Iberian Supercars: Moore, Drought secure class podiums, Vazquez and Hobeika enjoy positive season opener at Portimao
- RACERS
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Jemma Moore battled at the front of the GTX field, Nicole Drought recovered to a podium on debut, Francisca Queiroz swept the BMW M2 Cup races, Alba Vazquez secured solid GTX finishes in new machinery, and Stephanie Hobeika impressed with two top-six results during a solid weekend for female drivers at the 2026 Iberian Supercars opener.
Iberian Supercars traditionally provides an excellent development platform for rising GT talent, and the opening round of the 2026 season at Autódromo Internacional do Algarve once again showcased an impressive group of female drivers across the GTC categories.
British racer Jemma Moore emerged as one of the top drivers of the weekend, fighting at the front of the GTX field and securing a class podium. Irish racer Nicole Drought bounced back from a frustrating opening race to claim a podium in GTX AM in race 2 on her series debut, while Portuguese driver Francisca Queiroz swept the BMW M2 Cup class with two victories.
Spaniard Alba Vazquez enjoyed a solid start to her new Ligier JS2R programme after switching from McLaren machinery, while Lebanese newcomer Stephanie Hobeika impressed on her GT debut with two top-six finishes in a highly competitive field.
The 2026 Iberian Supercars season opener formed part of the Iberian Racing Festival at Portimão and featured a diverse female line-up.
Moore competed in the #128 Tockwith-run Ginetta G55 shared with Diogo Castro. The British driver arrived in Portugal following recent appearances in the Indian Racing League and once again demonstrated her versatility across different machinery.
Vazquez returned for her second season in the series after narrowly missing out on the GTX title in 2025 driving a McLaren GT4. For 2026 she embarked on a completely new challenge, joining Petrogold and switching to the #22 Ligier JS2R alongside Pere Marques.
Young Lebanese racer Stephanie Hobeika made her GT debut in the #47 McLaren 570S GT4 alongside Antonio Duarte. Hobeika, also a mechanical engineer, previously represented Lebanon at the FIA Motorsport Games in karting, competed in Radical machinery in the UK, completed a few Formula 4 tests before stepping into endurance GT competitions for the first time.
Queiroz entered the newly introduced BMW M2 Cup category in the #95 LOB Motorsport BMW M2 Racing machine. Already familiar to Iberian audiences after winning the Porsche Sprint Challenge Ibérica Female Trophy in 2025 aboard a Porsche 992 GT3 Cup, she now tackled the Portimão weekend as a solo driver.
Meanwhile, Drought made her Iberian Supercars debut sharing the #75 Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 CS with Lucas Fothergill in GTX AM. The Irish racer brought extensive experience from touring cars, historic machinery, rallycross, and GT racing in the UK and internationally.
Drought immediately showed strong pace from the beginning of the weekend, running second in class and comfortably inside the overall top ten during early sessions. Moore was equally competitive in the #128 Ginetta, while Vazquez and teammate Marques also remained close to the front of the GTX field. Hobeika steadily improved throughout every outing as she adapted to both the circuit and the new car.
Qualifying began with Diogo Castro taking driving duties in Q1 for the #128 Ginetta. Castro delivered a strong lap of 1:55.871 to qualify fifth overall and fourth in GTX.
Pere Marques qualified the #22 Ligier in 11th overall and eighth in GTX with a 1:57.416 lap.
Hobeika tackled her first qualifying session in the series and immediately dipped below the two-minute barrier with a 1:59.941, placing the #47 McLaren 11th in GTX.
Nicole Drought posted a 2:03.790 lap to secure fourth in GTX AM after a brake failure forced her off track and prevented her from improving.
Queiroz meanwhile qualified 27th overall but led the BMW M2 Cup category with a 2:05.724 effort.
In Q2, Jemma Moore produced an excellent lap of 1:54.790 in the #128 Tockwith Ginetta to secure fourth overall and second in GTX.
Antonio Duarte placed the #47 McLaren sixth in class with a 1:56.641, while Alba Vazquez recorded a 1:57.647 to qualify eighth in GTX.
Queiroz again topped BMW M2 Cup with a 2:03.598 lap, placing 27th overall.
Lucas Fothergill qualified seventh in class for the #75 Porsche before a red flag in the final minutes prevented any further improvements.
Race 1 on Saturday featured a hectic opening phase across the 27-car field.
Hobeika lined up for her first-ever GT race from 11th in GTX, while Marques started the #22 Ligier from eighth in class. Nicole Drought began fourth in GTX AM, and Queiroz started from BMW M2 Cup pole.
Chaos erupted immediately at the hairpin on the opening lap; Marques dropped to 11th in GTX and 18th overall, while Hobeika completed lap one in 12th before quickly gaining a place to move into 11th in class.
Drought held position in GTX AM while gaining one place overall, and Queiroz endured a tricky start that dropped her to 27th overall.
A first safety car period followed after the #43 Ligier of Galli went off at Turn 3.
Once racing resumed on lap three, another incident quickly triggered a second caution as Santos and Chiche collided at Turn 1 involving the #133 Ligier and the #128 Ginetta, both ending in the gravel.
