Henrique Chaves was born in Torres Vedras, Portugal. He began karting in 2006, winning the Portuguese Championship and Portuguese Cup in the Cadets Class. He continued to race in karting until 2015, collecting further titles in the Rotax Mini Class, Kf3, X30 and X30 Shifter classes of the Portuguese Championship, and a double title in the X30 class of the Spanish Championship. His most notable karting achievement was second place in the KZ2 category of the Spanish championship and second place in the Iame X30 Finals in 2015.
Chaves transitioned to single-seater racing in 2015, competing in the Formula Renault 2.0 Northern European Cup full-time with AVF. He achieved twelve point-scoring finishes, with a best result of fifth in the final race at Hockenheim, finishing thirteenth in the championship. He also participated in three rounds of the 2015 Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0.
Chaves continued with AVF for the 2016 season, competing in both the Eurocup and NEC Formula Renault 2.0 championships. He secured seven point-scoring finishes in the Eurocup, finishing eleventh overall. In the NEC, he did not improve his championship position, achieving only one top-five finish in the first race at Spa.
In 2017, Chaves focused on the Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0, remaining with AVF. He achieved his first podium finish in Formula Renault, finishing second in the first race at Silverstone. Despite a difficult couple of races in Monaco and Pau, he went on to score eight more point-scoring finishes, leading to a twelfth-place finish in the drivers' standings.
Chaves expanded his collaboration with AVF into the World Series Formula V8 3.5, joining them for the finale at Bahrain International Circuit. He won his debut race, starting from the front row, becoming the seventh driver to achieve a debut win in the series since its inception in 1998. In the second race of the weekend, he was involved in an incident with Alfonso Celis Jr., who collided with Chaves while attempting an overtake, costing him a likely podium finish.
In 2018, Chaves switched to sports car racing, joining the LMP2 class with AVF in the European Le Mans Series. He set the fastest overall lap during the European Le Mans Series Prologue and achieved podium positions in the early stages of the Monza race before the team withdrew due to electrical issues. He also demonstrated a strong performance in Silverstone, coming back from tenth on the grid to second place over a triple stint, and was running in third place in Portimão before a teammate’s incident forced the team to withdraw.
Chaves transitioned to GT racing in 2019, joining Teo Martín Motorsport. Teaming up with Martin Kodrić in a McLaren 720S GT3, he started the season with a second-place finish at Paul Ricard. He secured five more podiums, two fastest laps, and a win at the season finale, where the car number 59 was in contention for the title. They finished third overall, tied with the second-place finisher, achieving the best championship result of any McLaren 720S GT3 worldwide in 2019.
The partnership with Teo Martín Motorsport continued in 2020 with Miguel Ramos joining Chaves. Chaves clinched the International GT Open title after a dramatic season finale where a competitor forced their McLaren number 59 off track on the last lap of the final race. He won two races, stood on the podium six times, and achieved the fastest lap seven times, with his car again being the best-performing McLaren GT3 car globally.
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