Stunning Victory for SJM Theodore Racing in Shanghai!
Shanghai, May 18, 2025:
Supported by long-time partner, Macau-based integrated resorts operator SJM Resorts S.A., SJM Theodore Racing raced to a third win from four starts in the Lamborghini Supertrofeo Asia series in Shanghai.
In an incident-packed race, Macau's Charles Leong picked up the Lamborghini Huracán from team-mate Alex Denning in second place and, having moved swiftly into the lead, held off sustained pressure all the way to the chequered flag to record a famous win.
Leong crossed the line with just .442s margin over the second-placed car to unleash scenes of delight on the pit wall with Denning first to congratulate Leong as he arrived back in parc fermé.
Starting from third on the grid, Denning was briefly up to second before settling into third place as the first half of the race unfolded. The Irish driver managed tyre wear and kept the fourth-placed driver at bay as a series of incidents further down the field brought the safety car into play three times.
Running under full course yellow flags, Denning brought the SJM Theodore number 32 car into pit lane to hand over to Leong. Lightning quick work by the pit crew led to a reshuffle of the lead order and helped Leong to resume in front of the erstwhile race leader and in second place as the safety car finally headed into the pit lane with just over 11 minutes of the 50-minute race duration remaining.
Leong plunged down the inside at turn one to take the lead and then faced the biggest test of the weekend as the number 7 car looked for a way past. Displaying impressive coolness under pressure, Leong kept his rival at bay for the remaining three laps.
During that time he discovered that the team's slick pit work was adjudged to have been a fraction too swift and a 0.32 second penalty would be applied at the end of race.
Crossing the line to start the final lap, Leong held a lead of just 0.276s and knew that he would have to create a slight buffer over the remaining lap of the Shanghai Grand Prix circuit to secure the victory.
Pulling out all the stops, he extracted every ounce of grip still available from his tyres and opened up the required daylight in the final two sectors. Crossing the line 0.742s clear, the victory translated to less than half a second margin after almost an hour around one of the most challenging venues in world motorsport.
It meant that SJM Theodore have recorded three wins and a second place from the first four races in the championship and head to the third event of the series in Fuji brimful of confidence.
Afterwards Leong reflected on a superb all round team performance and a personal tour de force.
Charles Leong:
“I'm really happy we got a P1 even though we were struggling a bit with pace. It was a nice defence until the end. We made no mistakes and everyone pulled together as a team, so it was really, really positive and, ultimately, we have extended our championship lead.
"I think the tyres changed quite critically during the race, and also we were using a half set from yesterday. I think the weather didn't help us to bring the tyres in during our race. So that was the main issue we were suffering. It was quite hard to drive but we pulled out the win in the end.
"For sure, I'm looking forward to the next round in Fuji, I really want to continue the wins and show what we are capable of.”
Alex Denning:
"Race two was a difficult one. We've been pushing hard all weekend to fine tune the balance on the car and we tried something on the car setup that didn't quite work as we'd hoped. Still, the team had a great strategy with the pit stops and it's ultimately been a great weekend.
"We did a great full course yellow procedure to overlap the car ahead and we're absolutely delighted coming away with the win. It's a credit to all of SJM Theodore Racing, all the work that has been done behind the scenes and to come out with such a strong result in such difficult circumstances."
Teddy Yip Junior:
“This weekend has been amazing for all the team, in some ways better than Sydney in the way the team has responded to every challenge they have faced and come up with solutions that led to a win and a second place finish to extend the series lead.
"The way that Alex managed the tyres in the first stint today and Charles then soaked up the pressure in the final laps was a source of joy for all. It bodes well for the season in the manner in which we continued to extract further performance from the car throughout the weekend and were able to produce the lap times, strategy and on track race craft to give SJM Theodore Racing another weekend to remember.”
