Matteo Cairoli has taken his first win at the wheel of the Mercedes AMG GT3 EVO, and he did so in the inaugural round of the International GT Open 2025. The Como native, who took part in the first seasonal event of the series at the Portimao circuit, took home the overall victory in race-2, after finishing the first race of the weekend in fourth place. Matteo, who will not participate in all the events of the championship, showed up at the start of the Portuguese event with Team Motopark, a German team with years of experience in the International GT Open, sharing the cockpit of their Pro category Mercedes with the young Hungarian Levente Révés.
During the collective tests and free practice, Cairoli gained confidence with the car and the complex Portimao circuit, with the #11 crew finishing both practice sessions inside the top-5; Cairoli then took to the track for Saturday’s qualifying, taking third place overall. The Como native thus started race-1 from the second row of the grid, managing to maintain third place in the early stages and remaining close to the leading duo. At the end of an excellent first stint, Cairoli handed the car over to his teammate, who fought to finish on the podium in the first race of the weekend. Unfortunately, a contact in the final stages relegated the Team Motopark car to fourth place overall, following a 10-second penalty assigned by the race stewards to Révész.
The Hungarian then tackled Sunday’s qualifying, placing himself in seventh place overall. In race-2, following a regular stint in which he recovered a place, Révész handed the German team’s Mercedes AMG GT3 EVO over to Cairoli, who emerged from the pit-lane in fifth position. From that moment on, Matteo began to set an exceptional race pace, recovering considerable ground on his opponents, and taking second place thanks to a spectacular double overtaking on turn 5. With 11 minutes to go, Matteo finally decisively attacked the McLaren leading the race, thus conquering the top of the standings; the Como native then continued to push undisturbed towards success, taking home a strong victory and demonstrating once again all his talent. The Team Motopark duo thus greeted the first round of the International GT Open at the top of the drivers’ standings, thanks to the 23 points earned over the weekend.
As for Matteo Cairoli’s 2025 calendar, the next seasonal commitment will see the Como native return to the wheel of the Iron Lynx Oreca 07, on the occasion of the second round of the European Le Mans Series at the Circuit Paul Ricard, with the 4 Hours of Le Castellet scheduled for Sunday 4 May.
Matteo Cairoli
“I am really excited about my performance in the first weekend of the International GT Open season. It was not an easy weekend, but taking my first win behind the wheel of the Mercedes AMG GT3 EVO, as well as the first international one for the new specification of the car, is really special, especially in a high-level championship like this. I want to thank Team Motopark for giving me the opportunity to race this weekend: the car was really competitive, and I am happy to have helped Levente score important points for his season.”
