Spa 24 Hours preview: Lamborghini

For years, Grasser Racing Team used to be the Lamborghini team to look out for. Now there are two: Orange1 FFF Racing Team has joined the Lamborghini Squadra Corse. The two works-supported squads account for nearly half of the Lamborghini Huracán GT3s in the race, with another six bulls raced by Am and Silver Cup teams.

Grasser Racing Team

Gottfried Grasser’s team doesn’t need to be told anything about winning in the Blancpain GT Series: Races and championships, they’ve won it all – except for that one race in Belgium. The closest Grasser Racing ever came was in 2017 when while fighting for the win the #63 Lambo retired with a brake problem on Sunday morning.

The #63 car driven by long-time Grasser racers Mirko Bortolotti and Christian Engelhart and Andrea Caldarelli’s replacement Rolf Ineichen has yet to win a race this year, having scored two pole position, a podium, and were in contention for the win in Monza until technical problems robbed them of that chance.

#19 GRT Grasser Racing Team (Silver Cup)
Arno Santamato/Gerhard Tweraser/Lucas Mauron/Andrea Amici

#63 GRT Grasser Racing Team
Mirko Bortolotti/Christian Engelhart/Rolf Ineichen

Orange 1 FFF Racing Team

Three-car strong Orange 1 FFF Racing Team came from Asia to Europe this year and has already proven to be a top contender in the Blancpain GT Series. Co-owned by former Grasser Racing driver and 2017 Blancpain GT champion Andrea Caldarelli, the Italian-Chinese team leads the overall Blancpain GT championship with a handful of podium finishes and a win on home soil in Misano.

FFF Racing’s strength extends beyond the Andrea Caldarelli, Dennis Lind and Marco Mapelli-driven Hurácan: When the #563 Lambo wasn’t able to fight for the win in Silverstone, Phil Keen, Franck Perera and Giovanni Venturini stepped up in the #519 car and finished second, seconds away from the winners.

#519 Orange 1 FFF Racing Team
Franck Perera/Phil Keen/Giovanni Venturini

#555 Orange 1 FFF Racing Team (Silver Cup)
Michele Beretta/Taylor Proto/Diego Menchaca/Giacomo Altoè

#563 Orange 1 FFF Racing Team
Andrea Caldarelli/Dennis Lind/Marco Mapelli

Barwell Motorsport

British GT top team Barwell Motorsport has entered two Lambos in this year’s Blancpain GT championship with much success in the Am class. The #77 Barwell Lambo has collected two wins and a third place this season, going into the Spa 24 Hours as the championship leader. Adrian Amstutz and Leo Matchiski share the car this weekend with Patrick Kujala and Richard Abra.

#77 Barwell Motorsport (Am)
Adrian Amstutz/Leo Matchiski/Patrick Kujala/Richard Abra

#78 Barwell Motorsport (Silver Cup)
James Pull/Jordan Witt/Sandy Mitchell

Ombra Racing

Another Lamborghini team from Italy is Ombra Racing. The decades old team from Lombardy enters a single Lamborghini Huracán GT3 for regulars Dean Stoneman, Stefano Gattuso and Denis Dupont, with IMSA driver Corey Lewis joining for Spa.

#12 Ombra Racing (Silver Cup)
Dean Stoneman/Stefano Gattuso/Denis Dupont/Corey Lewis

Daiko Lazarus Racing

2019 hasn’t yet been the year of Daiko Lazarus Racing. The season has been marred by crashes, most notably the withdrawal of the Venetian team from Monza after a heavy accident in practice. An opening-lap accident crushed the team’s hopes for redemption in Silverstone, and another crash ended its Paul Ricard 1000KM early on.

Along with the Silver Cup #27 Lamborghini for regulars Fabrizio Crestani, Nicolas Pohler and Kris Richard and Spa guest driver Johnny Cecotto Jr., Lazarus enters a second car featuring an Am line-up.

#27 Daiko Lazarus Racing (Silver Cup)
Fabrizio Crestani/Nicolas Pohler/Kris Richard/ Johnny Cecotto Jr.

#28 Daiko Lazarus Racing (Am)
Sylvain Debs/Graham Davidson/Fernando Navarrente/Immanuel Vinke

Raton Racing by Target

Bringing a single car to Spa-Francorchamps, Raton Racing by Target is one of a few teams to have shared the podium with Am Cup frontrunners Barwell Motorsport and Garage 59. Stefano Costantini, Antonio Forne Tomas and Christoph Lenz took second place in the team’s home race at Monza and are currently fourth in the championship.

#29 Raton Racing by Target (Am)
Stefano Costantini/Antonio Forne Tomas/Christoph Lenz/Alberto Di Folco