Filipe Albuquerque wants to win in the Algarve

Portuguese driverFilipe Albuquerque , European Le Mans Series (ELMS) LMP2 champion in 2020, returns this weekend to the Autódromo Internacional do Algarve (AIA) determined to win the season-ending race — the 4 Hours of Portimão, scheduled for Saturday, October 18, at 2:30 pm.

Five years after his victorious season, the driver from Coimbra returns to the Algarve track where he has a 100% podium record between 2017 and 2020, winning the 4 Hours of Portimão in 2018 with the winner of the 2025 24 Hours of Le Mans, Phil Hanson, finishing second in 2017 and 2019 and third in 2020.

This season, Albuquerque returned to the ELMS with Nielsen Racing, racing alongside former champion Ferdinand Habsburg and young Turkish driver Cem Bolukbasi in the No. 24 Oreca-Gibson. The trio reached the podium once this year at Spa-Francorchamps, after Habsburg took the team's first overall pole position. Although Albuquerque and his teammates are far behind the leaders in the 2025 ELMS title race, the driver from Coimbra will be focused on maintaining his 100% podium record in his home race.

"How would you sum up the year? I'd say constant evolution. It's been a great job working with Nielsen and my teammates, Cem and Ferdinand; we've been improving the car and its performance. We're becoming more competitive every weekend, and it's been great to see the results improve and the team atmosphere improve," said the driver.

Regarding the Algarve circuit, Albuquerque doesn't hide his enthusiasm: "For me, racing at home in Portimão is obviously great. There's a lot of attention and a lot of pressure on the local drivers, even though there are three Portuguese drivers trying to compete for the podium. I think that would be the most important thing, to have a Portuguese driver on the podium. Obviously, I want to win, I want to get back on the podium and keep that streak going."

Among his favorite curves, he highlights the famous Craig Jones (T8): "It has a tight curve, and when you come out of it, you're literally looking up at the sky, then there's a sudden drop, and then a quick left turn, a blind curve going right... even describing it is difficult. When you're in the car at 250 km/h, it's simply incredible, it feels like you're at Disneyland on one of the roller coasters, but you're in control of the car itself; it's really cool."

With the title already decided, the Portuguese driver and Nielsen Racing's objective is clear: "The goal, wherever I go, is always the same: to go for victory, to do the best I can. Obviously, sometimes you don't have the pace to win, but then you have to do more than the car can. It's simple. I don't know if I'll win, I don't know if I'll finish last, but I'll give it my all, and the goal is to finish first!"

The 4 Hours of Portimão concludes the 2025 European Le Mans Series season, bringing together some of the world's top teams and drivers. Tickets are available on the official Autódromo Internacional do Algarve website ( www.autodromodoalgarve.com ).