If there was no race in Monza, it should have been invented. All the adrenaline the viewers could dream about was abundantly spilled in the air during the final GT Cup Open Europe round. This series with its first start in this season could not be called boring in any case. However, we can safely say after the final that the show was a success! You cannot even imagine...

 

The beginning was quite calm – 400 horsepower racing cars were driving on the track with the average speed of about 200 km/h – a usual weekend, you know. Adrenaline rush happened for the first time in the first race...

 

 

 

Other cars happened to be on the track at the moment of the start (it can happen during the races), and Lino Curti was at odds over the trajectory with one of them. It resulted in the broken radiator, and then the fallout after several laps. It was the first time in this season when the Tsunami RT crew could not reach the finish. And it happened in the final round! Only one race left, and we had not enough driving yet! It was not a full stop in this story, but only elision marks.

 

Nobody could even imagine how much driving we would have the next day...

 

#81 Lino Curti: "Pity, I was going very fast! A mechanical problem forced us to retire. We hope for tomorrow!"

 

 

So, Sunday. Monza. A sunny morning. The final race of GT Cup Open Europe season. Carlo Curti's qualification was successful: he got the seventh position.

 

#81 Carlo Curti: "I am very happy ! I haven't been practicing that much on Friday (red flag in FP2) and nothing on Saturday because of the retire in race 1 but this morning I found the right feeling with the car. Let's see if we'll be more lucky for race 2!"

 

 

The start was not lucky – Carlo lost some positions, became the 10th, and was trying to win them back during the whole race, and get closer to the leaders. Mission accomplished: Lino was the fifth after the replacement of drivers in the conclusive part of the round. We were doing very well!

 

At that moment Lino declared himself a real fighter. Having overrun two competitors, he became the third in the overall classification several laps before the finish! He was followed by Thiago Vivacqua and Guille Puillet, but they were too busy with their own competition to attack Lino seriously. Hans Peter Koller and Niki Leutwiler were ahead, with their own score to settle with. Will we really be able to complete this season with a nice full stop – the bronze podium in the overall classification?!

 

Spoiler: we could not do that. Do you want details? Here they are!

 

The remaining race time is rapidly ticking away and finally turns into zero. It is the last lap.

 

At that moment Niki Leutwiler suddenly accelerates and overruns Koller. At this, he slightly hits his competitor. Half a lap remains until the checkered flag, and Koller has a punctured wheel! It reveals that Leitwiler is in the same situation! What can they do?

 

 

 

It is clear what the two ex-leaders should do: they should try to get to the finish. Koller has more serious damage, but Leitwiler will become the champion in case of his fallout. Half a lap decides the gold medal!

 

What should Lino do? Floor it!!! Lino is rushing to the finish having overrun both his beat-up competitors. There is nobody ahead! Lino and Carlo Curti become the winners of the final race of the season under the wave of the checkered flag! What a result! It is not a full stop, it is an exclamation mark! Or even three of them!!!

 

 

While the whole Tsunami RT team is crying with happiness on the pit lane, two ex-leaders with their broken cars are trying to reach the finish falling behind their finishing competitors. Koller's car inflames! The driver turns onto the pit lane. Leitwiler follows him having presented the victory in the season to his competitor.

 

The race finishes with clouds of smoke, fire extinguisher jets and yells of the announcer. It is the brightest final of the season we could ever imagine!

 

 

 

#81 Carlo Curti: "Incredible!!! Incredible win, incredibile team! This is the best way to finish a great year with the best team ever! Thank you all!!!"

 

 

 

 

The golden podium, first in this series for Lino and Carlo. They get the title of the bronze medalists of the season-2019 in Pro-Am class. What else can they dream of?

 

Except perhaps the next season? Such incredible emotions are never too much. No, that's not it. Never too much! With the exclamation mark in the end!