Verstappen set fastest team lap at Portimão; Barnicoat led average pace

Max Verstappen recorded Verstappen Racing's quickest lap in the three-hour GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup race at Portimão, while Ben Barnicoat topped the average across the team's representative laps. Barnicoat averaged 1:45.091 over 33 laps; Chris Lulham was 0.006 seconds behind at 1:45.097 over 20. Verstappen's average was 1:45.344 over 15.

Verstappen did set the fastest single lap, 1:44.506, ahead of Lulham's 1:44.508 and Barnicoat's 1:44.525. The comparison excluded laps under neutralisation and those on which drivers entered or exited the pit lane.

After Lulham's drive-through penalty sent the team back to 25th, Verstappen took the final stint, worked through traffic and brought the Mercedes-AMG GT3 home ninth.

These averages are not a like-for-like pace ranking. Barnicoat ran in warmer conditions; Verstappen's final stint came in the dark on a cooler track, after the team had fallen to 25th and he had to overtake. The lap-time analysis notes that such battles can cost tenths, while a cooler surface may slow laps if tyres fail to reach temperature. Verstappen's quickest single lap and Barnicoat's best average therefore describe different parts of the performance, not a contradiction.