Mechanical issues in Spain

The opening round of the 2026 Ligier European Series at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya proved to be one of the most challenging weekends of Gabriel Doyle-Parfait’s career, with persistent mechanical issues severely limiting valuable track time throughout the event.

Despite encouraging pace ahead of the weekend, the car was unable to participate in both free practice sessions and qualifying due to technical problems.

Race 1 ended just moments after the start when an electrical issue forced an early retirement, denying the team the opportunity to showcase its potential.

Remarkably, Race 2 marked the first representative laps of the entire weekend, with Gabriel immediately demonstrating competitive pace despite starting from the back of the grid and having no prior running. The team recovered strongly to secure a P9 finish under difficult circumstances, highlighting both resilience and adaptability in an extremely demanding weekend.

While the results did not reflect the pace shown behind the scenes, the event underlined the professionalism of the team and Gabriel’s ability to perform under pressure with minimal preparation.