“We’re just trying to get a jump start with the programme really,” stated Team Principal Stewart Cox. “It’s a good opportunity to get some laps on the Ligier with the four drivers, two of which we know well.”
 
Dean Koutsoumidis joins the team for the test and is no stranger to the Algarve Pro team having competed with them during the 2015/16 season in the same series, finishing second overall on the back of three podium positions.

The Australian is joined for the test by another familiar name in TackSung Kim, who raced with the team last year. The duo will team up again for the 2017/18 campaign and for this test are joined by Até De Jong and Dimitrios Zartaloudis.

De Jong hails from Manila and competed last year with PRT Racing in the Asian Le Mans Series Sprint Cup, finishing second in the LMP3 class with one win in his Ginetta and four podium positions.

Zartaloudis has a racing background in Australia and most recently competed in the Formula 4 South East Asia Championship and for him, this test marks his first time at the wheel of prototype machinery.

The Asian Le Mans Series consists of five rounds, starting in China in October and finishing at Sepang in February.

Record TV Exposure
The four race 2016/17 season was showcased by a package of highlights programmes reaching 145 countries with 524 hours of TV on 29 networks (some 663 individual broadcasts) across the Asia Pacific region and beyond, far beyond the coverage previously seen of any other endurance Championship in the region.

In Asia Pacific alone, Fox International, Fox Sports (Australia), BeIn Sports, Star Sports, LeTV and Sky Sports (New Zealand) were just some of the top channels featuring Asian Le Mans Series programming for the past season with talks underway to expand that coverage for the 2017/18 season to come.

It all comes together to offer unrivalled exposure for the teams, drivers and sponsors involved in the Series.

Live Online Video Streaming for 2017/18 Asian Le Mans Series
In addition there is set to be full live online streaming for the 2017/18 season which gets underway in October in Zhejang, China before moving on to a second Chinese event at Zhuhai then Fuji (Japan), Buriram (Thailand) and Sepang (Malaysia).

Media Coverage
Online press and social media coverage added even further value with a potential reach of some 10 billion people from 2490 articles published online and on social media*. All told the media coverage achieved a record level of Advertising Value Equivalence (AVE) of 125 Million Euro (combined TV and media value).

Media coverage was particularly strong in the Chinese marketplace, which accounted for almost 50% of the media coverage (1190 out of 2490 articles – and the highest AVE in the week following the opening round at Zhuhai, 25 Million Euro, 27.8% of the overall total.

Cyrille Taesch Wahlen, Managing Director of the Asian Le Mans Series said:
“We are delighted that the growth we have seen in terms of the entry for the Series has been reflected by the interest being shown by the media in the region. This study clearly shows not only the potential of the Asian Le Mans Series but in particular the already blossoming interest and value in China of the Series. With two races in China for the 2017/ 2018 Asian Le Mans Series as part of our expanded 5 race calendar we expect the commercial value of the Series for partners, sponsors and teams to grow even further in the coming season.”

And they weren’t there just to make up the numbers either, pole position in the hotly contested GTE Am class and fourth in class, the podium close enough to touch!

So how does a team from Singapore, and a gentleman driver, make it to the biggest race in the world, and then onto the entry for a global Championship?

“That’s a good question, and it’s a long answer, but essentially it’s about pushing hard and making the right choices.”

“After 11 years in the sport it is very, very cool to graduate to racing on the global stage.”

“What’s interesting though is that I’m not as apprehensive as I was last year. ahead of my first appearance at the Le Mans 24 Hours.  Now though, after a great week at Le Mans in 2016, I feel much more prepared, I know much better now how to deal with the faster cars and I plan just to soak up every single experience that the season throws at me!”

What was it that proved to be the breakthrough from an increasingly busy, competitive and crowded Asian racing scene, onto the world stage?

“The Asian Le Mans Series was an absolutely crucial step on the ladder for me, and for the whole team.

I started out in single class racing in Porsche Carrera Cup Asia, then into GT3s where all of the cars are more or less in parity with each other through Balance of Performance.”

“When I first dipped a toe into the Asian Le Mans Series, I started with the odd one-off here and there for the first couple of years, it was my first experience then racing with a couple of Protoypes out there in the field.  That was my first time racing in a field with significantly faster cars.”

“As the Asian Le Mans Series grid grew, with more LMP2s and now with a sizeable grid of LMP3s too, it was a good experience learning how to deal with the traffic, learning how to do it safely, and how not to give up so much time when you are doing it.  A real new challenge, and when you get the hang of it, really an enjoyable part of the challenge, measuring your own progress in that sort of environment.

It was great preparation for me to go to Le Mans last year, really a season long dress rehearsal.”

With a growing number of truly talented teams and drivers emerging on the Asian racing scene that have the Le Mans 24 Hours on their bucket list, or indeed on their business plans, what would be your recommendation for their path towards that?

“Asian Le Mans Series, and the Sprint Cup are the first place to start if you are seriously targeting Le Mans, and that’s whether you are in a GT car, or in a Prototype.  There are some great races and Series in Asia but nothing prepares you for mixed class racing like mixed class racing!”

“You have to get the foundations built right to both understand the challenge, and build up the skill sets. Asian Le Mans Sprint Cup, and then the Asian Le Mans Series are the first stepping stones on that path, and having done it for a number of years, including two full seasons we felt we were ready as a team, and I felt myself ready for it as a driver, only when I’d earned my spurs out there on track.
Le Mans was a test of that and, very happily, I found myself enjoying it, which is incredibly important.  We also found that we were reasonably competitive too, again something that was down to the preparation we had had over the previous seasons, that gave the whole team the confidence we all needed not just to take part, but to compete!”

Did it surprise you just how many people knew about the team when you arrived in Europe?

“Yes! It is really humbling, clearly the team and the car already had a fanbase before we got here so the message about Asian Le Mans Series and our other racing is getting around!

And not just in Europe either.  I was invited to take part in an Australian racing forum and was amazed at just how much these guys already knew about out programmes.

They knew we were coming to the FIA WEC, and they knew that this year we have been lucky enough to be allowed two cars at Le Mans.

