Bernardo Lucas Pinheiro (born 3 March 2004) is a Portuguese racing driver currently competing for Team Virage in the

European Le Mans Series The European Le Mans Series (abbreviated as ELMS) is a European sports car racing endurance series inspired by the 24 Hours of Le Mans race and organized by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO). The European Le Mans Series is similar to the fo ...

. He finished as the runner-up in the 2023 season of the Ligier European Series's JS P4 class alongside George King.

Career

After competing in karts, Pinheiro made his car racing debut at his father's track in 2022, racing for Team Virage in the final round of the

Ligier European Series The Ligier European Series is a European sports car racing endurance series inspired by the 24 Hours of Le Mans race and organized by Ligier Automotive in collaboration with the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO). Created in 2020, it is a one-desig ...

. He and José Maria Marreiros finished last in the JS P4 class during race 1 as Marreiros spun but improved to eighth place in race 2. Pinheiro would remain with the team for a full season of the LES in

2023 Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...

, this time partnering the previous year's third place finisher George King. The pair scored two runner-up finishes at the

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

season opener, coming up short to teammate

Mihnea Ștefan Ioan Mihnea Ștefan (born 4 January 1997) is a Romanians, Romanian auto racing, race car driver who is set to compete in the 2024 Le Mans Cup, Michelin Le Mans Cup with Team Virage. He is the 2023 Ligier European Series champion. Karting recor ...

in both races. After retiring from the

Le Mans Le Mans (; ) is a Communes of France, city in Northwestern France on the Sarthe (river), Sarthe River where it meets the Huisne. Traditionally the capital of the Provinces of France, province of Maine (province), Maine, it is now the capital of ...

round Pinheiro and King established themselves as a top team, only losing out on victory to Ștefan at Le Castellet, and finishing third in race 2 at

Aragón Aragon ( , ; Spanish and ; ) is an autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. In northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces (from north to south): Huesca, Zaragoza, a ...

; Pinheiro also scored his maiden pole position at the latter track but missed out on the win in race 1 when King encountered a fuel issue mere metres before the finish line. They then took their first win of the season in

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

, where Pinheiro passed Ștefan, who would clinch the title at that round, during the opening stint. The Portuguese won the season finale at

Portimão Portimão () is a city and a municipality in the district of Faro (district), Faro, in the Algarve region of southern Portugal. The population in 2022 was 63,079 in an area of 182.06 km2. It was formerly known as Vila Nova de Portimão. In ...

to claim second in the standings alongside King, before the pair and Ștefan took part in the European Le Mans Series's post-season test. Having taken a podium in the third round of the

Prototype Winter Series The Prototype Winter Series is a sports car racing series based in Iberian Peninsula, Iberia organized by Gedlich Racing and licensed by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO) since 2024. The race weekend consists of two, 50 minute plus 1 lap rac ...

at the start of 2024, Pinheiro would enter the

LMP3 A Le Mans Prototype (LMP) is a type of sports prototype race car used in various races and championships, including the 24 Hours of Le Mans, FIA World Endurance Championship, IMSA SportsCar Championship, European Le Mans Series, and Asian Le M ...

class of the

ELMS The European Le Mans Series (abbreviated as ELMS) is a European sports car racing endurance series inspired by the 24 Hours of Le Mans race and organized by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO). The European Le Mans Series is similar to the fo ...

alongside

2023 Le Mans Cup The 2023 Le Mans Cup, known as the 2023 Michelin Le Mans Cup under sponsorship, was the eighth season of the Le Mans Cup. The six-event season began at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on 22 April and finished at Algarve International Circuit on 22 ...

champions

Gillian Henrion Gillian Henrion (born 23 March 2003) is a French racing driver. He is the 2022 Ligier European Series champion in the JS P4 category and the reigning Le Mans Cup champion, having won the title in 2023 alongside Julien Gerbi. Early caree ...

and

Julien Gerbi Julien Gerbi (born October 3, 1985) is a French-Algerian-Spanish race car driver. Career Debut Gerbi started driving in karting in 1992, but didn't choose to race, competing only once in Monaco where he won his first competition. He trained ...

, once again returning to Team Virage. The #8 crew got off to a strong start, as they won the opening race at

. At the next race in Le Castellet however, Pinheiro failed to drive for the mandated minimum time of 40 minutes, meaning that he would be ineligible to score any points from their seventh place finish. After Pinheiro competed in the Road to Le Mans event in June he and his Team Virage teammates finished second in

Imola Imola (; or ) is a city and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Bologna, located on the river Santerno, in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. The city is traditionally considered the western entrance to the historical region Romagna ...

. They then took sixth place at

Spa A spa is a location where mineral-rich spring water (sometimes seawater) is used to give medicinal baths. Spa health treatments are known as balneotherapy. The belief in the curative powers of mineral waters and hot springs goes back to pre ...

before a well-executed fuel saving stint by Henrion guaranteed them victory at Mugello.

Personal life

He was the son of Paulo Pinheiro, the CEO of the

Algarve International Circuit The Algarve International Circuit (), commonly referred to as Portimão Circuit, is a race circuit located in Portimão, Algarve region, Portugal. The development includes a karting track, off-road track, technology park, five-star hotel, sp ...

, who died in July 2024.

Racing record

Racing career summary

^† As Pinheiro was a guest driver, he was ineligible for championship points.
*Season still in progress.

Complete Ligier European Series results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; results in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

Complete European Le Mans Series results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; results in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap) ^* Season still in progress.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Pinheiro, Bernardo 2004 births Living people Portuguese racing drivers Le Mans Cup drivers Team Virage drivers European Le Mans Series drivers 21st-century Portuguese sportsmen Ligier European Series drivers