Abbie Eaton scores top-5 in Lamborghini ST Europe at Spa

At her second weekend in the Lamborghini Super Trofeo Europe, Abbie Eaton scored her first top five of the season with a great drive in race 1 at Spa, as her team Rebelleo Motorsport gained two positions from the start.

Abbie Eaton and teammate Daan Arrow had a strong first race in the Lamborghini Super Trofeo Europe at Spa, where the Rebelleo Motorsport's duo secured their first top five finish of the year on only their second participation. Eaton - a multi championship winning racer - returned to a full-time racing schedule after last racing in the all-female W Series single seater championship in 2021 and 2022; the British racer has now founded her own motorsport startup - Rebelleo Racing - to challenge the status quo in the sport. The team's target is in fact to make an impact on future generations, by leveling the playing field and "break glass ceilings well beyond the male vs female debate". Rebelleo Motorsport's mission is to break down barriers that prevent talented drivers from succeeding in the sport. Eaton is partnering young talent Daan Arrow in her new motorsport adventure - and the duo immediately scored a top six in the Pro class at debut, in the Paul Ricard season opener. The Rebelleo Motorsport's drivers were eager to build upon that strong start and make more progress at Spa Francorchamps, which hosted the Lamborghini Super Trofeo Europe's second round of the season in conjunction with the 2023 Crowdstrike 24 Hours of Spa. Eaton/Arrow led both practice sessions in the Pro class ahead of qualifying: Daan Arrow qualified seventh overall and fourth among the Pro category, while Eaton was 13th in class in her qualifying segment out of a 48 car field - in a highly promising start of the weekend. The massive grid of Lamborghini Huracan SuperTrofeo Evo2 took the start of the first race on Friday afternoon, in dry conditions after mixed weather had marked the start of the weekend. At lights out, Daan Arrow had a spectacular run towards Eau Rouge and then up the Kemmel straight, managing to get ahead of Yelmer Buurman in the #89 Iron Lynx; the Rebelleo driver moved up to fifth overall and third in Pro. With more spectacular passes, the Dutchman made one more position at La Source on Schandorff and then saved the car from a big moment on top of Raidillon to hold position. Mattia Michelotto retained the overall top spot after starting from pole position, ahead of Thomas Laurent and Loris Spinelli. Arrow defended from Schandorff as the pit window approached; Michelotto stretched his gap in the lead by over 6 seconds, while Laurant and Spinelli battled for third overall. Spinelli eventually got past Laurant on lap 11 with a clean move at Bruxelles corner. Arrow pitted on lap 12 and handed over to Abbie Eaton from third in class. Eaton found herself fourth place in the PRO class and sixth overall after the round of pit stops. Gilles Stadsbader had taken over the overall leads in the VSR Lamborghini, preceding Adam Eteki (Boutsen VDS) and Brendon Leitch (Leipert Motorsport) after the driver changes. Eaton was under pressure from Amaury Bonduel and the driver of the #28 Huracan made a move stick at La Source on lap 17. Eaton lost momentum and was overtaken also by Cedric Wauters on the Kemmel; a safety car soon after neutralized the action and gave the British driver the chance to regroup. Stadsbader had a slower restart and had to defend from Eteki - who then was hit with a drive through penalty for pit stop duration. Stadsbader had managed to build a good margin on the final lap and kept his cool to win the race; after post-race penalties for pit stop infringements and speeding in pit lane were applied, Eteki lost second to Brendon Leitch, with Rodrigo Testa promoted to third. Abbie Eaton was fifth overall as well as in the Pro class - in yet another very strong run for both the Rebelleo drivers at the team's second ever race weekend. Under heavy rain, the second race on Saturday morning was eventually red flagged and called after four laps behind the safety car due to the unsafe conditions. Abbie Eaton was classified P13 in the Pro category and half-points were awarded. The next Lamborghini Super Trofeo Europe race is set to take place in four weeks' time at the Nürburgring, Germany, on 28-30 July.