We haven’t raced in Australia for a number of years and it’s amazing that the fanbase has followed us since then, through the Asian Le Mans Series, Le Mans 24 Hours, and now on into the WEC!
Now we’re looking forward to hopefully expanding that fanbase even more, and to seeing some familiar faces in France in June. It’s been quite a ride!”

Team owner and ex-FIA World Touring Car Championship driver William Lok will share the Ligier with rapid Italian racer Davide Rizzo.

Lok, who contested the 2016/17 Asian Le Mans Series and is a former VW Scirocco R-Cup China Champion, has established  WIN Motorsport to initially contest both the Asian Le Mans Sprint Cup and Series, with the goal of  eventually competing for  the biggest prize in endurance motorsport,  earning aninvitation to compete in the world famous Le Mans 24 Hours.

Before that though the team will contest the three-round, six-race Asian Le Mans Sprint Cup from May through to August at Sepang International Circuit in Malaysia.

WIN Motorsport driver and Team Principal Lok is looking forward to the start of what will be the team’s debut season together: “After several years competing at the highest levels in Asian motorsport, for WIN Motorsport I have gathered together the best in the business to create a professional, competitive and ambitious team. We are all looking forward to the start of the season with the Asian Le Mans Sprint Cup.”

Davide Rizzo: “I’m very excited to begin this new adventure with William [Lok] and WIN Motorsport. We have raced together before and it went well, so we will try to duplicate that success here. It will be the first time for me with an LMP3 car. Passing from GT, I will need a bit of practice but the team is already doing a good job, giving me a day to try the car which went very well.  From what I have seen already, the team is very professional and has made me feel extremely comfortable.”

Asian Le Mans Sprint Cup Managing Director Cyrille Taesch Wahlen welcomed the arrival of the new team on the entry for the 2017 Series: “It is great to see not just new Asian drivers joining the endurance racing family, but new Asian race teams too.  WIN Motorsport is the latest to make that move and I wish them well for the racing to come.”

John Curran (IRL) and Graeme Dowsett (NZ) will drive once again in the effort that saw class winning success both in the Sprint Cup and the Asian Le Mans Series last season.

Graeme Dowsett, Team NZ: “Team NZ is excited to be joining the Asian Le Mans Sprint Cup again. The format is an excellent platform to race at a relatively high level with some of the teams actually going onto the Le Mans 24hr race, while also providing a relaxed, welcoming atmosphere. The race format of 1hr x 2 races per weekend provides Team NZ excellent track and race time to develop the drivers abilities. It is an excellent series to leading onto the 4hr race format of Asian Le Mans.”

The three round Asian Le Mans Sprint Cup features LMP3, GT3 and GT Cup class cars in a three round, 6 race Series based at Sepang in Malaysia, giving teams and drivers the opportunity to sample multi class Prototype and GT racing before committing to the full 5 round Asian Le Mans Series over the winter of 2017/ 2018.

Class winners of the full Series receive an automatic invitation to contest the 2018 Le Mans 24 Hours.

Team AAI have confirmed both a BMW Z4 GT3 for Chi Huang and a McLaren 650S GT3 for Terry Fang for the three race Series based at Sepang International Circuit.

Both men are Bronze rated drivers, Team AAI joining a host of other teams to utilise the Asian Le Mans Sprint Cup as an opportunity for gentleman drivers to hone their race craft before stepping up to the full Asian Le Mans Series.

In the BMW Z4 Chi Huang will be lined up with Silver driver Ollie Millroy.

Last season’s Asian Le Mans Sprint Cup saw the majority of entrants graduate to the 2016/17 Asian Le Mans Series helping grid numbers to record levels with more Asian teams on the grid than ever before.

Junsan Chen, Team AAI Founder and Director: ”In the past years, motorsports has been growing quite rapidly in the regions of Asia as we are very enthusiastic to see all the major race organizers such as the ACO to bring their well established programs here.

“We are also seeing top world class pro drivers in the mix of driver lineups which has brought the races to a very competitive level which may also intimidate a lot of the gentlemen drivers to partake at this stage. It is with great joy to see that the ACO has opened the GT class in the 2017 Asian Le Mans Sprint Cup to cater more towards gentlemen drivers and help provide a platform and a stepping stone towards their passion to the highest level of international racing. With the well consideration of the programs that the ACO are providing we are certain to see Asia motorsports to continue growing.”

Cyrille Taesch Wahlen, Managing Director of the Asian Le Mans Series said: “Team AAI were the very first GT team to graduate from our Series to the Le Mans 24 Hours and it is great to see that they are continuing to bring more cars and drivers to join the ACO Racing family. I hope that the Sprint Cup whets their appetites and we see both Chi Huang and Terry Fang for the full season in the Asian Le Mans Series too.”

In place of the previously planned four-race season for LMP3 and GT Cup cars the 2017 calendar will now see three race meetings, all still at Sepang International Circuit, Malaysia with GT3 cars now added to the entry as the Asian Le Mans Series expands its co-operation with Michelin.

The season will now start with Round 1 on 5/7 May 2017, featuring a race format designed to give a real opportunity for teams and drivers to sample mixed class Prototype and GT racing, the true DNA of international sportscar racing.

The change to add GT3 cars to the Series now allows GT3 teams to construct a comprehensive racing programme in Asia combining the Asian Le Mans Sprint Cup and the Asian Le Mans Series (which takes place over winter 2017/18). Both series’ will feature the same professional racing environment combining sprint and endurance over eight events and 11 races this season.

The winners of the GT3, LMP3 and GT Cup classes in the Asian Le Mans Sprint Cup will also benefit from a free entry into the 2017/2018 Asian Le Mans Series.

Record TV Exposure
The five race 2016/17 season was showcased by a package of highlights programmes reaching 145 countries with well over 340 hours of TV on 23 networks across the Asia Pacific region and beyond, far beyond the coverage previously seen of any other endurance Championship in the region.

In Asia Pacific alone, Fox International, Fox Sports (Australia), BeIn Sports, Star Sports, LeTV and Sky Sports (New Zealand) were just some of the top channels featuring Asian Le Mans Series programming for the past season with talks underway to expand that coverage for the 2017/18 season to come.

