TEAM QATAR BY IRON LYNX FINISHES THIRD IN 2026 ELMS STANDINGS

Team Qatar by Iron Lynx put up a bold fight for the LMGT3 title as the European Le Mans Series drew to a close at the Portimão finale.

Abdulla Al-Khelaifi secured another stunning pole position, his fourth of the year, before battling for the lead in the opening stages and completing his driving time in P1 to hand the car to Julian Hanses. Unfortunately, a small mistake in the following pit-stop led to a pit speeding penalty that dropped the German racer to P8.

Hanses and Ralf Aron did their best to fight back, but the race ran green for the remainder of the distance, leaving no opportunity to close the gap, and the #62 Mercedes-AMG LMGT3 crossed the line in P8. Team Qatar by Iron Lynx ultimately claimed third in the final standings, rounding off a positive season.

The #63 crew faced adversity once again as Ameerh Naran was forced to retire following early contact with an LMP2 car. As a result, Rui Andrade and Sérgio Sette Câmara never got their turn behind the wheel.

Iron Lynx now turns its attention to the final stretch of the season, with the penultimate round of the FIA WEC taking place next week at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.

Andrea Piccini – Team Principal & CEO
“I’m proud of our team effort! We had a great season together, and although today was definitely not our day, we don’t have many regrets. We came into the final race leading the championship, but carrying significant success ballast, so we knew it would be a real challenge. We led for half the race until a small mistake and the resulting penalty put us out of title contention. It has still been an incredible journey, and I’m sure this amazing team will share many more battles in the future.”