Monlau Motorsport’s Jenson Brickley scored his maiden TCR Europe victory in race two at the Autódromo do Algarve, getting the jump on pole-sitter Max Hart at the start in a mature drive.
Brickley, who only made his début in the series at the 2024 season finale in Valencia, started alongside Target Competition’s Hart in the reverse-grid race.
But Brickley made a better launch from the standing start and was inside before the first corner, with Hart instead having to focus on defending second from RC2 Racing’s Felipe Fernández.
Brickley soon broke clear of the chasing pack, but a safety car intervention came on lap five after Victor Fernández punted Giacomo Ghermandi off into the gravel.
It looked like racing might resume on lap seven – and indeed the pack set off as if this was the case – but the safety car made a late decision to stay out another lap when Julien Briché stopped his Hyundai, although he managed to get it going again to limp back to the pits.
On the lap eight restart, Brickley broke clear of Fernández and would go on to claim victory by over two seconds ahead of the Spaniard.
Fernández was the best Honda in second, with MM Motorsport’s Marco Butti completing the podium, after getting by Hart on the tenth lap.
Hart was clearly struggling for pace late in the race, and Teddy Clairet got his Audi by the Hyundai on the penultimate lap, with brother Jimmy following through a lap later, in a move which saw MA:GP’s Viktor Andersson take advantage to sneak into sixth.
Hart thus took the chequered flag in seventh, with ALM Motorsport’s Ruben Volt in eighth after the Estonian made most of his gains in the race before the safety car period.
RC2’s Santiago Concepción had been running in seventh, but on the penultimate lap he was hit by Volt at the rear, and stopped his car after smoke began coming from the back.
The top ten was completed by Aikoa Racing Audi duo Nicola Baldan and Filippo Barberi.
Young Canadian Nicolas Taylor was battling on the fringes of the top ten before he pulled his Audi off the circuit on the 11th lap.
Eric Gené retired on lap two after the Monlau Motorsport driver hit PMA Motorsport’s Felice Jelmini for the second race in a row, causing damage to the front-left of his CUPRA.
Race results
| POS | NO | CL | NAT | DRIVER | ENTRANT | CAR | LAPS | TIME | BEST | GD |
| 1 | 246 |  |
Jenson BRICKLEY | Monlau Motorsport | CUPRA Leon VZ TCR | 13 | 27:47.328 | 1:52.045 | 2 | |
| 2 | 19 |  |
Felipe FERNÁNDEZ Gil | Auto Club RC2 Valles | Honda Civic Type-R FL5 TCR | 13 | 2.111 | 1:52.602 | 6 | |
| 3 | 111 |  |
Marco BUTTI | MM Motorsport | Honda Civic Type-R FL5 TCR | 13 | 2.816 | 1:52.670 | 7 | |
| 4 | 20 |  |
Teddy CLAIRET | Team Clairet Sport | Audi RS3 LMS TCR II | 13 | 8.549 | 1:53.137 | 5 | |
| 5 | 21 | |
Jimmy CLAIRET | Team Clairet Sport | Audi RS3 LMS TCR II | 13 | 11.350 | 1:53.616 | 10 | |
| 6 | 10 |  |
Viktor ANDERSSON | MA:GP | Lynk & Co 03 TCR | 13 | 11.879 | 1:53.488 | 3 | |
| 7 | 69 |  |
Max HART | Target Srl | Hyundai Elantra N TCR | 13 | 12.546 | 1:53.282 | 1 | |
| 8 | 27 |  |
Ruben VOLT | ALM Motorsport | Honda Civic Type-R FL5 TCR | 13 | 12.797 | 1:52.891 | 13 | |
| 9 | 8 | |
Nicola BALDAN | Aikoa Racing | Audi RS3 LMS TCR II | 13 | 13.519 | 1:53.754 | 16 | |
| 10 | 80 | |
Filippo BARBERI | Aikoa Racing | Audi RS3 LMS TCR II | 13 | 13.978 | 1:53.395 | 18 | |
| 11 | 97 |  |
Junesung PARK | Solite Indigo Racing | Hyundai Elantra N TCR | 13 | 15.897 | 1:53.298 | 14 | |
| 12 | 44 | |
Felice JELMINI | PMA Motorsport | Audi RS3 LMS TCR II | 13 | 16.553 | 1:54.007 | 9 | |
| 13 | 87 | |
Junui PARK | Solite Indigo Racing | Hyundai Elantra N TCR | 13 | 21.676 | 1:54.541 | 4 | |
| 14 | 98 | |
Pierre-Arnaud NAVARRO | JSB Compétition | Hyundai Elantra N TCR | 13 | 23.282 | 1:54.790 | 20 | |
| 15 | 6 | |
Jean-Laurent NAVARRO | JSB Compétition | Hyundai Elantra N TCR | 13 | 23.755 | 1:54.570 | 21 | |
| 16 | 45 | |
Victor FERNÁNDEZ Gil | Auto Club RC2 Valles | Honda Civic Type-R FL5 TCR | 13 | 30.754 | 1:53.793 | 19 | |
| 17 | 33 | |
Santiago CONCEPCIÓN | Auto Club RC2 Valles | Honda Civic Type-R FL5 TCR | 11 | + 2 LAPS | 1:53.230 | 11 | |
| 18 | 17 |  |
Nicolas TAYLOR | PMA Motorsport | Audi RS3 LMS TCR II | 11 | + 2 LAPS | 1:53.767 | 15 | |
| 19 | 4 | |
Julien BRICHÉ | JSB Compétition | Hyundai Elantra N TCR | 11 | + 2 LAPS | 1:53.472 | 12 | |
| R | 3 | |
Giacomo GHERMANDI | MM Motorsport | Honda Civic Type-R FL5 TCR | 3 | DNF | 1:54.932 | 17 | |
| R | 28 | |
Eric GENÉ Casanovas | Monlau Motorsport | CUPRA Leon VZ TCR | 1 | DNF | 2:01.619 | 8 |