BARGNANA, Italy — After a heartbreaking early retirement from the lead on Saturday, Florian Venturi took his No. 32 Go Fas Racing Chevrolet Camaro to a dominant victory in the second ELITE 2 Division race of the NASCAR GP Italy Sunday at Autodromo di Franciacorta.

The 18-year-old Frenchman led all 24 laps of the race, grabbing his second NASCAR Whelen Euro Series win, the first of 2019 with a 15-second lead on the rest of the field.

Starting from the pole, Venturi immediately took off and constantly gained ground, perfectly capitalizing on a strong pace and his fresher General Tire tires.

“It’s very good for the team and myself,” said Venturi. “I wanted to win so bad. I’m so happy to get this win today after yesterday’s setback. Now I’m looking forward to Brands Hatch. I like the British track and I won my first NASCAR Whelen Euro Series race over there.”

As he did in the season opener at Valencia, Andre Castro took the second spot on the podium after having to retire from the lead on Saturday, continuing on his roller-coaster first part of the season.

“We’ve got the same result as we’ve got at Valencia,” said Castro. “My first win is just around the corner and I really want it. Second place is always good for the championship. If we keep getting on the podium and we get rid of the bad luck, we will be in the championship game.”

Lasse Sorensen, who grabbed his first NWES win in his first ever Euro NASCAR race on Saturday, finished third by passing Giorgio Maggi on lap 22. The Dexwet-df1 Racing driver put up another promising performance on the 2.5-kilometer long Italian track.

“It was a great first NWES weekend,” said Sorensen. “Yesterday’s win was fantastic. I had to take care of the car a little bit in the end but I’m satisfied with the podium in this second race. I had some nice really battles during this race. I think Giorgio struggled a bit on the brakes, so I was able to pass him. It was a great race.”

Maggi was fourth, missing the podium for just one spot. The Hendriks Motorsport driver will keep the championship lead after the NASCAR GP Italy over Vittorio Ghirelli, who rounded out the top five in the second ELITE 2 Division race.

Myatt Snider finished sixth ahead of Sorensen’s teammate Justin Kunz, NWES veteran Bert Longin, Advait Deodhar and Claudio Cappelli who closed the top 10.