Kiwi racer Brendon Leitch added two more trophies to his 2025 Lamborghini Super Trofeo Asia campaign at Fuji International Speedway, finishing on the Pro-Am class podium in both races for Leipert Motorsport alongside Chinese co-driver Jiajun Song.
The pair kicked off Round 3 of the series in commanding fashion, converting outright pole position into a long spell at the front in Race 1, before salvaging third in class after a chaotic restart.
They then charged from 15th on the grid in Race 2 to score a brilliant Pro-Am class victory and second place overall, marking one of their strongest weekends of the season to date.
Race 1:
Saturday’s opening race couldn’t have started better for the #89 Leipert Motorsport duo. Leitch qualified on pole position outright, ahead of several Pro-class rivals, and took full advantage at lights out, fending off a hard-charging Hon Chio Leong into Turn 1 to retain the lead.
Over the opening laps, Leitch immediately stamped his authority on the race, stretching a gap of over four seconds to the chasing pack by the halfway mark. He remained unchallenged through his stint, perfectly managing tyres and traffic as chaos unfolded further back in the 23-car field.
The tide turned, however, when a stationary car on track triggered a full-course yellow just as the pit window opened. Leitch and others dove into the pits in anticipation, with Song taking over as the safety car neutralised the race.
Back under green with just over ten minutes to go, Song initially held the lead but came under heavy pressure from the faster Pro-class machines behind. He was overtaken for the lead and began to drop down the order in the closing laps, struggling for pace in the tightly packed field.
Despite the misfortune, the #89 car still came home 10th overall and third in the Pro-Am class, salvaging valuable championship points after leading much of the race.
Race 2:
After an unfortunate qualifying session left them starting 15th on the grid for Race 2, Leitch and Song faced a mountain to climb. Song took the opening stint, navigating a frantic start where cars ran four-wide into Turn 1, and settled into 16th early on.
Song briefly dropped to 18th but managed to recover a few positions before pitting early in the window to hand over to Leitch. From there, the Kiwi went on the attack.
Leitch rejoined in 12th overall and 2nd in Pro-Am, and immediately began working his way through the field. By the time the pit cycle had completed, he had climbed to eighth overall, narrowing the gap to Pro-Am leader Changwoo Lee.
With just over ten minutes remaining, Leitch was up to fifth and continued to close the gap, aided by an incident ahead that dropped Pro-class contender Ethan Brown down the order. When Lee ran wide and lost momentum, Leitch seized the opportunity, storming through into second overall and the Pro-Am class lead.
He would maintain that position to the flag, finishing just 5.4 seconds behind overall winners Hon Chio Leong and Alex Denning, and claiming an impressive Pro-Am class victory, his second of the season.
Momentum Building Ahead of Mid-Season
With a Pro-Am win and third-place class finish in the bag, Leitch and Song have put themselves in strong contention for the Pro-Am championship as the series reaches its halfway point.
Fuji showcased not just the outright pace of the Leipert Motorsport duo, but also their ability to dig deep when faced with adversity. For Leitch, it’s another weekend that reinforces his status as one of New Zealand’s most successful and versatile GT drivers.
The Lamborghini Super Trofeo Asia Series continues later next month at Inje Speedium in South Korea, with Leitch and Song aiming to keep the momentum rolling in the fight for the Pro-Am crown.
Header Image: Leipert Motorsport