It all comes together to offer unrivalled exposure for the teams, drivers and sponsors involved in the Series.

Live Online Video Streaming for 2017/18 Asian Le Mans Series
In addition, there is set to be full live online streaming for the 2017/18 season which gets underway in October in Zhejiang, China before moving on to a second Chinese event at Zhuhai then Fuji (Japan), Buriram (Thailand) and Sepang (Malaysia).

Record Number of Cars From Asian Le Mans Series at 2017 Le Mans 24 Hours
2016/17 saw a record mixed grid of Prototype and GT race teams, unique in Asian motorsport battle not only for Championship honours but with all also keen to take one of motorsport’s most valuable prizes, an invitation for the winning teams to take part in the world’s biggest endurance race, the Le Mans 24 Hours, the week long festival of motorsport culminating in a twice around the clock race in front of a quarter of a million trackside spectators, broadcast live across the globe.

A record 9 cars from teams that contested the 2016 Asian Le Mans Series were invited to take part in the 2017 Le Mans 24 Hours, an opportunity that no other race series in the region can offer.  Several will be in real contention for class wins, a major step for Asian motorsport.

The stakes will be much higher though as that win at Chang International Circuit and the maximum points that came in its wake has elevated Team NZ right into the championship fight in the GT Cup class. They will go into this weekend’s 4-hour race in Sepang on equal points at the top of the championship standings and that has set up an explosive ‘winner takes all’ showdown for the title.

Kicking off the year by hooking up with Asian Le Mans’ third round of the 2016/17 season in Buriram proved to be the perfect tonic to get Team NZ back on track, blow away the winter cobwebs and prepare for another busy racing season. In Thailand local driver Paul Kanjanapas joined the #77 Porsche 997 GT3 Cup’s regulars, Graeme Dowsett and John Curran, in the cockpit.

That proved to be a winning combination but now we have to dig in and do it all over again. This time though Will Bamber will join Graeme and John, our engineering chief and driver coach swapping headphones for helmet as he beefs up our challenge for P1.

Will, younger brother of 2015 Le Mans 24 Hours winner Earl, has been a real cornerstone of Team NZ since its inception a little over three years ago and we all owe him a real debt of gratitude for all his incessant hard work, especially in bringing Graeme and John so far forward as racing drivers. So this is a very good opportunity to congratulate him on securing a full season drive in Porsche Carrera Cup Asia this season with the FAW T2M team. We wish him all the best of luck and success and we’re confident that he’s going to surprise a few people! Getting behind the wheel of our #77 Porsche this weekend will also give the young New Zealander some useful extra cockpit time as he gears up for his new challenge.

We regard Sepang International Circuit as our ‘home’ track. Team NZ first started racing here and operates from the circuit. In fact we have many very happy memories, kicking off our endurance focused programme by winning the GT Cup class in the 2014 Sepang 12 Hours and following that up with the runners up spot the next year. We continued our rich vein of form at Sepang by winning the GT Cup class of the inaugural Asian Le Mans Sprint Cup last year, after winning five of the six races. So we’re raring to be back on this iconic track in 2017 and there’s no better way to start that off than in the middle of January.

The 4 Hours of Sepang, the final round of the Asian Le Mans Series 2016/17 season, will be held at Sepang International Circuit on Sunday 22 January, starting at 1215 and scheduled to finish at 1615. Practice and qualifying takes place the previous day (Saturday 21 January).

Completion Products, Asia Pacific Spiral, Motosure, Pioneer Consultants, Nam Aik, FC and IMPACT SpeedPark will support Team NZ Motorsport at Sepang this weekend.

Graeme Dowsett (New Zealand): “I’m looking forward to the final round and what will be the championship decider. We had a very good weekend in Buriram with every aspect running smoothly. If we can replicate this in Sepang I think we stand a good chance to make an exciting race in GT Cup.”

John Curran (Ireland): “The entire team is looking forward to the fourth and final round of the Asian Le Mans Series. It will be on our home track; Graeme and I have already clocked up many laps on the new layout and we’re looking forward to doing battle with the Porsche from Japan. Unfortunately, Paul is unable to join us for this final round, but Will is going to hang up his race engineering hat on Sunday and join us in the car as the third driver. I’m interested to see where we will be after four hours of racing.”

The race and title-winning squad from China has participated in all three rounds of the 2016-17 Asian LMS thus far, with Japan’s Hiroshi Hamaguchi and British Pro Matt Bell spearheading the assault in a sole Lamborghini Huracan GT3.

However, FFF Racing will not partake in the Asian LMS’s four-hour finale at the Sepang International Circuit, having already acquired as much knowledge and experience as it can under the series’ regulations.

The Roger Dubuis-supported team will instead focus on preparations for a full-scale attack on the SRO’s GT Series Asia, as well as its Young Driver Development Programme in the Lamborghini Super Trofeo Middle East and Asia.

FFF Racing will take two GT3-spec Lamborghinis into the newly-launched GT Series Asia and is confident that it will have a fair shot at winning races and championships on the platform, given the SRO’s strong and appealing track-record for providing a level playing field in Europe.

The opportunity to step up to the LMP2 category came hot off the back of Aidan signing an enhanced management deal with BAM Motorsport Promotions, with the objective of driving and shaping his career on both a sporting and commercial level with a structured career path developed in conjunction with the specialist motorsport agency.

Having competed in the last two rounds of the championship with WINEURASIA, Aidan – who tested the #25 Ligier JSP2 Nissan in Thailand – is naturally looking forward to the new challenge.

“I’ve learned so much over the last few weeks with WINEURASIA and I also tested the Algarve LMP2 at Buriram which was a fantastic experience,” Aidan stated. “The test went very well, and I can’t wait to join Andrea Roda and Andrea Pizzitola in the #25 car.
 
“The physical demands of driving the LMP2 car will undoubtedly be much higher – there’s so much extra speed in the high-speed corners – but I think I have proven in my step up from Formula Masters to WINEURASIA that I can push for an entire stint without a problem.
 
