Lamborghini Takes 1st and 2nd at 12 Hours of Sebring

It was a battle of strategy, perfection, mixed with good fortune and fuel strategy that brought the #11 Grasser Racing Team its latest victory at the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring.

The GRT GT3 Huracán gave both the Italian automotive manufacturer and Austrian team the unofficial “36 Hours of Florida”  honors with its successive victories at the Daytona 24 Hours and again in Sebring for the GTD class.

Team Principal Gottfried Grasser said, “I’m simply lost for words. Our success rate in the American races is 100 percent with three wins in a row. The race itself was extremely turbulent with many ups and downs. We extended our last three stints by a good margin and our drivers saved fuel where possible, which enabled us to stick to our strategy and we didn’t have to make another stop.”

Driver Mirko Bortolotti, with teammates Rolf Ineichen and Rik Breukers piloted through the checkered flag in P1 ahead of competitor Magnus Racing’s Huracán. It was a 1-2 win for Lamborghini as the GT3 Huracán proves to be a venerable competitor.

“I would like to especially thank Rolf Ineichen,” continued Grasser. “[W]ho pushed incredibly hard, Mirko Bortolotti, who has no equal when he’s behind the wheel and Rik Breukers, who also turned in an impeccable performance. And, of course, the entire team deserves my utmost respect. For twelve hours, they did not make a single mistake. Every move was dead right and every stop perfect from start to finish. I am incredibly proud of the whole team, and last but not least, many thanks to Squadra Corse Lamborghini, who backed us wonderfully well at this demanding track right from the very first tests. The support we’ve received from Lamborghini is just awesome. Everyone worked well together in this thrilling race.”

With less than two hours, Bortolotti climbed from fifth to the first position staving off a last-ditch effort by Andy Lally of Magnus Racing who would finish in second with his teammates Spencer Pumplley and John Potter. A late-in-the-race yellow condition inadvertently allowed the Grasser team to conserve much-needed fuel for the last of the race.

“What a race! Winning Sebring, one of the toughest races on the entire calendar, is just amazing,” said driver Mirko Bortolotti. “The last two hours were the toughest of my whole career. First off, I outbraked Andy Lally in the first turn, and then after that, he stuck to my bumper for an hour and a half until we reached the finish line. The slightest mistake would have been enough to lose us the win, and what’s more, I really needed to save fuel but wanted to secure victory more than anything. Hats off to everyone in the team! I’m really proud of every one of them.”

Stefano Domenicali, CEO of Automobili Lamborghini, said: "After an extraordinary 2018, the new year has started in the best possible way. Winning the 12 Hours of Sebring for the second time in a row underlines the indisputable qualities of the Huracán GT3 project. This is a great success for the entire Lamborghini team."