Aston Martin Vantage GT3 Captures Monza Podium, Targets Spa 24H
Aston Martin’s latest Vantage GT3, the marque’s most successful racing car, strengthened its momentum in the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup by sweeping to twin podium finishes at Monza. The result highlighted the Vantage GT3’s front-running pace during a dramatic three-hour race punctuated by eight safety-car periods.
Comtoyou Racing’s Pro-class #007, driven by Marco Sørensen, Nicki Thiim and Mattia Drudi, fought for victory throughout and crossed the line third overall. This Monza podium—the trio’s first since their 24 Hours of Spa victory last year—builds on a solid fifth at Paul Ricard and moves them to third in the Pro standings ahead of the Belgian endurance showpiece.
“A good start was a foundation to a good race, with good strategy calls from the team on Full Course Yellows, which helped us jump some cars as well,” said Thiim. “On-track, we were not the ones that had the ultimate pace, but we maximised well across the board and that earned us some excellent points for the championship. It’s nice to stand on the podium at Monza, and it’s been a good start to the season. Now we head for the highlight of the year, which is the Spa 24 Hours, and we go back to try and repeat the victory from last year.”
Walkenhorst Motorsport’s all-works trio of David Pittard, Henrique Chaves and Christian Krognes surged from 27th on the grid to seventh on the road, only for a post-race penalty to drop them to 12th overall.
In the Gold Cup, the 2Seas Motorsport-run Verstappen.com Racing Vantage maintained its flawless podium streak. Harry King, Thierry Vermeulen and Chris Lulham steered the car to second in class and 15th overall, leaving them just two points shy of the category lead.
“With the Spa 24 Hours being only weeks away now, these results are very encouraging for Vantage and show that our partners Comtoyou Racing, Walkenhorst Motorsport and Verstappen.com Racing are all in a highly competitive place ahead of the upcoming twice-round-the-clock GT-led races on the international calendar. Last year’s victory in Spa was significant for Aston Martin, and it’s encouraging to see that Vantage has been a contender in multiple classes in both rounds of the GT World Europe Endurance Cup so far this season,” said Aston Martin Head of Endurance Motorsport Adam Carter.
The CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa, running from 25–29 June, closes Aston Martin Racing’s endurance triple-header that also features the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the Nürburgring 24 Hours.
