Sport + Motorsport
Southland’s Brendon Leitch ended his Lamborghini Super Trofeo season on a high, securing two commanding victories in Europe’s final round at Misano. Racing as a guest entry alongside Australian driver Nicolas Stati, the pair delivered standout performances across both races.
It was the first time Leitch and Stati had teamed up, but the combination clicked immediately in the Leipert Motorsport-run No.70 Lamborghini Huracan Super Trofeo EVO2. They won both Thursday and Friday’s races in the Pro/Pro category, capping off the championship weekend in style.
The first race was not without its challenges. After receiving a five-second penalty for an earlier incident, Leitch had to push hard in the closing stages. He built a large enough lead to hold onto victory by just over a second.
In the second race, Leitch took control early, setting a strong pace before handing over to Stati, who maintained the lead after the pit stop and extended the gap to win by 15 seconds.
“I’m very grateful to Nicolas and the Stati family for having me this weekend. We got to know each other at Sepang earlier this year, so it was pretty cool when they asked me if I could race with Nicolas in the final round of Lamborghini Super Trofeo Europe,” said Leitch.
“To help Nicolas walk away from the weekend with the two best trophies you can get is a credit to his development and Leipert Motorsport for giving us a great car. It was on rails all weekend.
“Nicolas learned a lot this weekend, and although he’s tracking towards a career in single-seaters, there is no doubt he’d be successful in GT racing or sports car if he ever decided to pursue that path. Hopefully we can work together again in the future.”
While contesting the European round, Leitch was also wrapping up his Lamborghini Super Trofeo Asia campaign with Jiajun Song. Their final races of the season at Misano proved far more challenging.
In the first Asia race, Leitch charged through the field but suffered a puncture on the final lap and was not classified. In the second, he was spun by a rival while leading, eventually finishing fourth in class.
The World Finals, which brought together competitors from all regions, were also tough. Song was caught in a first-lap crash in the opening race, while in the second race, despite Leitch running second in Pro-Am, the pair faded late.
“It really was a weekend of what could have been for JJ and I. There were a lot of what-ifs,” said Leitch.
“I think the big takeaway from the weekend was that JJ has a lot of potential to unlock. He hasn't had so much track time on one race weekend, so to see the level of improvement from Wednesday to Sunday was cool.
“It shows that the hard work is paying off, even if the results aren’t necessarily there yet. It will come with time though. It can’t be underestimated how valuable track time is, especially when he’s very new to this and still has a few nerves in wheel-to-wheel racing.
“Maybe not the way we wanted to finish the season but we enjoyed ourselves and all eyes are on 2026.”
Leitch now turns his focus to the final event of 2025 – the Gulf 12 Hours in Abu Dhabi, where he will race a Mercedes-AMG GT3 with Tigani Motorsport on 14 December.
