Kiwi Brendon Leitch and Australian co-driver Nicolas Stati claimed a thrilling victory for Leipert Motorsport in the opening Lamborghini Super Trofeo Europe race at Autodromo Nazionale Monza in Italy, taking the chequered flag after a nail biting late-race battle decided by just 0.062 seconds.
The pair started fifth overall and second in the Pro class, putting themselves in a strong position heading into the opening race of the European championship’s final round.
It was a chaotic start, with cars running five-wide along the front straight as the field charged towards the opening chicane.
Leitch made an excellent getaway, passing overall polesitter Anthony Pretorius before Turn 1 and avoiding a multi-car collision that left Patrick Fraboni and Silas Rytter stranded on track with significant damage.
The incident brought out the safety car, with Leitch emerging from the opening-lap chaos in second overall after gaining three positions. When racing resumed with 36 minutes remaining, Leitch immediately applied pressure to race leader Kevin Gilardoni, refusing to let the Italian driver escape.
However, lapped traffic eventually disrupted the Kiwi’s charge, allowing Gilardoni to extend his advantage.
With 20 minutes remaining, Leitch headed into the pits to hand the car to Stati, with the team opting to make the change just three minutes into the mandatory pit window.
As the pit stops ended, race leaders Gilardoni and Simone Iaquinta received a one-second time penalty for a short pit stop, putting Stati firmly in contention.
With eight minutes remaining, Stati was just 1.2 seconds behind the leading car, setting up a tense fight to the finish. The decisive moment came with only two minutes remaining when Iaquinta ran wide into the gravel, allowing Stati to sweep through and take the lead.
Despite Iaquinta recovering and immediately applying pressure, Stati held his nerve through the final lap and a half to take a remarkable victory.
The pair crossed the line separated by just 0.062 seconds, with the official winning margin increasing to 1.062 seconds following the penalty applied to Gilardoni and Iaquinta.
Although Leitch is not in contention for the European championship, the victory provides valuable momentum ahead of the Lamborghini World Finals later this weekend.
Gilardoni and Iaquinta remain at the top of the Pro championship standings heading into the final European race. Leitch and Stati will start that encounter from third overall and second in the Pro class, giving them another opportunity to fight for victory.
Race 2 of the Lamborghini Super Trofeo Europe championship takes place on Friday at 11:15 pm NZDT, with qualifying for the World Finals scheduled to begin on Saturday at 11:05 pm NZDT.
You can watch both sessions live on the official Lamborghini Squadra Corse YouTube channel.
Header Image: Leipert Motorsport
