Now, this is what happens when a four-time F1 World Champion drops into an endurance race. Max Verstappen was back behind the wheel for his own Verstappen Racing team at the 2026 GT World Challenge Europe season finale, taking place at the Autódromo Internacional do Algarve (Portimão) in Portugal during a short gap in the F1 calendar.
Things started down in 15th on the grid after Qualifying. Team mates Ben Barnicoat and Chris Lulham handled the opening stints, doing the hard work to push the car into the top 10 and sniff out a potential podium finish. Unfortunately, a penalty during Lulham's stint derailed that momentum, dropping the #3 Mercedes-AMG GT3 machine all the way back to 24th position right as Verstappen climbed into the cockpit. To make matters worse, a Safety Car period completely ruined any clean air the Dutchman needed for an immediate charge.
When the race finally went green again, Verstappen simply let loose. He tore through the pack from outside the top 20, using brutal speed and brave overtakes to salvage a ninth-place finish by the time the chequered flag waved.
Further down the pit lane, MotoGP legend Valentino Rossi was enduring a completely different kind of weekend. Driving Team WRT’s #46 BMW M4 GT3, Rossi had his sights set on fighting near the front. Sadly, a track limits penalty wiped out a crucial lap time during the second segment of Qualifying—a format where aggregate times for all three drivers set the starting order. That blunder dumped Rossi and his squad down to 60th on a massive 61-strong grid. Out of 52 starters that actually made the finish after nine retirements across three hours of racing, Rossi's car ended up classified in 50th position.
Naturally, the star power drew massive crowds. GT World Challenge reported a record 9.7 million views of their live coverage on YouTube, alongside an on-site attendance of 28,000 people. And for those already looking ahead, F1 itself will return to Portimão in 2027 following a two-year agreement confirmed late last year.
