Lionspeed GP experienced a rollercoaster of emotions at Monza, as the second round of the GT World Challenge Europe powered by AWS Endurance Cup round produced a wild race with several significant incidents. After qualifying once more as strongest Porsche the No. 80 Porsche 911 GT3 R saw a shot at an overall podium dashed through no fault of its own on the first lap. The sister Bronze Cup entry battled through and secured a strong finish in class.
Lionspeed GP lined up at Monza with high hopes and strong ambitions, fresh off a landmark victory in the GTWC Europe Sprint Cup round at Brands Hatch earlier in May.
Its two-car effort was spearheaded by the Potentia-backed No. 80 Porsche 911 GT3 R Evo driven by Bastian Buus (DEN), Ricardo Feller (CHE) and Thomas Preining (AUT). The No. 89 machine, decked out in a refreshed black and red livery with the support from Manorhaven, Abacus Global Management, Staloc and Beyond Capital Partners, was driven by Bashar Mardini (CAN), team principal Patrick Kolb (GER) and Alex Fontana (CHE).
Qualifying proved promising for the No. 80 crew, with Buus, Feller and Preining posting a combined effort of 1:45.902 and taking fifth overall in the progress. The No. 89 car, for its part, qualified 11th in Bronze Cup. With a three-hour race, plus the factor of an extra mandatory pitstop for all teams, plenty of opportunities lay ahead.
The opening lap of the three-hour race was marred by a multi-car incident. Nine of the top 10 starting cars were taken out in the first corner. Feller, who took the start in the Lionspeed Porsche from P4, had a blistering starting moving up to P2 before the first corner, when contact between other competitors further behind triggered a domino effect that resulted in multiple cars crashing into the leading group navigating the first chicane.
This eliminated the No. 80 Porsche from the race on the spot. As a result, the team’s hard work and effort, as well as the car’s promising pace, went once more unrewarded.
Further back in the chaos, the No. 89 car managed to navigate through the chaos before settling into a rhythm and steadily working its way up the Bronze Cup order. Strategically, this Endurance Cup round differed from the other races through the introduction of a third mandatory pitstop. This, combined with a significant number of Full Course Yellows and safety cars in an incident-packed race, made for a race that was difficult to predict strategically.
In order to maximize their chances at a strong outcome and possible podium finish, the Lionspeed crew opted to roll the dice and go onto an alternate strategy. Unfortunately, several interventions in the final hour meant Mardini, Kolb and Fontana ended up just short. They finished sixth in Bronze Cup, a positive result after an unpredictable and chaotic race.
For Lionspeed GP, the focus now turns to the biggest event on the GTWC Europe calendar: the CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa. The blue riband event and biggest GT3 race in the world is scheduled for June 24-28, whereby Lionspeed once more is hosting an exclusive VIP event enabling guests and partners to become part of the biggest motorsport party of the year.