“It’s going to be a great experience driving with the Algarve Pro Racing Team,” Aidan continued. “I’m obviously very aware of their achievements so far in the Asian Le Mans Series – second last time out – and I hope I can learn from my two new teammates and help the team secure a strong result.”

The 4H of Sepang gets underway with practice and then qualifying on Saturday 21 January and race itself on Sunday 22 January.

The Kent, England-based racer will pilot a WINEURASIA Ligier JS P3 in the final four-hour race on the 2016-17 Asian LMS schedule at the Sepang International Circuit near the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur (20-22 January).

A high-calibre entry of 33 cars spread over five classes reflects the Asian LMS’s burgeoning stature and the growing popularity and strength of the Asian motorsport scene, which is increasingly viewed as an effective breeding ground for young aspirants.

Modell – a youthful, but experienced GT endurance racer – made his prototypes debut in a one-off VdeV Sports outing at Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours in 2016, but new and exciting opportunities are arising since agreeing to expand an existing relationship with BAM Motorsports that dates back to 2014.

BAM Motorsports will continue supplying a tailor-made press, PR and marketing service that incorporates digital and print campaigns, social media and website maintenance, but the partnership will extend to incorporate sporting and commercial management services.

As he’s about to take a big step in his career in new machinery, Modell is already benefiting from BAM’s extensive business knowledge of motor racing, which is used to guide, add value, maximise exposure and raise clients to the next level of the sport.

“I’m delighted to be extending my partnership with BAM Motorsports,” said Modell. “There are many positives to having all of my press, sporting and commercial interests managed under one roof by a company that knows me so well, and we’re already seeing results both on and off the track with this drive in the Asian Le Mans Series finale, which I’m very excited about. BAM and I have a common desire to win, we know what it takes to succeed in this high-octane, fast-paced sport and I hope to reward BAM and Eurasia Motorsport’s faith with some strong results in Malaysia.”

BAM Motorsports Managing Director, David Madgwick, said: “I have followed Devon’s career closely since he arrived on the scene in 2014 and have been impressed by his progress to date. I am delighted to add him to our stable of managed drivers and hope to help in taking his career to the next level.”

As we go into the final round, only the CN class team title is decided, with even the GT Cup class seeing some rivalry for the title, thanks to entries from both Team NZ and TKS who will be going head to head in Sepang. Having each competed in one round, the #77 Team NZ Porsche 911 GT3 Cup and the #96 TKS Porsche 911 GT3 Cup are neck and neck with 26 points each.

In the LMP2 class, Jackie Chan DC Racing is going into the final round as class leaders, with 69 points for the #35 Oreca 03R Nissan. Algarve Pro Racing are following with the #25 Ligier JSP2 Nissan in second place with 50 points. Aidan Read will be joining the line-up in the #25 for this round, alongside Andrea Pizzitola and Andrea Roda. The #24 Algarve Pro Racing Ligier JSP2 Judd is sitting in third with 45 points. Race Performance are at 37 points with their #8 Oreca 03R Judd.
After round 3 in Buriram, ARC Bratislava are now leading the points in the LMP3 class with the #4 Ginetta LMP3 sitting at the top of the table with 55 points. Tockwith Motorsports aren’t far behind after their eventful weekend, sitting 2nd in the classification with 51 points with the #26 Ligier JSP3. Third and also fighting for the class win is the #1 Jackie Chan DC Racing Ligier JSP3 with 48 points. Also still in the running for class win is the ARC Bratislava sister car, the #7 Ginetta LMP3, with 40 points, and the #85 G-Print by Triple 1 Racing Ligier JSP3 with 30.

In the GT Class, DH Racing are leading the classification with 52 points for the #5 DH Racing Ferrari 488 GT3. The #37 Team BBT Ferrari 488 GT3 is second with 38 points, the #3 DH Racing Ferrari 488 GT3 has 35.  Still in with a title chance are the #61 Clearwater Racing Ferrari 488 GT3 with 32 points and the #38 Spirit of Race Ferrari 488 GT3 at 30.

The provisional entry list currently stands at 28 cars, with 4 LMP2, 10 LMP3, 11 GT and, 1 CN and 2 GT Cup, making the 4 Hours of Sepang the strongest endurance race in South East Asia. This also means that we’ve had an average of 28 cars per round this season, a steady increase on last year’s already marked improvement. The final round will see the PS Racing ADESS 03 return in the LMP3 class, having missed out on Buriram, and FIST-Team AAI will be entering their #93 ADESS 03 as well, giving us once more three brands representing the LMP3 category.

It’s worth noting that five ex-F1 drivers can be counted amongst the participants of this final event of the 2016-2017 season – Fairuz Fauzy, Vitantonio Liuzzi, Olivier Beretta and Ho-Pin Tung have all been test and/or reserve drivers for Formula 1 in their racing careers, and Alex Yoong raced for Minardi for two seasons.

The fight for the series titles will reach its pinnacle this weekend, especially in the LMP2, LMP3 and GT classes with the class winning crews making their way in June to la Sarthe in France thanks to their invitation to the legendary 24 Hours of Le Mans.

The weekend started off well for Millroy and his team-mates Philipp Eng and Jun-San Chen, as they ended the free practice sessions with the third fastest time.

Qualifying saw Eng put the #91 car in sixth on the grid, with driver and team owner Chen taking to the start of the four-hour race.

It was a good opening stint for the Bronze-rated driver, who managed to stay with the cars ahead, however a safety car period worked in favour of the Ferrari contingent, as they were able to make use of their reduced fuel consumption to gain an early advantage.

BMW factory driver Eng took over for his first stint, with the Austrian running at a strong pace to make his way through to ninth before handing over to Millroy.

In only his second race on-board the BMW M6 GT3, the 26-year-old carved his way through the competition, setting consistently quick lap times as he climbed up to sixth by the end of his stint, before handing back to Eng for the finish.

He made up one more place, as the team crossed the line in fifth, their second top-five finish of the season.

Up next for Millroy will be the season finale in Sepang (January 20-22), and the Brit believes that the 5.5 km circuit’s fast, sweeping corners will play to the BMW’s strengths.

