Portland, OR, WPH Press, 10/9/26
The 2026 Race 4 Eight Portland Classic marked the 105th event in the history of the Race 4 Eight tour, with the tour spanning eighteen states and two countries in the Race 4 Eight’s fifteen seasons.
The 2026 Race 4 Eight Portland Classic features four-time defending Portland Classic champion and seventeen-time Race 4 Eight champion Martin Mulkerrins aiming to five-peat in the City of Roses. Martin will contend with Race 4 Eight Elite pros Mark Doyle, Lucho Cordova, Leo Canales, Ivan Burgos, Danos Cordova, Sean Lenning, in addition to many of the tour’s top names outside the Elite 8 to defend his title at the famed Multnomah Athletic Club.
“I am really looking forward to playing in Portland for a fifth consecutive year,” stated four-time defending Portland Classic champion and R48 #1 Martin Mulkerrins. “The MAC is an amazing venue and I have many memories from there, including my first trip to the U.S. for the 2009 World’s, Collegiate Nationals, USHA Four Wall Nationals and of course, the last four R48 Portland Classics. It is shaping up to be a very deep draw, and like everyone else, I will be aiming to win the tournament.”
Round of 16 (Friday)
Portland’s top seed and four-time defending champion Martin Mulkerrins cruised to Saturday’s quarterfinals against Oregon’s Austin Biddle, while second-seeded Mark Doyle and third-seeded Lucho Cordova won convincingly against Michael Gaulton and David Miller, respectively.
After skipping the 2026 R48 Red three weeks ago, Leo Canales was impressive against Moses Gardea, dropping the rising star by a combined score of 30-9.
Ivan Burgos was in control against collegiate All-American Bryan Trejo. “Bryan plays a lot like me,” Burgos would later say after winning in two games.
Former Portland Classic champion Danos Cordova played his best ball in nearly a year in his Portland opener, hitting the ball with tremendous power and hop in his two-game sweep against Shorty Ruiz.
Sean Lenning bounced back from a disappointing outing at the 2026 R48 Red to dominate Dylan Schmitt.
The match of the day pitted eighth-seeded Dylan Hernandez against ninth-seeded Max Langmack. Hernandez found the bottom board with a number of kills in the first game, but Langmack took control after dropping the first, allowing Hernandez to score just nine combined points in the second and third games. “Dylan was shooting lights out in the first,” Langmack would later say. “DV told me to be more aggressive in between the first and second games. I started serve-and-shooting and I was making my shots. I was very happy with my level.”
2026 Portland Classic Round of 16 Scores
Mulkerrins def Biddle 15-0, 15-2
Doyle def Gaulton 15-5, 15-5
Lucho def Miller 15-3, 15-2
Canales def Gardea 15-5, 15-4
Burgos def Trejo 15-6, 15-11
Danos def Ruiz 15-12, 15-9
Lenning def D. Schmitt 15-1, 15-5
Langmack def Hernandez 10-15, 15-6, 15-3
Round of 8 (Saturday, all times PST on the ESPN App)
Mulkerrins vs. Langmack (10 am)
Canales vs. Burgos (10:45 am)
Doyle vs. Lenning (11:30 am)
Lucho vs. Danos (12:15 pm)
Watch Saturday’s action from the 2026 R48 Portland Classic live on the ESPN App, starting at 10 am PST
WPH homepage: wphlive.tv
2026 Race 4 Eight Portland Classic Press Release HERE
Follow the draws and results from the 2026 Race 4 Eight Portland Classic HERE
WPH Destination Series Portland HERE
Handball Terminology + Instruction and R48 Rules HERE
Race 4 Eight Pro Player Bios HERE
WPH Race 4 Eight Power Rankings and Rules Methodology HERE
2026/27 Race 4 Eight Schedule HERE
Updated Race 4 Eight Fun Facts + Race 4 Eight History of Champions HERE
WPH Coaching Center Instructional Videos HERE
WPH RACE 4 EIGHT: The World Players of Handball’s 2026/27 Race 4 Eight Powered by ESPN features nine Race 4 Eight stops from California to Mexico, all culminating with The Player’s Championship in St. Louis, MO in May of 2027. Similar to NASCAR’s Nextel Cup and the FedEx PGA Playoffs, players earn points in the Race 4 Eight’s regular season stops to qualify for the season-ending Player’s Championship and bonus prizes.
For more information on the WPH Race 4 Eight title sponsor opportunity, please contact World Players of Handball Executive Director David Vincent at info@wphlive.tv or World Players of Handball Development Director David Fink at david.fink@wphlive.tv. For more information on the World Players of Handball, please visit wphlive.tv
David Fink
WPH Senior Writer
2026 WPH R48Pro Stop #3 ‘The Classic’
ESPN+ Broadcast Schedule
Portland, Oregon– Oct 9-11, 2026
NEW FEATURE: Get LIVE Real-time Stats as they happen. WATCH HERE
Saturday, October 10th, 2026 (Pacific Daylight Time)
10:00 Men’s Pro Singles Pro Quarters – Martin Mulkerrins (IRE) vs Max Langmack (AZ)
10:45 Men’s Pro Singles Pro Quarters – Ivan Burgos (AZ) vs Leo Canales, Jr (AZ)
11:30 Men’s Pro Singles Pro Quarters – Mark Doyle (IRE) vs Sean Lenning (WA)
12:15 Men’s Pro Singles Pro Quarters – Daniel Cordova (TX/MEX) vs Luis Cordova Jr (MEX/TX)
13:15 Men’s Pro Singles 9th or 5th Semifinals TBD
14:00 Men’s Pro Singles 9th or 5th Semifinals TBD
14:45 Men’s Pro Singles Pro Semis TBD
15:00 Men’s Pro Singles Pro Semis TBD
Sunday, October 11th, 2026 (Pacific Daylight Time)
10:00 Men’s Pro Singles 9th Place Final TBD
10:45 Men’s Pro Singles 5th Place Final TBD
11:30 Men’s Pro Singles Final TBD
Watch all the action LIVE on ESPN+. Get interviews, some live coverage and extras at Patreon.com/wphlive
Follow the brackets beginning Friday, October 9th, HERE: https://www.r2sports.com/website/no-draws-available.asp?TID=51394
The Portland Classic Preview, is HERE: https://wphlive.tv/october-9-11-2026-race-4-eight-portland-classic-full-preview/