Winward Claims Historic First at Monza Amidst Caution-Filled Chaos

Text: Rick Kiewiet

Images: SRO

Mercedes-AMG Team MANN-FILTER wrote a new chapter in GT World Challenge Europe history at Monza, finally sealing the German marque’s elusive first overall Endurance Cup win at the Temple of Speed. The No. 48 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo of Maro Engel, Matteo Cairoli and Lucas Auer emerged victorious after three hours of frenetic racing that saw eight Full Course Yellow periods, pivotal pit strategy swings, and an attrition rate that left only 42 of the 58 starters running at the chequered flag.

Cairoli’s perfectly timed dive into pit lane during a mid-race FCY proved decisive, leapfrogging the No. 48 past the dominant No. 17 Mercedes-AMG Team GetSpeed machine. While the GetSpeed trio of Jules Gounon, Fabian Schiller and Luca Stolz had controlled the race early from pole, their race unravelled during the second round of pit stops. Pitting just before the caution, they lost track position to Winward and were later forced to retire after Stolz left the pits with a loose front-left wheel.

Once in front, Winward never looked back. Auer took over for the final stint and comfortably managed the gap to Joseph Loake in the No. 59 Garage 59 McLaren 720S GT3 Evo, which crossed the line 16.4 seconds adrift after an impressive drive from the rookie. The podium was completed by the No. 007 Comtoyou Racing Aston Martin Vantage GT3 Evo of Nicki Thiim, Marco Sorensen and Mattia Drudi, which had also benefitted from the mid-race yellow to vault forward in the order.

The Gold Cup win went to AlManar Racing by WRT, whose No. 777 BMW M4 GT3 EVO of Al Faisal Al Zubair, Ben Tuck and Jens Klingmann delivered a standout performance. Tuck’s charge from eleventh to fifth during the middle stint was among the highlights of the race, and the white-liveried BMW ultimately finished fourth overall, a full 36 seconds clear of the class field.

The sister No. 32 Team WRT BMW of Charles Weerts, Ugo de Wilde and Kelvin van der Linde rounded out the overall top five, salvaging a solid result despite a five-second penalty for pit lane speeding. The result ensures they cling to the championship lead—albeit with their advantage over Engel, Cairoli and Auer cut to just two points.

Sixth place went to Schumacher CLRT’s No. 22 Porsche, with Ayhancan Güven making a decisive late pass on Henrique Chaves at Variante del Rettifilo. Chaves’ dogged defence of seventh in the No. 34 Walkenhorst Aston Martin was a dramatic final-stint story in itself, involving elbows-out battles with both Güven and Thomas Preining’s Pure Rxcing Porsche. Ultimately, Chaves’ move on Preining at Roggia earned a ten-second penalty that demoted the No. 34 to twelfth.

The incident promoted the No. 42 Century Motorsport BMW to seventh overall and, more importantly, to the Silver Cup win. Dutchman Mex Jansen snatched the class lead in the final 20 minutes after a mistake from Etienne Cheli in the No. 30 Team WRT BMW, who ran deep into the first chicane under pressure and settled for second in class and ninth overall.

Tenth place went to the No. 163 VSR Lamborghini, followed by Rutronik Racing’s No. 97 Porsche. The pairing of Antares Au and Loek Hartog secured Bronze Cup honours, despite contesting the race as a duo following Morris Schuring’s last-minute switch to the Schumacher CLRT entry.

Garage 59’s No. 188 McLaren had led the Bronze field early but lost out during the key FCY window. They finished third in class behind the No. 81 Winward Mercedes-AMG.

Elsewhere, it was a bruising day for many Pro squads. Both AF Corse – Francorchamps Motors Ferraris failed to finish, while the No. 63 GRT Lamborghini and No. 98 ROWE BMW were also among the high-profile retirees. The No. 58 Garage 59 McLaren, which ran third early on, was eliminated in a dramatic two-car clash at the first chicane just past the two-hour mark.

Mercedes-AMG’s long Monza drought is finally over, leaving no venue on the Endurance Cup calendar unconquered by the Stuttgart marque. All eyes now shift to the season’s centrepiece: the 24 Hours of Spa at the end of June.