“Jun-San and Philipp did fantastic jobs once again this weekend, the car was quick and that showed during the practice sessions,” said Millroy. “We lost time to the Ferraris because of the safety car period in the opening hour, which meant we had to play catch up for the remainder of the race. The pace was really good though and we were able to climb through to finish fifth.

“For the final race we will be aiming to finish as strongly as possible. Sepang should suit us as the M6 has a good aero package, which will play into our hands in the high-speed sections.

“I’d also like to thank the team and my co-drivers for all the effort they’ve put in these last few races. They work incredibly hard and we all have a great bond, which is really important for building a strong team.”

The race weekend kicked off with the Free Practice sessions and Zen Low, Weiron and Riki really enjoyed driving on the circuit in the Ginetta LMP3. Posting up some encouraging lap times in the FP1 and FP2, the team consistently took P3 in both sessions. They were in high spirits when it came to qualifying later in Saturday and Riki did a stellar job piloting the race car to clock an impressive 1:31.448. However, the competition had somehow managed to find that slight edge to push their cars a bit further, putting the team on P7 in class to start the race in.

Though it will take the team quite an effort to climb through the pack to finish in a satisfying position, they were very determined to fight through the odds in bringing back a well-deserved position for Aylezo Ecotint Racing. Unfortunately, the team encountered some issues which made it a big challenge for them to be competitive in the field. The issue had also forced the team to perform an unscheduled pit stop to resolve the problem and had caused them to be 12 laps behind their rivals.

Armed with the best pit crew they could ever wish for, the issue was resolved and the Ginetta LMP3 quickly thundered its way through the Chang International Circuit. Giving up was never an option for Aylezo Ecotint Racing and they managed to tackle all the challenges head-on to cross the finishing line with an eighth-place finish in class.

The team will gather all their resources to give their best in the fourth and final round as it will be on their home ground at Sepang International Circuit.

Thanks to excellent driving from Graeme Dowsett, John Curran and Paul Kanjanapas, coupled to superb teamwork and slick pitstops from the crew and a faultless afternoon’s running from the #77 Porsche 997 GT3 Cup, it all added together nicely to put us on the top step of the GT Cup class podium – and that sets everything up perfectly for a dramatic title showdown at the final round of the Asian Le Mans season, to be held at Sepang Circuit in just over a week and a half’s time.

It was a very early start to the season for Team NZ – this was after all the first weekend of 2017 – but it proved to be a superb way to kick the New Year off. We determined that entering the two races (in Buriram and Sepang) that comprise the second half of the Asian Le Mans Series 2016-17 calendar was the ideal route to get the team back out on track, blow off the cobwebs and sharpen up everyone’s skills as we head into another racing year.

As usual John Curran and Graeme Dowsett were behind the wheel, but for the 4 Hours of Thailand in Buriram we were joined by Thai racer Paul Kanjanapas, who brought plenty of experience racing the Porsche 997 GT3 Cup as well, of course, of the Buriram circuit. Paul, as expected, slotted in seamlessly.

The car was well prepared by the team and the only hiccup to affect us in the run up to the weekend was a dose of food poisoning for Graeme on Friday evening which left qualifying duties in the hands of John, who capably banged in a time that lined us up nicely on the grid in P1.

Come raceday we were delighted to welcome special guest Mr. Patrick Simiyu Wamoto, Ambassador Extraordinary of the Republic of Kenya, to our garage and to show him the #77 car.

When the lights went green the game plan was really to stay clear of trouble, especially with two dozen LMP2, LMP3 and GT3 category cars on the track that would each be lapping at a much quicker pace than in GTC Cup. John took the first stint, the Irishman making a clean start and settling in before handing over to Graeme for a short second stint. Paul took the middle shift and then it was back to the regular duo to close down the final segment of the race.

The car ran perfectly while the pitstops were fast and inch perfect and that meant we were able to emerge from four hours of racing on a hot afternoon in the North East of Thailand with our first win of the year – just eight days into 2017 – and the maximum Drivers’ and Teams’ points we scored haul us dead level in the GT Cup classifications with championship leaders going into this round.

That means when the Asian Le Mans Series 2016-17 resumes in Sepang for the final round of the season in just over a week and a half’s time (21-22 January) it’s going to be a ‘winner takes all’ showdown for the prestigious GT Cup title.

Team NZ Motorsport was supported in Buriram by Completion Products, Asia Pacific Spiral, Motosure, Pioneer Consultants, Nam Aik, FC and IMPACT SpeedPark .

Graeme Dowsett (New Zealand): “It was a good race, the mechanics did an excellent job with our pitstops, I think we were about two or three seconds under our allocated time on the pitstops so it was good to have that spare time. It was hot on track; I didn’t have a cool suit for the first stint, so it felt a bit hot, especially as I was still getting over the food poisoning. But other than that the race ran pretty much like clockwork, good times from all the drivers, so it was good, and now I’m looking forward to Sepang.”

John Curran (Ireland): “Obviously we missed rounds one and two so round three was the first round for us, so good to finally be in Asian Le Mans, a little bit later than we expected. I set a couple of personal best times this weekend, that was good progress, the whole secret though was to stay out of trouble and still have a car circulating at the end of it and ready to go into round four in two weeks time and hopefully have more Cup cars to race against.”
 
Paul Kanjanapas (Thailand): “It was a fantastic experience and Team NZ did a very good job in preparing the car, it ran absolutely trouble free for the whole weekend. I think we had a lot of fun on and off the track and I think the organisers’ did a very good job as well as I saw a lot of great drivers and good cars out there. So it was a lot of fun but it was also a very good experience for me to participate in this series.”

After a mid-race stumble the #67 would finish an eventual 4th. The ARC Bratislava cars though did not miss a beat and made steady progress through the field. Into the final hour the team sat in a strong first and second position, with Mike Simpson in the #4 car fending off Konstantins Calko in the sister #7 Ginetta.

The gap at the flag would be just 0.177 seconds, the two Ginettas a lap clear of the closest other car in class and both finishing in the top 10 overall.

