TR3 Racing pairing win North American Pro title in Jerez Race 1, ending two-year title streak for WTRAndretti…

Ernie Francis Jr. and Giano Taurino clinched the Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America Pro title with a race to spare by finishing second in Race 1 at Jerez.

The No. 188 TR3 Racing Lamborghini Huracan Super Trofeo EVO2 crossed the line 0.376 seconds behind the race-winning pairing of Bryson Morris and Loris Cabirou, who won from third on the grid.

Despite starting from pole position, the No. 101 Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti Lamborghini of Danny Formal and Ryan Norman finished the race in fifth, which allowed Francis Jr. and Taurino to provisionally clinch the title with a race to spare.

Their second place finish places the TR3 pairing 17 points clear of Formal and Norman in the Pro standings, with 15 points up for grabs in the final race of the season on Friday.

It marks the first time since 2021 that a driver not from the Wayne Taylor Racing stable won the North American Pro title, dating back to Dream Racing’s Richard Antinucci success at the Misano World Finals that year.

Formal lost the lead on the opening lap when he was passed by Cabirou’s No. 130 ANSA Motorsport Lamborghini at the Senna Chicane.

The Frenchman and co-driver Morris subsequently maintained the lead through both the pitstop window and a trio of safety car restarts to win.

At the final restart, Francis came to blows with the No. 104 ANSA Motorsport machine of Kiko Porto for second place, which left the latter in the gravel with reported broken suspension.

Meanwhile, Jake Walker jumped three places at the final restart to jump up to third place aboard the No. 177 Forty7 Motorsports Lamborghini, completing the podium ahead of stablemates AJ Muss and Joel Miller, who won in Pro-Am.

Formal and Norman rounded out the overall top five, ahead of Nate Stacy and Nick Persing.

Groat Locks Up LB Cup Title

Nick Groat won the championship in LB Cup, keeping his nose clean to press home a sizeable championship advantage as a result of his main rival’s absence.

Groat, piloting the No. 157 One Motorsport Lamborghini, came into the weekend with a lead of twelve points over TR3 Racing driver Rodrigo Vales.

However, with Vales opting not to travel to Spain to participate in the end-of-season World Finals event, Groat entered the weekend as the effective champion-elect.

He went on to take the crown with a race to spare by capturing the class victory as the sole other LB Cup runner, US RaceTronics’ Jonathan Hirshberg, retired on the fifth lap.

The Am victory, meanwhile, went to Precision Performance Motorsports’ Dominic Starkweather, who now leads the No. 169 WTRAndretti duo of Anthony McIntosh and Glenn McGee by two points heading into Friday’s finale.

Article Referenced: Sportscar365- https://sportscar365.com/imsa/lamborghini-st/francis-jr-taurino-clinch-title-in-jerez-race-1/