During the brief green-flag running, Marques had recovered to ninth in GTX while Hobeika remained 11th. Drought continued fourth in GTX AM, and Queiroz kept herself out of trouble while maintaining the BMW M2 Cup lead.
The race restarted again on lap six, and when the #111 Ligier of Varela pitted, Marques advanced to seventh in GTX while Hobeika climbed to ninth.
Pit stops then became central to the strategy; Drought pitted on lap eight while Marques and Hobeika stayed out longer. Hobeika climbed as high as sixth in GTX before stopping on lap ten.
Queiroz completed a clean stint and pitted on lap nine and remained in the car as a solo entry.
Marques stretched his stint even further and eventually pitted from seventh overall and fourth in GTX at the end of lap 11. Alba Vazquez took over and rejoined sixth in class.
Hobeika handed the McLaren to Duarte, who rejoined ninth.
Queiroz gained significant ground through the pit cycle, moving into 20th overall while maintaining the BMW M2 Cup lead.
Unfortunately, Drought’s race unravelled with again braking issues that ultimately cost the #75 Porsche retirement.
A third safety car was deployed after Rui Miritta’s Porsche 991 stopped at Turn 6. Jemma Moore then took over the #128 Ginetta from Diogo Castro in fifth overall and fourth in GTX ahead of the final restart with seven minutes remaining.
Moore immediately launched into an aggressive charge, racing side-by-side through the restart chaos before passing the Veloso Motorsport Ligier for third in GTX. She then swept past the #2 Porsche to climb into second in class and continued hunting down the #69 Porsche Cup car.
Duarte meanwhile initially climbed to fifth in GTX before later losing positions and dropping to eighth.
Alba Vazquez continued a solid recovery and gained another place to move into seventh in GTX.
At the chequered flag, Moore crossed the line fourth overall and second in GTX after a sensational stint. However, a post-race 39-second penalty ultimately demoted the #128 Ginetta to seventh in class.
Vazquez nevertheless secured sixth in GTX before being promoted to fifth post-race. Duarte and Hobeika completed an encouraging debut race in sixth place in GTX. Queiroz delivered a faultless race to finish 17th overall and take victory in BMW M2 Cup.
Race 2 again placed Moore near the overall front, starting fourth overall and second in GTX. Duarte lined up 10th overall and sixth in GTX, while Vazquez started 14th overall and eighth in class. Fothergill lined up 26th overall and sixth in GTX AM, and Queiroz again led the BMW M2 Cup field.
The opening lap remained relatively clean; Daniel Teixeira led overall in the Hyundai Elantra N TCR, while Moore slipped to sixth overall and third in GTX. Duarte dropped to seventh in GTX just ahead of Vazquez, who enjoyed another solid opening lap. Fothergill passed the #43 Ligier JS2R for fifth in GTX AM.
Moore soon came under pressure from the #12 Porsche 911 Cup entry while trying to defend third in GTX. Vazquez meanwhile showed very encouraging pace, pressuring Duarte for seventh in GTX. Traffic from Raposo’s #55 Porsche Cup machine repeatedly interrupted their battle before Duarte made contact attempting a move at Turn 1. Duarte survived the incident, but Vazquez capitalized one lap later to take seventh in GTX.
Ahead, Moore settled into third in class and sixth overall, roughly six seconds behind the second-placed #125 Ginetta.
Lucas Fothergill meanwhile gained another overall position by passing the #32 BMW M4 GT4 while holding fifth in GTX AM.
Queiroz again enjoyed a clean run, climbing two positions overall while comfortably leading BMW M2 Cup.
Vazquez continued her strong race and later overtook the #12 Porsche of Lanchares to climb to 12th overall and sixth in GTX.
Pit stops again reshuffled the order. Castro took over from Moore running third in class. Pere Marques climbed close to the overall top ten after taking over from Vazquez before slipping back to seventh in GTX. Stephanie Hobeika then took over the #47 McLaren, rejoining eighth before later falling to ninth after being passed by Pires in the #20 Porsche.
Nicole Drought climbed aboard the #75 Porsche Cayman GT4 CS and immediately launched an impressive recovery drive: running in the 2:00 range and significantly quicker than her rivals, she climbed to fourth in GTX AM.
Hobeika meanwhile spent much of her stint battling in a tightly packed group, gaining valuable racecraft experience in the process.
Castro held third in class while Marques remained seventh.
With nine minutes remaining, a crash for Adam Fawsitt’s Porsche triggered the safety car, which ultimately remained out until the finish after the #23 McLaren also stopped on track.
Castro and Moore crossed the line fifth overall and third in GTX before being promoted to second in class post-race. Marques and Vazquez secured fourth in GTX.
Hobeika survived a difficult race full of close battles to finish sixth in GTX once again on her GT debut weekend.
Nicole Drought completed a strong comeback from Saturday’s disappointment to secure second place in GTX AM after the #23 McLaren retired late in the race, earning a podium finish on her series debut.
Francisca Queiroz completed another clean and composed race to finish 23rd overall and claim a second BMW M2 Cup victory of the weekend.
The next round of the championship will take place at Circuito del Jarama on 5–7 June.
