Ferrari Challenge APAC – Double win for Merckx and Victory for Cheung and Chen at Singapore
Posted: 18.09.2016
Source: Ferrari
Singapore, 18 September 2016 – Despite the storm in the early hours of the morning, the weather was bright and sunny when the 2016 Ferrari Challenge Asia-Pacific fifth round race 2 started at 4.00PM local time. All the Challenge drivers made their final preparations in eager anticipation of the final race of the weekend. The 5.065 km Marina Bay Street Circuit welcomed even more spectators as they started to fill the various grandstands around the harbourside track.
Trofeo Pirelli. Due to the packed weekend Singapore Formula 1 Grand Prix schedule, qualification for Race-2 was set by the Race-1 results from Saturday. Florian Merckx from Belgium once again started from pole position with Renaldi Hutasiot from Indonesia throwing down an early charge for the lead. However Merckx had a clean track in front of him and opened up a commanding lead that he held throughout the race also setting the fastest lap of the race. Behind him, Hutasoit and Alexander West from Sweden were locked in a battle for points, neither able to close up to the leader. Unfortunately, West spun out of control during lap 8 and Ringo Chong from Singapore grabbed the opportunity to secure third place overall. It was a clear win for Merckx, his second of the weekend. Hutasoit drove a strong race to hold down the second position.
Pirelli AM. Eric Cheung from Canada found himself standing atop the podium steps. He gained his lead ahead of Max Go from Japan in the early laps and never looked back. Go maintained his pace to finish second behind Cheung while Xin Jin from China was in third position for the Trofeo Pirelli AM class being also able to collect the point for setting the fastest lap.
Coppa Shell. Sky Chen from China finished at the top of the podium in the Coppa Shell class today after a fierce battle with fellow compatriot Yuan Yang. It was very much a repeat of yesterday’s race drama where all the drivers battled wheel to wheel in a nail-biting race. In the end, Yang could not find any opportunity to overtake Chen on a track with very tight corners and had to settle for second position. Alan Yeo from Australia closed off the winners’ podium in third position. Tamotsu Kondo from Japan took the Gentlemen’s Cup while fastest lap was set by Paul Montague.
Next Rounds. From here, the Ferrari Challenge drivers head for the final Asia Pacific race at Fuji Speedway in Japan (15–16 October), in support of the WEC (World Endurance Championship) race, thereafter converging in Daytona, USA, for the Finali Mondiali from 1 to 4 December, where they will join drivers from the Europe and North America Series for the traditional end-of-season celebrations.
Ferrari Challenge APAC – Spectacular wins for Merckx, Teo and Yang in Singapore
Posted: 17.09.2016
Source: Ferrari
Singapore, 17 September 2016 – The 2016 Ferrari Challenge Asia-Pacific fifth round Race-1 opened the weekend in support of the Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix. The street circuit welcomed fans from across the world to witness some racing action. The practice session and qualifying session yesterday night under the floodlights proved to be essential for the 30 Ferrari Challenge drivers as most of them were new to the Marina Bay street circuit. Understanding the layout of the track, known as one of the most challenging in the world, is extremely vital for a driver to succeed in a race.
Trofeo Pirelli. Close racing was the order of the day for Race-1 here in Singapore. Florian Merckx and Steve Wyatt challenged each other to dominate the opening laps, with Merckx eventually taking the lead and then dominating the Trofeo Pirelli class. Unfortunately Wyatt suffered crash damage and retired on lap 5. It was the Belgian’s dream to be able to tell his children one day that he raced at the Singapore Grand Prix circuit and won a race there and this dream has now come true! Today’s win helped him close the gap to the Pirelli Championship leader Wyatt. After a safety car session, Renaldi Hutasoit from Indonesia, throughout a massive challenge on Merckx’s lead, but despite wheel-to-wheel battle on the closing laps, found it almost impossible to overtake Merckx. He came in second, while Alexander West from Sweden came in third.
Pirelli AM. The Pirelli AM class also provided the spectators with great racing. There were incidents aplenty here at the Marina Bay Street Circuit, as is the case with Formula 1 – though Gregory Teo from Singapore did his home fans proud by taking the victory also setting the fastest lap of the race in class. Eric Cheung from Canada, despite Huilin Han from China, closed the winners podium in third place.
Coppa Shell. In the Coppa Shell classification, the win belonged to Chinese driver Yuan Yang who maintained his lead in class throughout the first race of the weekend. The other two podium places belonged to Liang Wang from China, who also set fastets lap, and Sam Lok from Hong Kong. Paul Montague from Australia took the Gentlemen’s Cup.
Schedule. All drivers kept their mental alertness in the Singapore heat and humidity today and are all looking forward to tomorrow’s race. Track action will continue for Race 2 at 4.00PM local time tomorrow.
Ferrari Challenge APAC – Thirty Ferraris to shine in Singapore
Posted: 16.09.2016
Source: Ferrari
Singapore, 16 September 2016 – The 2016 Ferrari Challenge Asia-Pacific fifth round race finally makes its return to Singapore in support of the Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix after a 3-year absence. The Marina Bay Street Circuit, noted to be one of the most physically challenging on the F1 calendar with 23 corners, will see a total of 30 drivers representing Singapore, Japan, China, Australia, Thailand, Indonesia, South Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan, the United States, Canada, Belgium and Sweden. They will be getting behind the wheel of the 458 Challenge EVO for an adrenalin-filled race around the 5.065 km unique track located near the harbourside. The Challenge drivers for the occasion were joined by official Scuderia Ferrari aces Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen.
The Standings. After the last race held on 6th August at the Sepang International Circuit in Malaysia, Steve Wyatt from Australia comes into the Singapore leg leading the Trofeo Pirelli class with 145 points. Renaldi Hutasoit from Indonesia is not very far behind with 127 points, followed by Florian Merckx from Belgium with 118 points. In the Pirelli AM Class, Xin Jin from China continues his lead on the table standings with 126 points, followed by fellow compatriot Han Huilin with 113 points and Eric Cheung from Canada in a close third place with 100 points. Meanwhile, Liang Wang from China has seen his most successful season this year with the most number of wins and charged ahead in the Coppa Shellstandings with a total of 155 points, while Ken Seto from Japan is second with a total of 103 points and Yuan Yang from China in third place with 81 points.
Schedule. Today’s schedule sees one Practice session and Qualifying will take place tonight at 7.55PM local time under the floodlights. The first race of the weekend will take place on Saturday at 4.40PM local time and the second race on Sunday at 4.00PM local time.