Kelvin van der Linde has apologised for triggering a heavy multi-car crash during the closing stages of last weekend’s GT World Challenge (GTWC) Europe powered by AWS Endurance Cup round at Monza.
The reigning GTWC Europe champion triggered the incident on the approach to Turn 1 after a Safety Car restart. His BMW M4 GT3 EVO made contact with Alexey Nesov’s Pure Rxcing Porsche 911 GT3 R Evo, which then launched into a roll after striking Ezequiel Perez Companc’s Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo II.
Marvin Dienst’s Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo was also caught up in the collision, which became one of two major accidents in a chaotic three-hour race.
Van der Linde accepts responsibility
Van der Linde received a two-minute stop-and-hold penalty for his role in the crash. Officials later converted that into a 155-second sanction, dropping the Team WRT BMW from seventh to 30th in the final classification.
All drivers involved escaped injury. However, two went to the medical centre for precautionary checks. Van der Linde also went there after the incident to apologise to those involved.
“A big apology to all the drivers involved in the accident,” said van der Linde in a statement. “It was a very unfortunate situation. I misjudged the braking into Turn 1 on the Safety Car restart and tried to avoid contact. Unfortunately, there was another car on my left, which meant I made contact with the Porsche and caused it to spin. The outcome is very bad and something no one wants to see. I am truly sorry, and I am relieved that both drivers were OK when I saw them at the medical centre.”
Monza race ends under caution
The late crash added another dramatic moment to an already disrupted Monza race. The three-hour Endurance Cup contest featured two major collisions and eventually finished under caution.
The first major incident came at the start, when a crash at the first chicane eliminated several cars and reshaped the race almost immediately. Later, the van der Linde incident again disrupted the order and ended Team WRT’s hopes of a stronger points finish.
The race ultimately produced a surprise overall winner, as Tresor Attempto Racing took victory with its Silver Cup Audi. Ariel Levi, Sebastian Ogaard and Rocco Mazzola came through the chaos to win ahead of Winward Racing and CSA Racing.
For Team WRT, however, the late penalty turned a possible top-ten result into a costly finish. Van der Linde’s apology closes the immediate aftermath of the incident, while the Monza result leaves the Belgian squad to regroup before the next GTWC Europe round.
