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26 April 2023 Barwell takes dramatic pro-am win at GT World Challenge Europe opener

Barwell Motorsport claimed a spectacular Pro-Am class victory at the opening round of the 2023 Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup, coming from behind to snatch the win in the final laps at Monza. This success also marked the first win across the globe for the new-for-2023 Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2.

 

With power outages at the historic Italian circuit leading to a truncated qualifying session, the Black Bull Scotch Whisky-sponsored Barwell team was on the back foot heading into Sunday's three-hour race, as its pro driver, Dennis Lind, was denied the chance to take to the track and confirm what was looking certain to have been pole position in the closely contested Pro-Am category. Nevertheless, such had been the pace of Barwell's opening pair Adam Balon and Rob Collard, the #78 Lamborghini Huracan held on to third in class when the early finish was called.

 

There could have been further misfortune as the 55-strong field got the green light too, as a multi-car accident towards the rear of the pack caused chaos heading into the opening chicane. Series debutant Balon kept his cool, however, and managed to escape the carnage around him before going on to complete a very strong stint behind the wheel in second place, thus keeping the Barwell Huracan in the hunt for victory. Fellow Briton Collard then put in a great effort to move up the order overall and cut the deficit to the leading Pro-Am BMW by a full 15 seconds before handing over to the rapid Lind for the final hour.

 

Despite still trailing the class leader, and with entries from other classes between their respective cars, the Dane set about showing the sort of pace that Barwell was denied in qualifying, quickly closing the gap before making a phenomenal move for the Pro-Am lead just a handful of laps from the end. Once in front, Lind pulled out a six-second cushion over his pursuer to comfortably take the chequered flag and claim Barwell's first win of another busy season, thus establishing us at the top of the Teams and Drivers Endurance Cup points standings after the first round.

 

Focus now turns to the Silverstone 500 (6-7^th May) which last year saw the Surrey based team claim a stunning victory. 

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