SMP Racing needed some hard work and a bit of luck in the No. 72 Ferrari 488 GT3 to win the 3 Hours of Silverstone, second round of the 2019 Blancpain GT Endurance Cup, as the Lamborghini fleet in front of the Russian squad had from loss of pace to other unexpected issues, spoiling the Huracán GT3 Evo from its debut win in Blancpain GT.
Although the front pack had it safe at the start, carnage took the back of it, with four cars completely unable to continue, including the No. 488 Rinaldi Ferrari, the No. 88 AKKA-ASP Mercedes, the No. 26 Sainteloc Audi and the No. 59 Garage 59 Aston Martin.
20 minutes of Safety Car were needed to clean the mess, and when the green came back a Lamborghini trio was monopolizing the front, with the No. 63 GRT car leading the FFF Racing entries, with the No. 55 Attempto Audi not exactly being a threat from fourth. With the No. 55 not advancing, the No. 107 M-Sport Bentley took fourth position and Jordan Lee Pepper started pushing hard.
The No. 563 FFF Lamborghini was ready to attack the No. 63 GRT one, but Dennis Lind had no work to do so as a left rear puncture put the No. 63 out of action for a while, with the No. 99 ROWE Porsche suffering from the same problem.
The No. 519 FFF Lamborghini took the lead after the first pit window while sparks were flying for second as the No. 72 SMP Ferrari was leading the No. 19 GRT Lamborghini and the No. 563 FFF Lamborghini, though Andrea Caldarelli wasn’t wanting to wait, taking action and going to third with a brave pass, just before another Full Course Yellow, caused by a crash from the No. 555 FFF Lamborghini.
The No. 519 was still leading after the green flag, benefited by the battle for second between Miguel Molina and Andrea Caldarelli, with the No. 563 passing in a brave maneuver and bringing the No. 19 GRT Lamborghini along for third.
The No. 519 kept the lead after the final pit window though the No. 72 was right behind in second, with the No. 43 Strakka Mercedes appearing as a surprise in third. Giovanni Venturini kept the No. 519 on the defensive from Davide Rigon, but with 16 minutes to go the No. 519 left the door open for moment, which was enough for the SMP Racing car to go past and conquer first place, consolidating the victory for the No. 72 as the No. 519 didn’t have the pace to attack and the No. 563 and the No. 43 eliminated themselves due to a contact.
Grässer Racing still had a Silver Cup win to celebrate with the No. 19 Lamborghini, but they had until the finish as the No. 55 Attempto Audi came in a really close second place. The No. 52 AF Corse Ferrari had a bit more room to breathe and celebrate the Pro-Am Cup win, while the No. 77 Barwell Lamborghini gave another good display and dominated the Am Cup.
Next in the calendar is the Paul Ricard 1000, a race that usually serves as a competitive preparation for the 24 Hours of Spa, to be held on June 1st. With Emil Frey Racing now racing in the International GT Open, they will not return to defend their win unless a surprise announcement comes out.
PHOTO: SMP Racing
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