Darren Burke: “It was a great opportunity to start the race at such a fantastic circuit. It was a little bit hectic coming out of turn two into turn three, but everyone seemed to file through nicely. I just kept my head down and made up a few positions, as we’d qualified a bit further down the pack. Made up a few positions and by the end of the stint we were sitting at a good position, I think we were third at the end of the first hour. I was very happy with the pace of the car, an improvement on qualifying. A credit to the team for making such good changes.”

Miro Konopka: “I think it was very nice weekend for us to get the double victory. We had a good setup in practice and qualification. In the race all was ok. We were lucky this weekend and I hope so for the future.”

Mike Simpson: “It was a pretty easy race. Darren and Miro did a good job. We had a good gap to the Ligier in third, and our sister car was in second. Probably the easiest 55 minutes of racing I’ve ever had. What’s also nice is that we’re a true pairing of Gold-Bronze-Bronze. So it’s nice to beat some of these kids which are graded differently. Well done to the team. They worked very long hours, and the car was very strong, and we had practically a photo finish with the cars in 1st and 2nd. Looking forward to the next race and maybe the championship.”

The Ginetta G57 P3 was the first LMP3 car into competition, winning every race in the 2015 European Le Mans Series on the way to the inaugural title for Charlie Robertson and Olympic cycling legend Sir Chris Hoy.

Ginetta Results Asian Le Mans Series R3 Buriram, Thailand
First In LMP3 (9th overall): #4 ARC Bratislava Ginetta G57 P3 – Miro Konopka, Darren Burke, Mike Simpson
Second in LMP3 (10th overall): #7 ARC Bratislava Ginetta G57 P3 – Neale Muston, Konstantins Calko
Fourth in LMP3 (15th overall): #67 PRT Racing Ginetta G57 P3 – Ate de Jong, Charlie Robertson
Eighth in LMP3 (22nd overall): #69 Aylezo Ecotint Racing Zen Low, Weiron Tan, Riki Christodoulou

The Japanese trio’s maiden outing on Buriram’s 4.55km circuit was a fresh challenge that highlighted an aim to produce positive results in the blue and white Audi GT3 car. Two free practice runs allowed the drivers to get familiar with Chang International Circuit’s technical configuration and clocked the 12th fastest times in class for both sessions.

Qualifying saw KCMG place the #51 Audi R8 in 10th position for the GT grid. Despite this disadvantage, the drivers pushed to make headway and keep the pace consistent throughout the four-hour endurance race. However, several setbacks hindered the #51 GT from gaining ground – ultimately resulting in a 10th place class finish for the 4 Hours of Buriram.

Ryuji Doi, KCMG Head of Motorsport: “Despite the tough outing in Buriram, the drivers have learned a lot and I’d like to commend them and the entire team for their great effort throughout the weekend. It was nice to kick off 2017 with this event in Thailand and we’re now preparing to wrap up Asian Le Mans’ 2016-2017 season, hopefully on a high note, at Sepang in a few weeks. It will be another busy year for KCMG and we will announce more about our programmes for 2017 in the coming weeks.”

The strength of its performance during two days of testing in the build-up to the four-hour Thai race raised expectations within the Algarve Pro camp, but tyre-warming issues and a relative lack of straight line speed effected the weekend and left the team somewhat baffled.

The heat and humidity steadily increased, but its drivers were unable to replicate the sort of pace they possessed in midweek testing, even with their Ligiers’ rear-wings set at the lowest angle of attack.

An off-track excursion and a spark plug problem in first practice resulted in a 30-minute time loss for Algarve Pro’s #25 entry, but the team recovered well and a time of 1m28.443s was enough for Andrea Pizzitola to seal a front row starting position, ahead of the sister #24 Judd-powered car in third.

However, a red flag stoppage had frustrated the team’s qualifying efforts, as it required more time to generate sufficient tyre temperature to compete for pole and match its best time from 2016 when it went some six tenths of a second faster.

In the 4 Hours of Buriram itself, the #24 Ligier of Michael Munemann, Tacksung Kim and Mark Patterson ran faultlessly, each driver completing strong and uneventful stints en route to the third step of the podium.

Andrea Roda, meanwhile, vaulted off the start line in the #25 and initially looked to have the edge over Jackie Chan DC Racing, until the rival ORECA 03R cruised past on the charge to the braking zone for Turn 1.

Nevertheless, Roda was satisfied that he had squeezed every ounce of performance from the car before handing the reins to Matthew McMurry, who turned in a strong double stint prior to Pizzitola’s return to the cockpit.

The Italian, solely focused on closing down the leading DC Racing entry in the hands of Gustavo Menezes, performed admirably and once again received the chequered flag in second position overall to keep the championship wide open with one round of the 2016-17 Asian LMS to run at the Sepang International Circuit in Malaysia (20-22 January).

Algarve Pro Racing Team Principal, Stewart Cox, said: “We’ve completed three Asian Le Mans races and both cars have finished, so we’ve proven that the team runs reliable cars and that’s hugely important in endurance racing. We didn’t have the pace to challenge for victory in Buriram or match the times set in testing and that’s disappointing. We couldn’t take enough rear wing off the car or generate tyre temperature quickly enough, therefore we lost time in sector one of the lap and the red flag stoppage in qualifying really hurt us.

“We didn’t see a drop in straight line speed with the Judd-engined #24 car, but the Nissan in the #25 didn’t seem to be pulling as much, so we must investigate that before Malaysia. Nevertheless, we had absolutely no problems with the #24 and all three drivers were delighted with how the week went, from the start of testing to the race. It was a great performance from a bunch of guys with a combined age of 152! Ultimately, the championship is still wide open and we’re already looking ahead to the finale at Sepang.”

26 cars took to the grid for the penultimate race of the 2016-2017 Asian Le Mans Series, held in Buriram, Thailand. After a visit from His Excellency Patrick Simiyu Wamoto, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary from Kenya, along with Mr.James Nyongesa, his First Secretary on the Sunday morning, the teams got ready for the main event of the weekend, the 4 Hours of Buriram.

