Lietz Did “Everything We Could” to Win LMGT3 Title

Photo: Jurgen Tap/Porsche

Richard Lietz said the No. 92 Manthey Porsche 911 GT3 R Evo crew did “everything we could” to win the FIA World Endurance Championship LMGT3 title but came up short in Sunday’s season-ending 6 Hours of Monza, despite claiming victory in the race.

The veteran Porsche factory driver, in his 100th series start, teamed with Yasser Shahin and Riccardo Pera for their second consecutive class win and fifth podium out of eight races.

However, a third place result for the No. 33 TF Sport Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R of Nicky Catsburg, Ben Keating and Jonny Edgar was enough for Edgar to take the title by eight points.

“We didn’t lose it today, to be honest,” Lietz told Sportscar365. “A WEC championship is a championship where you cannot have any zeros. We had three. We still had the chance to theoretically win it in the last race.

“That shows the good result in the other races.

“It was clear from the beginning of the weekend that we needed a lot of luck. We won the race, so we did everything we could on this weekend. It was not enough.

“TF did a fantastic job this year, well deserved. I think we showed our potential but it was not enough enough for the championship.”

Reflecting on the race, Lietz was caught up in a late-race battle with the No. 23 Heart of Racing Aston Martin Vantage GT3 Evo of Eduardo Barrichello, who applied heavy pressure on the Austrian.

“There was definitely more pressure than I hoped for,” said Lietz. “But it was like it was. We got the victory in the end.

“It was not an easy race for us but the strategy of the team was going long, getting the VSCs on the perfect side with a bit of luck.

“Riccardo did a fantastic stint… In the end, it was for sure a hard fight with Barrichello but after the checkered flag we talked and everything is nice.

“I think if it’s that close the last two laps, obviously you have a bit more elbows [out] than normal.

“Monza is not the perfect track for us. But today we had the luck on our side and got the victory, so it’s nice to end it on a high. It was an incredible job by the team and I’m happy to be part of it.”

Catsburg, for his part, was also in the late-race scrap that also included the fourth-place running No. 69 Team WRT BMW M4 GT3 EVO of Dan Harper.

“The last stint was very exciting,” said Catsburg. “I was, to be honest, sh***ing my pants a little bit.

“The guys behind me were all very fast and I knew we had to bring home a good result because the 92, unfortunately, magically had enormous pace today, even with all their weight.

“It was pretty tough because these were the first laps in the dry for me this weekend. The first few laps I was way too slow and I could already see the story going, ‘Catsburg messes up Edgar’s championship.’

“Luckily that didn’t happen. The car was great and I got some good coaching from the wall. We had good pace in the end.”

Photo: Andrea Lorenzina/DPPI

Edgar: LMGT3 Title Win Was “Closer Than I Would Have Liked”

For Edgar, who claimed the championship as a solo driver, it came as a “pretty stressful” day, despite needing to only score a sixth place finish or higher, no matter what the No. 92 Porsche crew did.

While running solidly inside the top-five early on, the No. 33 Corvette dropped to the rear of the field in the second hour when Keating incurred a drive-through penalty for a Virtual Safety Car infraction.

“The 92 had to win and we needed to be top-six, so we knew we had to finish in a good position because from the last three hours, it kinda looked like they were going to win,” said Edgar.

“Everything had to go right. But it did. The team did a great job. Ben and Nicky did great. I’m happy to get it done.

“Since Le Mans we’ve been in a strong position so I knew the chance to win the championship looked good, but it was still closer than I would have liked.”

It marked Edgar’s second sports car racing title after taking the 2024 European Le Mans Series LMP2 championship, also in a TF-operated entry.

“It’s great, really,” he said. “I didn’t expect this a couple of years ago, especially when I switched to endurance racing, I didn’t think I would be in this position so soon.

“It’s a big thanks to Ben for picking me to drive with him for the last two years. Nicky’s done a great job this year.

“Also TF, I’ve been part of the team since I joined endurance racing in 2024. Nearly all of my success in endurance racing has been with them.

“I’m happy to win for the team as well.”

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