Algarve Pro Racing Wins at a Wet Silverstone
Algarve Pro Racing wins after a dramatic and very wet 4 hours of Silverstone. The #25 Oreca of Matthias Kaiser, Jake Hughes and Ben Barnicoat got an early penalty but they recovered from it to take the overall victory.
A Good Start
Kuba Śmiechowski Started from pole in the #43 Inter Europol Competition, but #37 CLX Motorsport car with Theodor Jensen quickly got the lead and started pulling away at the front while Matthias Kaiser moved the #25 Algarve Pro Racing Car moved up into second place.
There was already some trouble behind the leading cars when Jamie Chadwick spun the #18 IDEC Sport at Maggots. Peebles got a strong start from eighth on the grid and climbing his way towards the front but he made contact with the #35 Ultimate Ligier which got him a driver-through penalty.
Rain Changes The Race
The race made a complete change when it started raining during the second hour of the race. Nick Yelloly who just took over car #43, lost his rear-left wheel and had to make a return to the pits. The car later was moved into the garage, making it an end to its fight at the front.
More drama started when the #29 Forestier Racing went into the gravel by Brooklands. Shortly after the #74 Kessel Ferrari and the #63 Iron Lynx Mercedes-AMG made contact at Abbey, bringing out the VSC.
This neutralisation made a big opportunity for strategic mistakes. Some teams made the switch back to slicks, but the rain only became heavier and those cars were forced back to the pits for a new set of wet tires.#37 CLX Oreca, who had dominated a big part of the race, lost a lot of places due to the changing conditions.
Battle At The Restart
Edward Pearson took the overall lead in the #24 after the pit stops, with Jake Hughes chasing behind him in second. The #14 was also fighting in the front thanks to its strategy.
But sadly the #25 got a 10-second penalty for causing a collision earlier in the race with the #23. Hughes served the penalty during his pit stop and returned to the grid in fifth place.
The wet conditions continued to cause problems the #18 IDEC Sport went off at Stowe, causing a full course yellow, while the #59 went into the gravel at the same corner a couple of laps later.
Barnicoat controlled the final stages of the race and brought the #25 across the finish line 18 seconds before the #14 TDS Racing. Meaning this was their first outright ELMS win in more than Three years.
Next Round
If we start looking ahead to the next round of this ELMS season, we will be headed to Portimão for the final round of this 2026 season which will be taking place on October 10, where we will also crown our champion.
Article Written by Zoë Wokke
