Alex Denning and SJM Theodore Racing set for Round Two of Lamborghini Super Trofeo Asia Championship

Irish driver Alex Denning and iconic Asian motorsports team SJM Theodore Racing are getting set to defend the championship lead in the second event of the 2025 Lamborghini Super Trofeo Asia (LSTA) series of sportscar racing at China’s Formula One track in Shangai from May 16-18.

Celebrated as the first and only Chinese team to enter Formula 1, multiple Macau Grand Prix winners SJM Theodore Racing is looking to continue its perfect start to its second season in LSTA with its two talented young drivers behind the wheel of their Lamborghini Huracán Super Trofeo EVO2. Supported by long-time partner, Macau-based integrated resorts operator SJM Resorts S.A., SJM Theodore Racing is in China next weekend for the second of six rounds of the championship they will contest this season as well as the Lamborghini Super Trofeo World Finals at Misano, Italy, in November.

Denning  is again joined by 23-year-old Macau talent Charles Leong Hon Chio  for the second event of the series after the pairing won both races at the series opener in Sydney Australia last month.
Building on their sensational start to the season, the team are aiming to consolidate their situation at the head of the drivers and teams championships in Shanghai with two more opportunities for glory on the demanding 5.5km Grand Prix circuit. After practice on Thursday and Friday, the drivers will take to the track for two qualifying sessions on Saturday followed by the first of two 50-minute championship races. Returning to the track on Sunday, the drivers will complete the weekend with the second championship race.

After their two wins in Sydney which included a lights to flag victory from pole position and fastest lap for Leong in race two, Theodore team principal Teddy Yip Junior is looking forward to maintaining the momentum in Shanghai to develop a consistent title winning challenge in 2025.

Alex Denning: ” I just arrived yesterday in China for the second weekend of my 2025 season. I explored the city this morning and walked the track this evening and what a facility it is! We head into this weekend with a healthy championship lead but with all the determination and more importantly, preparation to extend that lead!  Coming out and racing in Asia is a once in a lifetime opportunity, so I thank each and every one f my partners and supporters.!

Teddy Yip Junior: “SJM Theodore Racing enjoyed the perfect start to the Lamborghini Super Trofeo Asia series in Sydney and the goal is now to maintain that progress on a very different track with its own unique set of engineering challenges. Charles Leong and Alex Denning were both fast and consistent last time out and have prepared meticulously for Shanghai. We know that the other teams are redoubling their efforts and we will leave no stone unturned in our bid to keep the SJM Theodore Racing Huracán at the head of the pack.”

SJM’s support of Theodore Racing stems from a shared vision to elevate Macau’s standing as an international motorsport destination. As the owner-operator of a prestigious portfolio of hospitality assets—including the iconic Grand Lisboa Palace Resort, THE KARL LAGERFELD MACAU, and Palazzo Versace Macau—SJM has long embraced motorsport as a platform to project the city’s unique cultural identity and global appeal.

Ms. Daisy Ho, Managing Director of SJM, said: “ SJM’s partnership with Theodore Racing is part of our broader commitment to advancing Macau’s multifaceted allure through sport and cultural exchange. Seeing Charles continue to rise on the international stage not only inspires pride but reinforces Macau’s presence in global motorsport. We are pleased to support this journey and look forward to cheering on the team in Shanghai and beyond.”

The Theodore team and SJM have supported home-grown talent Charles Leong since 2021, when he took his second Formula 4 Macau Grand Prix title on his home Guia street circuit. In 2023 he finished a close second to team mate Arvid Lindblad in the Macau Grand Prix F4 showcase, completing a triumphant SJM Theodore PREMA Racing one-two finish.

In 2017, at the age of just 15, Leong won the both the Asian Formula Renault and Chinese F4 championship titles, going on to make his Formula 3 debut in both Europe and Asia the following year. Having honed his racecraft via open-wheel competition, more recently Leong has proven his versatility by successfully turning his talents to sportscar competition.

Team mate Denning, meanwhile, began his career in karting before switching to cars in a championship winning assault on the Ford Fiesta ST series in his native Ireland. In 2022, Denning was runner up and Rookie Championship winner in the British Mini Challenge JCW with 10 podium finishes and seven victories and in the last two seasons has recorded podium winning performances in the GT4 European Series at the wheel of a McLaren Artura GT4 (below)

The six-round, 12-race LSTA season resumes at the 5.451km Shanghai Circuit in China with round two from May 16 to 18. The drivers will take on Japan’s legendary Fuji International Speedway from June 27-29. Round four  is at the South Korean venue  of Inje from 18-20 July and the penultimate round of the series is set for Malaysia’s Sepang Circuit. The season concludes in Italy at Misano from November 06-07, venue of both the final LSTA round of the year and the annual Lamborghini Super Trofeo World Finals, a season-closing showdown between Super Trofeo competitors from the European, North American and Asian series.

Each LSTA round includes two, 50-minute races, each with a driver change, and championship points are awarded to the top ten finishers on a scale of 15 points for the winner for each of the PRO, PRO-AM, AM and Lamborghini Cup titles. The entry of Leong and Denning continues Theodore Racing’s long tradition of nurturing motorsport talent, which has included support of China’s first Formula 1 driver Zhou Guanyu.

Founded in the 1970s by Macau business tycoon and passionate motorsport competitor and supporter Teddy Yip, Theodore Racing entered a myriad of championships spanning the globe, including Formula 1, the Indianapolis 500, Formula 5000, Formula 2, Formula Atlantic and Can-Am. Over the years, many of the greatest names in motorsport raced for the team, and its victory in the first-ever Formula 3 Macau Grand Prix with Ayrton Senna in 1983 has become part of motorsport folklore.
In 2008, Yip’s son, Teddy Junior resurrected the legendary name, initially with Status GP.

Thirty years after the team’s landmark Senna win at Macau, Theodore Racing returned to the streets of the city in partnership with PREMA Racing to take the first of what has become a long list of Formula 3 Macau Grand Prix victories.