HOME WIN FOR BMW ESPAÑA MOTORSPORT AT JARAMA

Nerea Martí and José de los Milagros Claim Victory for BMW España Motorsport in Thrilling Supercars España Race at Jarama.

Nerea Martí and José de los Milagros of BMW España Motorsport claimed a sensational victory in the opening race of the Supercars España weekend at Circuito de Madrid Jarama – RACE, staging a remarkable comeback from fourth place on the grid.

The early stages of the race were dominated by Francisco Abreu (Toyota Gazoo Racing Caetano Portugal), who, having started from pole position, gradually pulled away from the chasing pack led by José Carlos Pires.

Pires, at the wheel of the Speedy Motorsport Toyota GR Supra GT4 EVO2, was under constant pressure from the Racar Motorsport Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT4 driven by Roberto Faria, with no room for error.

Meanwhile, Nerea Martí, driving the BMW M4 GT4 for the Spanish outfit, held fourth position with the leading trio in her sights, keeping herself firmly in the battle for the podium as intense fights unfolded further down the order, much to the spectators' delight.

The real drama, however, unfolded after the mandatory driver changes. With all three early front-runners carrying success penalties from the second race in Portimão, Tomás Guedes emerged in the lead for Speedy Motorsport, followed closely by Mathieu Martins (Racar Motorsport) and Francisco Mora (Toyota Gazoo Racing Caetano Portugal). A fierce scrap ensued among the trio, with José de los Milagros (BMW España Motorsport) poised just behind, ready to capitalise.

Guedes was under relentless attack, and it was Francisco Mora who first found a way past – although not without controversy, having overtaken Martins under yellow flags. This infringement earned Mora a drive-through penalty, removing him from contention.

Martins then took his turn to overtake Guedes, who defended valiantly but was unable to keep the Racar Motorsport driver at bay. All the while, de los Milagros was setting a blistering pace, quickly closing in on the leading pair.

The Toyota driver could do little to fend off de los Milagros, who surged into second place and soon engaged in a thrilling duel for the lead. In the end, the BMW driver came out on top, taking the chequered flag in front of a passionate home crowd, finishing seven-tenths of a second ahead of Martins.

This marked a maiden win in the championship for José de los Milagros and Nerea Martí – achieved on home soil, no less – with the Racar Motorsport duo of Mathieu Martins and Roberto Faria taking second, and José Carlos Pires and Tomás Guedes rounding out the podium in third.

In the GT4 Pro-Am Bronze division, Orlando Batina and newcomer Miguel Lobo – making his series debut at Jarama – clinched victory after benefitting from a puncture on the Gianfranco Motorsport Toyota GR Supra GT4 EVO2. This allowed the Batina Racing Toyota to move into the lead.

Joining them on the Pro-Am Bronze podium were Guillermo Aso and Filip Vava (Mercedes-AMG GT4, NM Racing Team), and Nuno Afonso and Alexandre Areia, in the Gianfranco Motorsport-run Toyota.

In GT4 Bronze, Ricardo Costa and fellow debutant Andrés Prieto claimed top honours in the NM Racing Team Mercedes-AMG, after the Racar Motorsport-run Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT4 shared by Vasco Oliveira and Francisco Carvalho went off-track, ultimately finishing third. Andrius Zemaitis, keeping his nose clean, secured second place in the class.

Javier Macias and Smörg dominated the GT4 Am category, taking victory in the Promotion Motorsport BMW M4 GT4 (G82) over the Racar Motorsport Aston Martin shared by Filipe Videira and António Lopes.

Not far behind came the Chefo Motorsport by Petrogold Ligier JS2R, crewed by Alejandro Iribas and Ángel Santos, who won the GTX class despite a stern challenge from Gracie Mitchell and Luca Staccini in the Tockwith Motorsports Ginetta G55. The Spanish Ligier duo proved strongest, while  McLaren Barcelona - SMC Motorsport completed the class podium with their 570S driven by Alba Vázquez and Alfonso Colomina.

In the Cup division, Britain's Marcus Fothergill took a commanding win in the Tockwith Motorsport-run Porsche 911 Cup, ahead of Rui Miritta (Monteiros Competições), who struggled with handling issues. Rookies Ángel Lanchares and Ramiro García Pumarino completed the podium.

Among the FPAK Junior Team contenders in the TC class – where young drivers are still getting to grips with the challenges of Jarama – it was Tomás Martins and João Faria who emerged victorious, steering their Monteiros Competições-prepared Ginetta G40 to the win.