Two new additions to the field as 49 cars set to duke it out over two 50-minute races
Sant’Agata Bolognese/Spa-Francorchamps, 28 June 2023 – The 2023 Lamborghini Super Trofeo Europe season roars back into action this weekend at one of the most picturesque and demanding circuits on the calendar, Spa-Francorchamps in the Belgian Ardennes for round two.
The one-make GT series, reserved for Lamborghini Huracán Super Trofeo EVO2 machinery, has a unique affinity with the Belgian circuit, which is the only venue to feature every year since the championship’s inception in 2009. Racing on the support bill of the GT3 endurance jewel-in-the-crown Spa 24 Hours, it is a favourite for both drivers and teams alike.
A total of 49 cars will do battle on the 7.004km track; timed track action starts on Thursday with a pair of one-hour free practice sessions before qualifying takes place on Friday morning. The first 50-minute mandatory pit-stop race is scheduled for Friday at 16:35, with race two held before the 24 Hours at 10:35 on Saturday. Both races will be live streamed on the Lamborghini Squadra Corse YouTube channel and Facebook page.
In the Pro category, Oregon Team’s Marzio Moretti and Sebastian Balthasar arrive in Belgium as the championship leaders with 28 points following a win and a second place during the opening weekend at Paul Ricard. They hold a seven-point margin over VS Racing’s Mattia Michelotto and Gilles Stadsbader who took victory in race one. Leipert Motorsport’s Brendon Leitch is third in the standings, a further point adrift after picking up a pair of third place finishes on his first weekend as a solo driver in the Pro class. Another pairing firmly in contention is Iron Lynx’s Ugo de Wilde and Rodrigo Testa de Sousa, fifth in the standings and just three points shy of Leitch. Like Stadsbader, de Wilde will be racing on home soil this weekend and alongside 17-year-old Portuguese team-mate Testa de Sousa, will be looking to go one better than the second place achieved in race two in France. Equally in search of a strong result at home will be BDR Competition’s Amaury Bonduel, who recorded his first-career win in Super Trofeo at the Ardennes circuit last season. Bonduel finished as runner-up in the Pro category in 2022 and bagged some solid points on the opening weekend. There are two new additions to the Pro field this weekend, with local driver Cedric Wauters making his Super Trofeo debut with TotaalPlan Racing, while the Chinese/Malaysian pairing of Han Songting and Melvin Moh team up together at Leipert Motorsport, taking the place of Jürgen Krebs who raced at Paul Ricard in the Am class.
The Pro-Am class served up some of the most entertaining action on the opening weekend, particularly in Sunday’s second race. Once the dust settled, it was Target Racing’s Alex Au and Frederik Schandorff who emerged at the top of the standings, taking a victory and second place. They will no doubt face stern competition from VS Racing’s Loris Spinelli and Andrzej Lewandowski, who lie just three points adrift after winning the opening race of the year. Third in the standings is the Iron Lynx duo, cousins Emanuele Zonzini and Emanuel Colombini, who are just one point clear Iron Lynx team-mates Yelmer Buurman and Nigel Schoonderwoerd and two ahead of Micánek Motorsport’s Karol Basz and Bronislav Formánek. Not too far behind is Martin Ryba and Edoardo Liberati (Brutal Fish Racing). Keen to bounce back after a topsy-turvy opening weekend will be Scuderia Villorba Corse’s Michael Blanchemain and Jim Pla, and the HBR Motorsport duo of Benjamin and Robert van den Berg.
Boutsen VDS lead the way in the Am class courtesy of Pierre Feligioni and Renaud Kuppens. The Franco-Belgian partnership picked up a victory and a third place in Paul Ricard and lead Egyptian newcomer Ibrahim Badawy (Lamborghini Roma by DL Racing) by a solitary point. Seven points further back is Leipert Motorsport’s Gabriel Rindone, who overcame a disappointing opening race in France where he was collected by a Pro-Am entry, to win race two and put himself to within nine points of the top of the standings. His Leipert Motorsport team-mates Jean-François Brunot and Kerong Li are just three points back in fifth.
The only double winners of the opening weekend, Iron Lynx’s father and son combination of Donovan and Luciano Privitelio are the clear championship leaders in the Lamborghini Cup class. But all can change over the course of two races, and Paolo Biglieri and Petar Matić (Bonaldi Motorsport) are the nearest challengers on 18 points. Leipert Motorsport’s Jürgen Krebs emerged as the second-placed driver in the points following Paul Ricard, but the Swiss driver will not be present at Spa-Francorchamps this weekend. Jason Keats and Charlie Martin are fourth in the points for Brutal Fish Racing, after collecting their first podium finish in the European championship with second in race two. Four-time champion Gerard van der Horst will be hoping to launch his title challenge properly this weekend after a pair of fourth places in France.