Domenicali: “No Rush” for Lamborghini to Step Up to GTE

Lamborghini CEO Stefano Domenicali says there is “no rush” for the Italian manufacturer to make the step up to the GTE platform amid increased speculation of a move into the factory-backed class within the next few years.

Reports emerged last summer that Lamborghini was looking to create a GTE version of its Huracan ahead of a possible return to the 24 Hours of Le Mans and entries in the FIA World Endurance Championship and IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.

The GTE platform is currently booming thanks to current factory involvement from Aston Martin, Corvette, Ford, Ferrari and Porsche, with BMW also confirmed to be joining the ranks next year in the WEC, alongside its existing program in the WeatherTech Championship.

When asked by Sportscar365 how Lamborghini’s future GTE racing plans were developing, Domenicali said: “I would say that we are very happy about the [overall racing] platform.

“With the Super Trofeo we have really a lot of cars and we have four championships. With the GT3 program, we are running four different championships as a customer team, so the base is very solid.”

While GT3 acts as a strong base to move up to GTE in the future, Domenicali said that such a move is something Lamborghini would not make lightly, with comprehensive analysis of pros and cons required before a decision would be made.

It’s understood a preliminary proposal involved a factory-backed GT Le Mans class effort in the WeatherTech Championship debuting in 2019, followed by a WEC program the following year, although it’s not clear if those plans have been green-lighted.

“We have to balance with the risk of doing something more versus the investment that is needed,” Domenicali said. “So for sure there are ideas to improve, but no rush because, honestly, we need to see where we are going.”

Domenicali indicated that the launch of its new Urus Super SUV is currently taking priority within the company, with an expansion of its motorsports activities believed to be dependent on the success of its new production vehicle.

“As you know, from Lamborghini’s perspective today, the biggest priority is to invest in the new Super SUV launch,” he said. “This is for us our priority and therefore so far this is really the platform.

“For sure we want to invest in the platform of today because it’s very strong and as you see the number of customers, the number of teams, that are part of our family is increasing. So this is very positive on us.

“But to think of a first step is too early to say.”