Mortara: You Need to Bring Your ‘A-Game’ to Macau

Photo: Julien Delfosse/DPPI

Edoardo Mortara believes you have to bring your ‘A-game’ to Macau in order to be successful on the challenging street circuit, particularly in the high-stakes GT3 competition.

The 37-year-old Swiss driver, nicknamed ‘Mr. Macau’ owing to his seven victories on the Guia Circuit, has lined up with a Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2 for the first time, as part of a two-car effort from SJM VSR Theodore Racing that also features fellow Lamborghini factory driver Matteo Cairoli.

Mortara, who finished runner-up to Raffaele Marciello in last year’s FIA GT World Cup Main Race, has also underwent a switch of manufacturers during the off-season, having aligned with Lamborghini for its maiden FIA World Endurance Championship Hypercar campaign.

His previous Macau GT Cup and GT World Cup victories came in Audi and Mercedes-AMG machinery.

While having limited experience with the Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2, with his only outing coming in September’s Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe powered by AWS Endurance Cup round at Monza aboard an Iron Lynx-run entry, Mortara admitted he’s stepping a bit into the unknown this weekend.

“It’s difficult to know what to expect,” he told Sportscar365. “Lamborghini has not competed in Macau in the very last events and I think experience there is actually quite important.

“In order to know if we’re going to be able to do well or not, I think that firstly we need to hit the track, see how the car is behaving there.

“Hopefully it can be good.”

Mortara added: “I’ve done the Monza race in GT World Challenge, which was actually quite challenging. But I must also say Macau is something completely specific.

“I tend to actually do well quite a bit better compared to normal race tracks with the GT cars.

“I don’t have a lot of experience in the GT3s although I am doing the race every year, it’s not something I’m driving quite often.

“When you’re competing against the best, you need to do quite a lot of mileage on these cars. This makes quite a bit of difference.”

When asked if his track knowledge, and success, supersedes car experience, Mortara admitted knowing the ins and outs of the 6.2-km Guia Circuit does play a factor.

“I would say, probably Macau if you get good experience of the track, it’s probably helping you a little bit more,” he said.

“It is never completely compensating, the fact that you’re not driving these cars for the entire year.

“Still there, I think it’s a track that usually if you know well, it tends to help you a little bit.”

This year’s grid sees the return of Lamborghini to Macau for the first time since 2017 when Mirko Bortolotti’s FFF Racing Team by ACM Huracan GT3 Evo crashed out of the event in the Qualifying Race.

Despite three Lamborghinis entered this weekend, along with an increased effort from Ferrari, Mortara believes the level of competition is more-or-less the same during its peak, pre-COVID years.

“I wouldn’t say it’s increasing,” he said. “If you take since 2016/17, it’s a field that’s usually quite strong where the top manufacturers are normally bringing their top drivers.

“In my opinion, last year, the level was already quite high.

“In the end, it’s roughly the same drivers. It’s not completely surprising on that level.

“But I know we’re going to have to face the best of the best and you have to bring your A-game.”

John Dagys

John Dagys is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Sportscar365. Dagys spent eight years as a motorsports correspondent for FOXSports.com and SPEED Channel and has contributed to numerous other motorsports publications worldwide. Contact John