Last weekend the Autodromo Nazionale Monza was the venue for the sixth round of the International GT Open season 2018. The track north of Milan is a very fast track and with its long straights not really designed for a car like the Mercedes-AMG GT3. With that in mind it was a bit surprising that Tom Onslow-Cole could claim the pole position with the SPS AMG GT3 #20 in the first qualifying. He was also the one who took the first stint of race 1 and later handed the car over to Valentin Pierburg. Thus, the plan for first race was almost perfect and could have resulted in a victory. But things are different as planned: After the qualifying the engine had a crack in the front end cover plate, leaking oil… The team had to give everything here to fix the damage and to get the car ready for the race. Here again many thanks to the team Imperiale Racing which helped with welding work to bring the vehicle to the start of the race!
Despite all difficulties the driver duo Tom Onslow-Cole and Valentin Pierburg finished the race 1 on a P6 in the ProAM class. The most important thing here was to bring the car to the finish line without any major damage and immediately set the full focus on the second qualifying and race on Sunday.
Valentin Pierburg secured a good starting position in the second qualifying session: both direct competitors had to start from positions further back. So, it was a good starting position for the ongoing fight for the championship. It was clear that it would be difficult for the team SPS automotive performance in Italy as this type of track, as mentioned above, is not necessarily designed for the Mercedes AMG GT3. Unfortunately, the second race ended without points. Nevertheless, the team SPS is still in the competition for the championship and will be perfectly prepared for the season finale in Barcelona! There, the whole team will once more give everything and fight for the maximum score!
Team manager Stephan Sohn:
“Thanks a lot to Valentin Pierburg and Tom Onslow-Cole, as well as to the full Team for the perfect job in solving the problem with the oil leaking. At this point also many thanks to Imperiale Racing for the collegial help, which unfortunately is no longer self-evident in today’s motorsport circus! The effort was then not rewarded as hoped in the race. Our whole focus is now on the season final in Barcelona. The entire team will go to Spain perfectly prepared and ready to fight for the maximum amount of points!”