Martin Doubek was delighted to be back in the Victory Lane after a clinical drive in the wet conditions at Brands Hatch – The Czech driver was back on top after early season struggles
- Martin Doubek scored his 18th career OPEN victory in Brands Hatch
- Raphael Lessard bounced back from a spin to finish in second
- Gil Linster gained important ground following Thomas Toffel’s late retirement
It has been a tough journey for Martin Doubek in 2026 so far. An early crash in Spain not only hurt his title chances, it also gave the former two-time OPEN champion an injury that required him to have surgery. Doubek made a swift recovery and after a strong return in France, the Czech star was back on top in the UK. The Hendriks Motorsport driver raced like a proper champion in the tricky weather conditions and after 31 hard fought laps, Doubek enjoyed his time in the spotlight as the winner of Round 5 in the OPEN division.
NASCAR GP UK LINKS: INFO & TICKETS | SCHEDULE | ENTRY LIST | LIVE TIMING | WATCH LIVE
After qualifying fourth, Doubek made crucial passes on Sandro Tavartkiladze and Thomas Dombrowski when the race defining moment came on lap 17. Raphael Lessard spun his #11 Alumitec Racing Ford Mustang around at the infamous Paddock Hill bend. Doubek capitalized and maintained enough in his reserves to bring his trusty #7 Ford Mustang back to the Victory Lane.
“Finally I’m back in the Victory Lane!” expressed Doubek after his 18th career OPEN victory, his first in 2026. “I’m happy, it’s like last year at Brands Hatch. I won the last race in OPEN there. I’m a little bit tired because I did two races today. Now, we go to the podium and have a rest!”
Despite his mistake, Lessard recovered swiftly and was already up to fourth when a late caution period was called with four laps to go. Two laps later, the Canadian made a fantastic restart and passed both Tavartkiladze and Gil Linster to confirm another strong result for the OPEN sensation. Linster continued to be this season’s beacon of consistency: Four podiums after five events allowed the Luxembourger to chase down Thomas Toffel, who suffered from a retirement shortly after the final restart.
Thomas Dombrowski came home fourth ahead of Tavartkiladze, who had to ponder on what could’ve been. Communication issues in the second half of the race cost the Georgian an overall podium result, but fifth was still enough to clinch the Master Trophy win from Valentino Gambarotto in sixth position. Vladimiros Tziortzis collected the points in seventh with Claudio Cappelli winning the Legend Trophy thanks to a hard fought eighth place finish. Jens Beeusaert completed the Master Trophy podium in ninth.
Rounding out the top-10 is a driver who made her OPEN debut this weekend: Robin Bleekemolen. The third generation Bleekemolen driver joined the division as a replacement for her grandfather Michael and proved that the Bleekemolen’s have the next superstar in Robin. The driver of the #76 Team Bleekemolen Toyota Camry also took the victory in the Lady Trophy, defeating Beitske Visser and Mariam Davitidze who came home in 14th and 15th. Melvin de Groot and Andre Lortie rounded the Legend Trophy podium in 17th and 19th.
Only three points separate Toffel and Linster heading to Sunday’s Round 6. Lessard, Tziortzis and Dombrowski also reignited their title bids as they are now 7, 11 and 16 points away respectively from the Swiss leader. Trophy leaders Claudio Cappelli, Maxim van Laere and Beitske Visser remained in the overall top-10 positions. Martin Doubek’s win shoots him up to 15th in the standings.
After two dramatic races in the infamous British mixed weather, the focus of NASCAR GP UK shifts to the hunt for the new King and Prince of Brands Hatch, a title that will be crowned to the best performing V8GP and OPEN drivers of the weekend. Unlike previous rounds, V8GP will be the first to take the green flag for Round 6. The best drivers of NASCAR Euro Series will begin their action at 13:55 CEST, while the promising up-and-comers close the round with their race at 17:40 CEST.
As always, stay tuned to the official NASCAR Euro Series website and social media for the latest updates. DAZN, NASCAR Euro TV, and the official YouTube channel will provide international live broadcast alongside trusted partners in your local region, the list of which can be found at https://www.nascar.eu/watch/.
Featured image by NASCAR Euro Series / Bart Dehaese
