paddock access – meaning selfies beside a McLaren or Mustang are practically encouraged.

Getting there: The A22 motorway drops visitors within 10 minutes of the circuit. A shuttle runs hourly from Portimão rail station.

Streaming: Every race goes live on the Winter Series YouTube channel, with English play-by-play and Portuguese commentary on the secondary audio feed.

Weather tip: Algarve winters are mild but breezy; grandstand seats on the main straight lose the sun by late afternoon, so pack a jumper.

How the Winter Series reached this point

Back in 2020, the grid barely hit 20 cars and Bentleys outnumbered Ferraris. Pandemic travel limits hampered growth, yet the organisers stuck to a southern-Europe strategy and lured entrants with January sunshine. By 2024, Porsche, Mercedes, BMW and KTM regularly dispatched factory support trucks to Iberian circuits. Last year McLaren and Ford joined, and 2026 adds the prototype element plus a calendar expanding to five events across Portugal and Spain. The series now sits firmly on the radar of GT3 teams wanting sharp race craft before their headline championships kick off in spring.

What’s next?

Racing continues on Sunday with a pair of 30-minute sprints and a 55-minute feature that includes mandatory pit stops. Championship points won’t tell the whole story – engineers will study tyre degradation, driver-line-up chemistry and BoP tweaks that could shape the European season ahead. For Algarve residents, it’s a front-row seat to watch those storylines begin.

Bottom line: If you live in Portugal and have even a passing interest in fast cars, the cheapest world-class motorsport ticket of the year is waiting at the gate this weekend.