The race got off to a clean start and saw Ho-Pin Tung in the #35 Jackie Chan DC Racing Oreca 03R Nissan create a gap from the beginning. This was lost when the safety car had to come out to retrieve the stranded CN car, but then was quickly regained. Despite a drive through penalty for overtaking under yellows, the #35 Jackie Chan DC Racing Oreca 03R Nissan, shared with Thomas Laurent and Gustavo Menezes, managed to hold onto their lead and finished with a gap of over a minute and 20 seconds ahead of the other LMP2 cars. During the race, it looked hard for any of the others to catch up, which isn’t to say that they didn’t try. Algarve Pro Racing completed the podium steps, with the crew of the #25 Ligier JSP2 Nissan finishing second, with Matt McMurry, Andrea Roda and Andrea Pizzitola. Tacksung Kim, Michael Munemann and Mark Patterson were third with the #24 Ligier JSP2 Judd, which is a great result for a fully bronze line-up. The #8 Race Performance Oreca 03R Judd came 4th, after suffering from a few technical issues towards the end of the race. This means that the provisional standings see Jackie Chan DC Racing in the lead, but the gaps are close enough that we could see an Algarve Pro Racing crew win the LMP2 title in Sepang in a few weeks time.

The LMP3 class saw its first Ginetta victory of the season with ARC Bratislava claiming both top spots. The #4 ARC Bratislava Ginetta LMP3 with Miro Konopka, Darren Burke, Mike Simpson were first in the class, finishing 9th overall, and only 0.177 ahead of the sister car, the #7 ARC Bratislava Ginetta LMP3 driven by Neale Muston and Konstantins Calko. Once the two cars had made it to the head of the LMP3 field by the end of the second hour, they kept a hold of it. Third went to the #85 G-Print by Triple 1 Racing Ligier JSP3 with Hanss Lin, Shaun Thong Wei Fung, Ryuichirou Ohtsuka. It had also been a strong race from the #67 PRT Racing Ginetta LMP3, shared this time only between Ate De Jong and Charlie Robertson -  early on, they were racing at the head of the pack and even led overall for a lap. They crossed the line in 4th in class. It had also been a strong race for the #99 Wineurasia Ligier JSP3, with Scott Andrews, William Lok, and Aidan Read, who finished fifth.
The other LMP3 teams had a couple of issues this race. The #1 Jackie Chan DC Racing Ligier had a few problems with the car that affected their performance, meaning that James Winslow, David Cheng and Hiroki Yoshida finished 6th in class. After an issue early on which forced them to pit for 20 minutes, the pole sitting #26 Tockwith Motorsports Ligier JSP3 that had been leading the LMP3 points didn’t manage to find the pace it had had the day before. Nigel Moore and Phil Hanson struggled with engine problems for the whole race, but still managed to finish 7th in class. The #69 Aylezo Ecotint Racing Ginetta LMP3 also had issues; for them it was their starter motor that failed, causing them to lose time in the pits, and so they ended 8th in class.

The GT class looked to be dominated by DH Racing this weekend, as the two cars claimed the top spots. The #5 DH Racing Ferrari 488 GT3 took the win, finishing 5th overall, with Stephane Lemeret, Michele Rugolo and Matthieu Vaxiviere sharing the wheel, passing their sister car at the very end to claim the class win. Unfortunately, they were penalised after the race for driving unnecessarily slowly in the fast lane in the pits and received a 24 second penalty, costing them the win. This left the #3 DH Racing Ferrari 488 GT3 to get their best result so far this season, finishing second, and so are now promoted to first, with drivers Rino Mastronardi, Alex Riberas and Olivier Beretta. They faced off strong competition from the rest of the GT field, especially from class pole sitters, the #37 Team BBT Ferrari 488 GT3 with Anthony Liu, Davide Rizzo and Alessandro Pier Guidi sharing the third step on the podium, making it a Ferrari 1-2-3. After the penalty, the #37 received second place points . FIST-Team AAI were also very strong this race, coming in 4th and 5th in class. The #90 BMW M6 GT3 took home fourth with Jesse Krohn, Akira Iida and Tom Blomqvist at the wheel and the #91 FIST-Team AAI BMW M6 GT3 of Jun San Chen, Ollie Millroy and Philipp Eng fifth. We also saw a good performance from the crew of the #51 KCMG Audi R8 LMS GT3. Despite starting from 24th on the grid, they managed to make it to the front of the GT pack for a few laps. The trio of Go Max, Toru Tanaka and Tetsuya Tanaka finished 10th in class.

The #6 VS Racing Lamborghini Huracan GT3 had to abandon in the pits mid-way after suffering from electronic connection problems. The #86 OD Racing Best Leader Team McLaren 650 GT3 had some back luck and less than 15 minutes before the end of the race, the car started to smoke, forcing them to retire in the pits.

The CN entry, the #68 PS Racing Ligier JS53, with local drivers Tira Sosothikul and Medhapan Sundaradeja, didn’t get past the 6th lap of the race, stopping on the side of the track at T5, which brought out the race’s only safety car.

The GT Cup entry, Asian LM Sprint Cup regulars Team NZ had a consistent race with their #77 Porsche 911 GT3 Cup, with drivers Graeme Dowsett, John Curran and Paul Kanjanapas sharing the drive, showing that they can last the time of an endurance race as well as they do sprint races.

There is only one race left to decide the champions of the 2016/2017 season, and it is still wide open, so the teams still have it all to play for in the final round in Sepang, held very soon from the 20th to 22nd of January.

1st overall – #35 Jackie Chan DC Racing Oreca 03R Nissan
Ho-Pin Tung: “It was a very clean start. Great to get the whole field going at once. I had a really good run in the beginning and pulled a good gap in the first 6 laps until the safety car came, which was a shame because that brought the gap to zero. But the car was very good, in free practice and qualifying and today in the race as well. We had to change the strategy for the driver time for Thomas and Gustavo, but it all worked out very well. They both did a fantastic and very mature job, and it’s great to be standing here with the championship lead.”

Thomas Laurent: “My first stint was really good. I had a problem with the radio so I couldn’t check how the car was with the team, I didn’t know if I was first or second, so I did my best and kept pushing. In my second stint, I had a problem with my arm, but I kept on pushing and gave the car to Gustavo who finished the race. Thanks to my team mates and the team.”

