The fifth and final stop of the Lamborghini Super Trofeo Asia before the World Final took Leipert Motorsport, supported by PROFICAR, to the historic Sepang International Circuit in Malaysia.
In extremely hot but dry conditions, the team took on the challenge with two cars: the #27 was driven by Ethan Brown as a solo driver in the PRO class, while Brendon Leitch (NZL) and JJ Song (CHN) competed in the PRO-AM classification with the #89. With a strong performance in pactice and qualifying, as well as a victory in the second race, the team made a clear statement.
Strong performances in practice and qualifying
In Friday’s free practice, both cars showed a consistently fast pace in Sepang and confidently established themselves in the top five at all times. In the subsequent qualifying session, the #27 car with Ethan Brown (PRO) confirmed its strong form: in Q1, he placed third in his class, but had to start three places further back due to a penalty from the previous race. In Q2, Brown stepped up his game and secured second place in the PRO class with a strong lap.
The #89 car with Brendon Leitch and JJ Song (PRO-AM) also impressed: after finishing seventh in Q1, Leitch secured pole position in the PRO-AM classification in Q2, underlining the duo’s strong starting position.
Race 1: Comeback after a difficult start
Brown’s #27 (PRO) started the first race from the fifth row, while the #89 with Leitch and Song (PRO-AM) started from the eighth row. Initially, neither car was able to maintain the strong pace they had shown in qualifying and lost a few positions in the early stages.
As the race progressed, Brown showed fighting spirit, worked his way back into the top five in his class and finally crossed the finish line in fifth place in the PRO category. In the #89, Leitch took the wheel in the second half of the race, made up several places and, together with Song, brought the car home in seventh place in the PRO-AM classification.
Kiwi driver Chris van der Drift finished second overall and first in the Pro-Am Class with Australian driver Todd Kingsford.
Race 2: Dominant performance by Leitch and confident victory for Brown
Both Leipert cars started the second race from excellent positions: Brown took his place on the second row in the #27 (PRO), while Leitch and Song (PRO-AM) started from pole position in the #89. Both cars made the most of their starting positions and led the field. In the first half of the race, they built up a comfortable lead of just under 8 seconds over the second-placed cars in each class.
In the second half of the race, Song took the wheel of the #89 and initially defended the lead, while Brown was in third place overall with the #27, which was equivalent to the lead in the PRO class. However, a safety car phase saw the lead melt away. After the restart, Song lost a few positions in the close battle at the front of the field, eventually finishing in 13th and seventh overall in the Pro-Am Class. Brown took full advantage of the situation, took the lead and clinched the first victory as a solo driver for the #27 – a well-deserved triumph after a strong performance at his home race!
Van der Drift/Kingsford secured a podium finish in third place and first in the Pro-Am Class.
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