The second race weekend of the GT World Challenge Europe powered by AWS Endurance Cup is taking place in the royal park of Monza – Walkenhorst Motorsport is aiming to repeat last year’s podium finish.
The Autodromo Nazionale di Monza is one of the most legendary race tracks in Europe. The circuit, located near Milan, is characterised by its long straights and is considered one of the fastest race tracks in the world. Walkenhorst Motorsport will field two Aston Martin Vantage GT3s in the second Endurance Cup weekend of the season.
‘Last year, we finished on the podium in the Silver Cup, which was our first podium finish with Aston Martin in the GT World Challenge Europe. We would like to repeat that this weekend,’ said team founder Henry Walkenhorst.
The three factory drivers Christian Krognes, David Pittard and Henrique Chaves will compete in the top car with start number #34. The experienced driver trio will be chasing a top result on the high-speed circuit in northern Italy. Romain Leroux, Oliver Söderström and Mateo Villagomez will be driving the sister car in the Silver Cup. Leroux was part of the driver trio that celebrated on the iconic podium at Monza after three hours of racing in September 2024.
The strategists face a special challenge this coming weekend. Due to the high fuel consumption on the track, an additional pit stop is mandatory. The SRO has imposed three mandatory pit stops for the race on Sunday afternoon, with each driver having a minimum driving time of 50 minutes. This means that one driver in each driver trio is required to drive an additional, short second stint.
“It’s always a special feeling to drive through the imposing stone arch and the forest into the royal park of Monza, and we’re really looking forward to the upcoming weekend! Last year, the circuit suited our Aston Martin very well, so we’re travelling to Italy with confidence. The additional pit stop is a tactical challenge, but as we are used to tactical driving from the endurance races on the Nordschleife, we hope that this will give us an advantage over the competition,” said Managing Director Jörg Breuer confidently.
The three-hour GT World Challenge Europe powered by AWS Endurance Cup race starts on Sunday at 3 p.m. The three-part qualifying session will take place on Sunday morning from 9:50 a.m. All sessions on Sunday, as well as the two practice sessions on Saturday, can be followed on the official livestream of the racing series on YouTube, which is available in German and English, among other languages. On Friday, the teams will also have two 90-minute test sessions at their disposal to optimally prepare their vehicles for the high-speed battle.