- Franco Girolami achieved pole position , victory in Saturday’s race and second place in Sunday’s race aboard the new CUPRA León VZ TCR and is the leader of the TCR Europe.
- The driver from Isla Verde (Argentina) leads the championship with 85 points, 5 more than his immediate pursuer. Monlau also dominates the classification in the team section.
- Viktor Davidovski remained in the Top 10 in both rounds and is third in the Diamond Trophy.
- “We are very happy with the result. The Cupra León VZ is new and we have made a significant effort to be in this situation. We have a team and two drivers who have demonstrated their potential,” says David Simón, Team Manager of Monlau Motul.
- “The team’s operation has been excellent. Our technicians and engineers have worked together with CUPRA Racing in the management of the TCR, resulting in great work,” says Jaime Serrano, CEO of Monlau Motorsport.
The Autódromo Piero Taruffi in Vallelunga (Italy) was the scene, last weekend, of Monlau Motul’s brilliant debut at the TCR Europe. In it, Franco Girolami starred in an impeccable weekend, which concluded with a pole , a victory and a second place to place himself as the leader of the championship 5 points above his pursuer.
The action on the track began on Friday with the two free practice sessions, followed by qualifying, where the Spanish team went all out aboard its two units of the new CUPRA León VZ TCR and in which Girolami achieved pole position . Viktor Davidovski took the eighth fastest time.
On Saturday the moment of truth arrived with the dispute of the inaugural race of the course in Monlau Motul’s debut in this competition after dominating last year in the TCR Spain. The driver from Isla Verde (Argentina) dominated the 15 laps from start to finish to take the first place on the podium and thus add the first victory for the Spanish team in the TCR Europe. For his part, Davidovski made some overtakes, but finally maintained the eighth place he had at the start.
Already on Sunday, the Argentine driver started tenth on the inverted grid system and progressed very quickly. At the end of the first lap he had already placed fifth and a double pass on the third lap allowed him to get into podium positions. The presence of a safety car helped him get closer to the first two, which he took advantage of perfectly to gain one more place and cross the finish line second. Viktor Davidovski started third, but was involved in some incidents and had to settle for ninth place. The Macedonian driver is third in the Diamond Trophy classification, reserved for drivers over 40 years old.
In this way, Monlau Motul closed a very satisfactory weekend, in which Girolami emerged as the leader with 85 points and the entire team of mechanics and engineers demonstrated a high level. The team’s next stop in TCR Europe will be at the historic Zolder circuit (Belgium), from May 17 to 19. In addition, on May 11 and 12, the Spanish team will be present at the start of the TCR Spain at the Madrid Jarama-RACE Circuit.
David Simón , Team Manager of Monlau Motul, highlighted the achievements of the weekend:“We are very happy with the result. The CUPRA León VZ is new and we have made a significant effort to arrive well prepared. We have a team and two drivers who have shown their potential. Franco took pole and a win, as well as a second place, which I think is a true display of his talent. Viktor has always been in the top ten and, although he has suffered a little more due to different contacts and race situations, he has had a good weekend.”
Jaime Serrano , CEO of Monlau Motul, valued the work done by the team: “The team’s operations have been excellent. Our technicians and engineers have worked together with CUPRA Racing in the management of the new CUPRA León VZ, resulting in great work achieving the provisional leadership of drivers and teams. It is a good starting point to start preparing for the season premiere at the TCR Spain in Jarama at the beginning of May.”
