| South Korea, 17 July 2024 – Korean team SQDA-GRIT Motorsport is looking ahead to its crucial mid-season home race at the 3.9km Inje Speedium where AM talent Brian Lee will be determined to sweep to the top of the class leaderboard in the Lamborghini Seoul Huracán Super Trofeo EVO2.
Returning to the series for the round three double-header is reigning PRO champion Chris van der Drift, stepping into the seat of former team mate Marco Giltrap at Absolute Racing. The Kiwi ace, who alongside Giltrap won all but one of the 2023 PRO races to lift the crown, joins Clay Osborne who continues his 2024 title tilt. While the pair may arrive in Korea as pre-race favourites, they face increasingly potent opposition from amongst the PRO ranks. SJM Iron Lynx Theodore Racing’s Charles Leong of Macau and Japanese talent Miki Koyama, both making their Super Trofeo debuts this season in the Lamborghini Nagoya car, have so far notched up four podiums in four races and lie just 12 points behind the class leaders. Likewise, the new DW Evans GT pairing of Briton Dan Wells, reigning PRO-AM champion, and French team mate Emilien Carde are also proving strong title contenders, currently trailing Leong and Koyama by a single point. Arrows Racing’s young talent Gavin Huang, contesting his first full Super Trofeo season, and team mate Jonathan Cecotto are also very much in the championship mix as they head to Inje. Championship newcomers Madness Racing Team burst onto the Lamborghini Super Trofeo Asia scene at the start of the season, PRO-AM entry Chen Fangping and former Formula 3 Macau Grand Prix winner and Japan Super GT campaigner André Couto taking both class wins at the opening round in Malaysia, adding a further victory and podium in Australia last month to put them top of the PRO-AM leaderboard. Right on their bumper just 14 points adrift are DW Evans GT’s Thomas Yu Lee and Finn Nikolas Pirttilahti in the Lamborghini Osaka car, both drivers making their series debuts this season. Returning to the series in Korea are Arrows Racing Malaysian PRO-AM team mates Jazeman Jafaar, former FIA World Endurance Championship LMP2 contender and one of his country’s most successful drivers, and FIA Bronze-ranked Selim Rafique. The pair made their series debut at The Bend Motorsport Park last month, taking a class podium finish in race two. In the AM ranks, solo local star Lee faces a mighty challenge from a strong field of protagonists. Having started the season with a class win and podium, a DNF in the opening race in Australia was a setback from which Lee fought back from with another AM win in race two. However, the consistently scorching pace of Thai series newcomers Nattanid ‘Kat’ Leewattanavalagul and Dechathorn ‘Phu’ Phuakkarawut in the Lamborghini Bangkok car at YK Motorsports by Star Performance sees them top the AM leaderboard with a six-point advantage. 610Racing by Absolute’s Li Xuanyu and Xie Wenjun took a pole position in their debut Lamborghini Super Trofeo Asia weekend in Malaysia, going on to take a class podium Australia. One point behind the pair is Arrows Racing solo driver Johnson Huang, while Madness Racing Team’s Stephen Hong and He Xinyang have ground to make up after an unlucky second race in Australia. Likewise, fortune was not smiling on TRUE VISIONS MOTORSPORTS THAILAND’s Suttiluck Buncharoen in race one Adelaide, but the highly-respected sportsman bounced back in characteristic style with a class podium in race two. Vortex Racegraph’s Luo Haowen and Song Jianjun are quickly finding their pace as series newcomers and could quickly gain ground on their AM rivals as the season continues. HZO Fortis Racing Team by Absolute Racing brothers Haziq and Hairie Oh of Malaysia lead the Lamborghini Cup ranks after a strong run of pole positions and class wins from the four races so far. Hot on their heels, however, are two drivers with the undoubted pace and skill to close the gap; Siamgas Corse reigning champion Supachai Weeraborwornpong, and Iron Lynx Malaysian Kumar Prabakaran. Both challengers have had to overcome more than their share of setbacks so far this season, but will be right back on the hunt in Korea. Located in the dramatic Taebaek mountains of Gangwon Province, approximately 121 kilometers east of the South Korean capital Seoul, Inje Speedium opened in 2013. Since then, the circuit has regularly hosted a number of regional series, providing a thrilling challenge for drivers showcased against the picturesque landscape. Round three of Lamborghini Super Trofeo Asia gets underway with a 90-minute unofficial practice on Friday, 19 July, followed by official practice and qualifying on Saturday, with the first of two 50-minute races starting at 16:30 local time. Race two follows on Sunday at 13:00 (all times UTC+9). Both LSTA races will be live-streamed via the Lamborghini Squadra Corse YouTube channel. |
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Lamborghini Super Trofeo Asia 2024 Provisional Calendar Round 1 Sepang International Circuit (Malaysia) 3-5 May |
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