In his debut Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America race on US soil with Wayne Taylor Racing, Kiwi driver Brendon Leitch, alongside Anthony McIntosh, has secured the Pro-Am class victory at Sebring International Raceway.
The first 50-minute race of the weekend as part of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship support card was an eventful affair with a brief full course caution after three cars collided at the hairpin.
McIntosh, who began the race in the No.69 Lamborghini Huracan Super Trofeo EVO II, completed the solitary compulsory pit stop after the Lamborghini Urus safety car returned to the pit lane midway through the race.
Leitch took the reins of the car and set about clocking his quickest laps of the race that were as good as the best Pro times. A small issue reared its head in the closing laps of the race that Leitch managed to the finish.
With the class lead under control, Leitch cruised home to take the class win and finish sixth overall. He and McIntosh finished five seconds clear of the second-placed Pro-Am Flying Lizard Motorsports car of Paul Nemschoff and Marc Miller.
“Very happy to have won the first race of the championship,” said Leitch. “I just looked after the car to the finish once I got in. We won by a decent margin and really stamped out authority on the Pro-Am class. Before the issue we had a massive gap but I just nursed the car home in the end. “Hopefully we have no more issues and can push right on. With any luck, we’ll be able to challenge the front guys on Friday and I can put Tony in a good spot for the second half of the race.”
It was a successful day for Wayne Taylor Racing on the whole. Hampus Ericsson and Danny Formal claimed the outright win and Pro class. All four Wayne Taylor Racing cars finished in the top 10.
Fellow Kiwi William Bamber also secured an impressive result, finishing in second place in the Pro Class alongside Elias da la Torre in the TR3 Racing Lamborghini.
Race 2 of Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America gets underway on Saturday (NZDT) at 10:05am.
Header Image: Jamie Price
