The Porsche Sprint Challenge Ibérica returns to competition on 12 and 13 September for the fourth round of the season. At a circuit that has become a regular fixture on the PSCI calendar, the leading protagonists from the first half of the championship will once again go head-to-head, now facing a renewed grid featuring the return of two-time champion Manuel Alves, new pairings, debuts and an increasingly international line-up representing six nationalities.
The summer break is over. The Porsche Sprint Challenge Ibérica returns to competition this weekend and chooses a familiar setting to open the second half of the season: Circuito de Jerez – Ángel Nieto. Jerez has become a regular fixture on the PSCI calendar and is one of the circuits that best reflects the demands of a competition where outright speed must be combined with precision, consistency and the ability to manage tyres and the race.
On Saturday, 12 September, Porsche Sprint Challenge Ibérica action begins at 09:30 with the first free practice session, followed by Free Practice 2 at 10:45. The two qualifying sessions are scheduled for 12:35 and 14:00, before the first race of the weekend gets underway at 16:25, contested over 20 minutes plus one lap.
On Sunday, 13 September, the programme features three races for the PSCI. Race 2 starts at 09:50, followed by Race 3 at 13:30 and Race 4 at 14:10, all contested over the same 20-minute-plus-one-lap format. The podium ceremony concludes the Porsche Sprint Challenge Ibérica’s participation in the Jerez weekend. All times are shown in Spanish local time.
The usual contenders gain a very special rival
After Monteblanco, Estoril and Valencia, and twelve races already contested, the fourth round once again brings together the main protagonists of a season that has so far been defined by balance and the intensity of the battles on track. Borja García and Alejandro Barambio Perea arrive at Jerez as natural benchmarks in the fight for the leading positions, following a first half of the season in which GT Corse has played a particularly prominent role.
In the same competitive picture are names such as Patrick Cunha, Álvaro Bajo, Gildardo Herrera, Chloe Grant and Miguel Lobo, all of whom have the credentials to become involved in the battles for the top positions. But Jerez adds a name to the equation that needs no introduction in the Porsche Sprint Challenge Ibérica.
A two-time champion of the competition and currently racing in the Porsche Cup France, Alves makes a one-off return to the PSCI to replace Henrique Cruz and share LOB Motorsport’s Porsche 992 GT3 Cup with Duarte Camelo. More than a symbolic comeback, it brings into the equation a driver who knows the championship inside out and makes no secret of his ambition to fight for victories again.
The return of the two-time champion therefore adds another major element of interest to a battle for victory that promises to be particularly open once again at Jerez.
New pairings and Flame Airikkala going solo
The Spanish round also brings important changes to several team line-ups. At Veloso Motorsport, Patrick Cunha will now have Filipe Carvalho as his teammate, forming an all-Portuguese pairing. At LOB Motorsport, Duarte Camelo welcomes Manuel Alves, while AF Motorsport brings one of the major new developments of the weekend: Chloe Grant will share the Porsche with Tomas Slootweg.
The official entry list also features a new line-up, with Asier Gorostiza and Diego Carrascal Vega entered in the #15 Porsche, while Real Peña Motorista Vizcaya makes its PSCI debut with the pairing of Lorenzo Mendieta Sola and Jordi Fuset Sala.
Another important development involves Flame Airikkala. After sharing the AF Motorsport Porsche during the first half of the season, the young Finnish driver appears at Jerez as the sole driver of the #67 Porsche. Francisca “Kika” Queiroz will also compete solo in LOB Motorsport’s #95 Porsche, doing everything possible to defend her lead in the Ladies Cup while also joining the battle for the leading positions.
Debuts strengthen an increasingly international PSCI
Jerez will also bring new faces to the Porsche Sprint Challenge Ibérica. Among them is Tomas Slootweg. The 21-year-old Dutch driver makes his PSCI debut alongside Chloe Grant and begins a programme that also includes the Navarra and Estoril rounds. Filipe Carvalho returns and is also among the new features of the Jerez line-up, taking his place alongside Patrick Cunha at Veloso Motorsport, while the #15 Porsche line-up brings Asier Gorostiza back to a significantly renewed grid.
The official entry list also confirms Henk Van Zoest and João Macedo Silva at Skualo Competición, completing a line-up with added strength. And one figure particularly illustrates the championship’s international development. The Jerez grid brings together drivers from six nationalities: Portugal, Spain, the United Kingdom, Finland, Mexico and the Netherlands.
With 19 drivers already assigned to eleven Porsche 992.1 cars, potentially joined by the three Protech Motorsport entries that currently appear on the list with drivers yet to be confirmed, Jerez presents a PSCI that is at once familiar and renewed.