Greystone GT’s Dean Macdonald and Zac Meakin won Race 2 at Portimão, converting pole position into a controlled win during the opening race meeting of the 2026 International GT Open season.
Meanwhile, season debutant Blackthorn delivered Aston Martin their first class win in five years in the Pro-Am rankings, with credit to Charles Bateman and 2020 GT Open champion and local hero Henrique Chaves.
The #33 McLaren GT3 Evo pairing delivered a composed performance, overcoming early pressure to finish 12.352 seconds clear of the #71 Motopark Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo of Maximilian Götz.
Macdonald initially lost the lead on the opening laps to Yannick Mettler in the #54 CBRX by SPS Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo. However, with the Mercedes competing in Pro-Am and carrying a five-second success handicap from finishing second in class in yesterday’s race, Greystone remained well-positioned strategically.
Maintaining a consistent pace, Macdonald kept the gap manageable before handing over to Meakin during the pit stop cycle. Meakin then controlled the race from the front, extending the advantage and securing victory.
“The race wasn’t as smooth as we hoped, but it was still a very good race,” said Macdonald.
“The Greystone guys gave us a very fast McLaren this weekend… and Zac did an amazing job bringing it home.”
Meakin added, “It’s my first time with Greystone [in GT Open], and they’ve been doing an amazing job. And thank you to Lil’ Dean as well for doing his job well and giving me a smooth, smooth ride home.”
Behind the leaders, the fight for the remaining podium positions was far more intense.
Götz brought the #28 Motopark Mercedes-AMG home in second place after taking over from Christian Mansell, who had run sixth in the opening stint.
The 2021 DTM champion showcased strong pace, setting some of the fastest laps of the race and carving through the field after the stops.
Götz briefly battled teammate Marcelo Ramírez, running side-by-side through Torre Vip before claiming P2, though he was unable to catch Meakin.
Ramírez’s race, however, unravelled late on. After losing third to Tom Lebbon’s #17 Elite Motorsport Ferrari 296 GT3 Evo, he became embroiled in a tense fight with Yaroslav Vaselaho (#96 AF Corse Ferrari) and Alex Fontana (#911 Porsche).
Contact between Ramírez and Vaselaho at Sagres spun the latter, escalating tensions. Moments later, Ramírez himself spun at the same corner on the penultimate lap, whilst fending off the #96 again, dropping from seventh to 17th overall and last in Pro.
Lebbon and teammate Tom Emson capitalised to secure Elite Motorsport’s first podium of the season in third position, ahead of the #911 ZRS Motorsport Porsche 911 GT3.R Evo duo Pietro Armanni and Fontana, who took fourth place.
AF Corse’s #55 Ferrari 296 GT3 Evo drivers Rafael Durán and Tommaso Mosca rounded out the top five finishers after starting last in the Pro category.
In Pro-Am, Blackthorn were victorious when Bateman and Chaves guided the #97 Aston Martin Vantage GT3 Evo to sixth overall and first in class.
Chaves delivered a particularly strong stint, pressuring Dexter Müller in the #54 Mercedes before inheriting the lead when Müller spun at Lagos with just six minutes remaining.
The error proved costly as Müller salvaged third in the Pro-Am class, ninth overall.
Second in Pro-Am went to Jim Pla and Michaël Blanchemain (#26 Saintéloc Racing Audi), while Müller narrowly held onto his podium finish ahead of the #777 Olimp Racing Ferrari by just 0.373 seconds.
Olimp Racing secured fourth in Pro-Am with their #777 Ferrari drivers, Marcin Jedliński
And Karol Basz, followed by the #55 AF Corse Ferrari duo of Vincent Abril and Lauren De Meeus.
They reached the checkered flag after not doing so in yesterday’s race when the rear-right wheel was incorrectly attached after the pit stop, leaving the car stranded in the pit lane, and thus rounded out the top five in Pro-Am.
The Am category also delivered a late twist when AF Corse’s #16 Ferrari 296 GT3 (Galid Osman and Marcelo Hahn) took victory after another late, dramatic turnaround against the #6 Baron Motorsport Ferrari of Adrian and Andrzej Lewandowski.
The Baron won Race 1 yesterday and looked set for another victory after leading early, but an issue or mistake towards the end, not caught by the television broadcast, allowed AF Corse back through.
Ultimately, the #16 AF Corse Ferrari of Hahn crossed the line just 0.478 seconds ahead of the #6 Baron Ferrari of Andrzej.
Piotr Wira completed the podium in the #14 Good Speed entry after a strong solo performance this weekend, ensuring another class podium appearance in this race for Aston Martin.
