In less than three seasons, Maro Engel and Lucas Auer have become one of the most successful pairings on the GT World Challenge grid.
Friends for many years, they joined forces at Winward Racing in 2024 and found instant success. Running the iconic Mann-Filter 'Mamba' livery, the Mercedes-AMG factory drivers won the Sprint Cup crown and then snatched the GT World Challenge drivers' title after a dramatic finale in Jeddah.
Last year they fought for – but ultimately missed out on – all three titles. They’ve brushed off that disappointment and started 2026 in good form, leading the overall drivers’ standings after two rounds. So, what makes this duo so effective?
"We have a pretty similar working attitude and philosophy," explains Auer, who is often referred to by the nickname 'Luggi'. "It's the same with Winward: we really have a lot of fun, but also we work hard and we all focus in the same direction."
"We've known each other for many years, and we always got on well," adds Engel. "When we started sharing a car, it felt like we'd been working together for a long time already.
“Like Luggi says, we share a similar work ethic. We push each and have a healthy competitive spirit, while also having fun, good laughs, and just enjoying racing together. I think that's one of the secrets of our success."
Another important question for teammates is their approach to car setup. How does this work for the Winward duo?
"I set it up, he has to deal with it!" laughs Engel.
"I think we are very similar," says Auer. "So normally, when Maro feels confident and I jump in the car, I know it suits me very well. Everybody has his own little specific things, but we are very similar in driving style."
"Sometimes two drivers have different styles and it's more of a challenge to find a setup with which both feel confident and happy,” says Engel. “So it's obviously one of the benefits when I share the car with Luggi.
"Let's just say one driver is a late breaker who focuses on entry speed, and the other brakes early and focuses on the exit. That's going to generate a different car balance, and the drivers will want different things.
"If you have two drivers who are very similar, they naturally feel and require similar things. In modern day GT racing, that's one of the important keys for success."
The Third Man
Engel and Auer have a new teammate for the Endurance Cup this term, with fellow AMG veteran Luca Stolz recruited in place of Matteo Cairoli. It was a natural choice: Stolz won the 2018 Endurance title with Engel, and they very nearly added the Sprint crown in 2019, only missing out on a tiebreak.
"He's obviously a great driver, someone I've shared the car with a lot, so it's pretty much been a plug and play," says Engel. "He's jumped in and been super fast. In terms of feedback, the three of us are very similar and we get on very well outside the car."
Before this season Auer had only shared with Stolz once, at the 2023 CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa. But their relationship goes back much further.
"The first time I met Luca, I think I was eight years old, racing Bambini karts in Germany," says Auer. "So we've known each other for a very long time and he's a great fit with our team. He's a really good person and a great addition to our endurance project."
Near-Perfect at Paul Ricard
The trio very nearly made a perfect start to the Endurance Cup campaign. The #48 Mercedes-AMG bagged pole for the opening round at Circuit Paul Ricard and dominated the vast majority of the six-hour race, only for a late safety car to wipe out their advantage.
The Comtoyou Racing Aston Martin swooped and snatched the win with just 10 minutes remaining. Nevertheless, for a team with serious title aspirations, it was a strong start to the year.
"In a championship like this, it's always nice to win, but you need consistency," says Auer. "In general, it was an amazing day because the setup we achieved for Saturday was really good; the quality of the performance was really good. It was the first time we were sharing with Luca and we also have a couple of new team members, so I thought it was very impressive.
"Okay, it hurt to lose out right at the end for the race win, but it was still a great day. In the end, I guess the Aston Martin had better pace and they deserved it. I look at the bigger picture, and it was actually a great race for us."
The Winward drivers scored a Race 2 podium when the Sprint Cup opened at Brands Hatch. This put them in the lead of the GT World Challenge drivers' classification, and they will almost certainly be in the hunt for all available titles until the closing stages of the season. If that's the case, the points scored at Paul Ricard will be very valuable.
More Monza Magic?
Now it's on to Monza, where Mercedes-AMG Team Mann-Filter scored victory in 2025. They should be strong again this year, though neither driver is taking anything for granted.
"Monza is just one of those iconic tracks,” says Engel. “I'd had some near misses there and it's really hard to win any race in this championship, so to do it there together with Luggi and Matteo was very special. That was the highlight of our Endurance season.”
"It's one of the old-style tracks, like Brands Hatch or Zandvoort," adds Auer. "Last year was a mega weekend, a very special feeling. As for this year, the competition is so tough that you can never say for sure. We have to wait and see."
While that is certainly true, it will come as no surprise if the #48 Mercedes-AMG is firmly in the fight for victory at Monza. Indeed, since Auer and Engel joined forces, it has become almost inevitable that the Mamba machine is a leading contender.