Portuguese outfit Veloso Motorsport is one of the most historic teams in Iberian circuit racing, maintaining its competitive edge for thirty-three years. This year, that legacy resulted in three titles, but Luís Veloso still expresses some disappointment at his team's inability to challenge for the GT4 Pro Drivers' Championship with one of their cars.
The Póvoa de Lanhoso-based team faced this season of the Iberian Supercars and the Campeonato de Portugal de Velocidade with three distinct cars – the well-known Audi R8 LMS GT4, entrusted to Jorge Rodrigues and Patrick Cunha, a brand-new Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 for Miguel Lobo and Francisco Mora, and run a Mercedes AMG GT4 shared by Francisco Carvalho and Nuno Batista.
The two Stuttgart-based cars were new to the team led by former racer Luís Veloso, causing some setbacks that had an impact on results. Nevertheless, the Portuguese team could celebrate three championships by the end of the year.
"I look back on 2024 positively, we won three titles – the Teams' Championship in the Campeonato de Portugal de Velocidade and the Drivers' Championship in the Bronze division, both in the national series and in the Iberian Supercars, with Jorge (Rodrigues) and Patrick (Cunha)," said Luís Veloso. "The level is very high, with strong teams and great drivers, which makes these victories even more valuable. However, it still feels like it’s not enough! We received the Porsche just before the season began and didn’t have enough time to test and prepare properly. When we started to understand the car, we were always fighting for the top spot, but we also had the bad luck with Miguel (Lobo) when we were very competitive."
The late arrival of the Zuffenhausen-built car ended up being a defining factor in Veloso Motorsport’s season. Luís Veloso feels that, under different circumstances, Francisco Mora and Miguel Lobo – and later Gonçalo Fernandes – could have been fighting for the GT4 Pro title in both Iberian and Portuguese series.
"The biggest challenge of the year was being competitive with the Porsche! We received the car just before the season and didn’t have time to test and prepare properly. The first two events were basically test sessions to get the car’s setup right. Then we had the bad luck with Miguel getting injured in Valencia, when we were in a position to fight for victory and potentially put ourselves in a strong position in the drivers' championship. It was a shame! With the Audi, we were competitive from the first race and were always in the battle for the top five places in the overall standings and for the division win," pointed out the Team Principal.
The Teams' Championship in the Campeonato de Portugal de Velocidade was a hard-fought title, due to the fierce competition, with Veloso Motorsport going into the last race of the season – the second race of the December event at the Autódromo do Estoril – in a battle with Speedy Motorsport and Racar Motorsport. Any one of these teams could have been celebrating, depending on the combination of results from their nominated cars.
Perhaps that's why the Teams’ Championship win earlier this month felt different, despite Veloso Motorsport’s thirty-three years of existence. "Every title is special! This one was unique because we won it in the last race, which makes up for the misfortunes of the season, especially those we had with the Porsche, which arrived very late and whose results were impacted by Miguel Lobo’s accident," said the head of Veloso Motorsport.
It’s clear that Luís Veloso feels some frustration over the setbacks his team faced with the Porsche 718 Cayman GT4, initially shared by Miguel Lobo and Francisco Mora, with Lobo being replaced by Gonçalo Fernandes due to his injury.
The team boss believes that, with the Porsche, his team didn’t have the same opportunities they had with the Audi R8 LMS GT4, shared by Jorge Rodrigues and Patrick Cunha, who won the Portuguese and Iberian GT4 Bronze Drivers’ titles. He also issued a strong statement of intent for 2025: "The goal is to have three competitive cars, to fight for victory in every race and for the championships we're involved in."
Comments