Gustavo Menezes: “First of all, big thanks to Ho-Pin and Thomas who did a very good job, as well as the team. We’ve been mostly at the top the whole weekend, and Ho-Pin and Thomas created a massive lead which helped considering the small mistake that caused a drive through which was a bit of a shame. At the end, the car was fantastic the whole weekend. The team guided me to the end. Shame for that Algarve had the stop and go, as Pizzitola was driving very well. We had a small issue with the seat moving around, so I was a bit sore in the car. But got it home safe and got a lot of points so we can go into the last round leading the championship.”
 
2nd overall – #25 Algarve Pro Racing Ligier JSP2 Nissan
Andrea Roda: “I started the race. It was a good start for me. It’s the second time in my life that I’ve done an endurance race. I had difficulty to warm the tyres in the first few laps, but after that I had a good pace. It was really good to fight with them. For most of the race we fought side by side, it was good.”

Matt McMurry: “My stint went pretty well. The whole time they (the #35) were twenty to thirty seconds ahead of us, so I was just putting in laps, trying to catch them up as much as I could. We were struggling a bit with motor issues and it wasn’t getting any better. I tried as hard as I could but the car wasn’t helping the matter.”

Andrea Pizzitola: “I’m going to be honest, I’m frustrated with our penalty. I think when you’re side by side with a driver and you’re overtaking him, to give him space and go off track does not gain you an advantage. In my situation I was avoiding contact. Apart from that, the race was good. I pushed on the first stint and the second stint was a bit boring as I was saving fuel, so that was it. But congrats to DC Racing on their win.”

3rd overall – #24 Algarve Pro Racing Ligier JSP2 Judd
Mark Patterson: “They asked me to take the start of the race, get the old guys out of the way first. It was nice to race with these cars and drivers. We did ok. We had a minor problem with a cut out on turn 3 and turn 12, which was a pain, losing about half a second on each lap. But we did fine and just stuck to our guns and one of the other teams had a disadvantage and that’s how we’re sitting here today.

Tacksung Kim: “I had a good race, though I had problem with the radio communication and couldn’t pit in until the last minute. The rest of the team did a fantastic job, so I’m very happy with that.”

Michael Munemann: “It was warm. The first session was fine, we fixed the problem at a pitstop. Then I got into some brawls with a few GT cars that kept crossing in front of me on the straight, so I might have a few tyre marks on the side of my car. But that’s racing. We survived, we had fun. It was a nice race.”

LMP3 Class Winner – #4 ARC Bratislava Ginetta LMP3
Darren Burke: “It was a great opportunity to start the race at such a fantastic circuit. It was a little bit hectic coming out of turn two into turn three, but everyone seemed to file through nicely. I just kept my head down and made up a few positions, as we’d qualified a bit further down the pack. Made up a few positions and by the end of the stint we were sitting at a good position, I think we were third at the end of the first hour. I was very happy with the pace of the car, an improvement on qualifying. A credit to the team for making such good changes.”

Miro Konopka: “I think it was very nice weekend for us to get the double victory. We had a good setup in practice and qualification. In the race all was ok. We were lucky this weekend and I hope so for the future.”

Mike Simpson: “It was a pretty easy race. Darren and Miro did a good job. We had a good gap to the Ligier in third, and our sister car was in second. Probably the easiest 55 minutes of racing I’ve ever had. What’s also nice is that we’re a true pairing of Gold-Bronze-Bronze. So it’s nice to beat some of these kids which are graded differently. Well done to the team. They worked very long hours, and the car was very strong, and we had practically a photo finish with the cars in 1st and 2nd. Looking forward to the next race and maybe the championship.”
 
GT Class winner – #5 DH Racing Ferarri 488 GT3
Stephane Lemeret: “The start of the race was good because I started in 7th, but I took some positions. I was happy to see that the car was more competitive than it was in qualifying. I didn’t have the opportunity to follow Alex Riberas really fast. This was the opportunity to stay behind, as car #3 was stronger than #5, and we’re in the same team, but we needed the points for the championship. All in all, the team did what was important for this new sponsor, new team in motorsport. It’s an incredible achievement for their first season in motorsport. They are doing a lot to help us and support us. It’s really great to give them this title even before the end of the season.”

Matthieu Vaxiviere: “I think Stephane said everything. I’m really happy for DH Racing, and to finish P1. The team did a very good job for us. Congratulations to DH racing, and I’m really happy for everybody.”

Michele Rugolo: “I don’t really have anything to add. I’m really happy with the result. It’s great for the team. Car #3 had a few issues in the previous races and finally could achieve a podium, so that’s great for the team. I think Stephane described perfectly our race. We don’t really start in the best way possible but we are able to make the right changes to the car. We’ve improved the car a lot to get this result.”
 
GT Cup class winner – #77 Team NZ Porsche 911 GT3 Cup
John Curran: “It’s nice to be back again. I took the start. After the first six laps, there was a lot of traffic and that repeated again after the safety car. Just kept my head down and kept out of trouble.”
Graeme Dowsett: “It’s good to be back. Especially that I’m used to endurance racing. Our team did a good job, the car was spot on. It’s been a good weekend.”

Paul Kanjanapas: “It was a fun race. It was a very good race, all the cars are very fast and the drivers are very good. It was happy that I didn’t ruin anyone’s race.”

After a short winter break, the Asian Le Mans Series will be heading to the Chang International Circuit in Buriram, Thailand for the third round of the 2016-2017 series. Held over three days, from the 6-8th of December, this event will see the teams of each category continue their fight for the titles and, for some, their chances to take part in the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2017.

In the LMP3 class, the #26 Tockwith Motorsports Ligier JSP3 is leading the points table with 44 points, having a win, a podium and a pole position to their name. Jackie Chan DC Racing’s LMP3 entry, the #1 Ligier JSP3, is only 4 points behind after their performance so far this season.

ARC Bratislava head to the circuit third in class with a total of 30 points, they will be looking to close the 14 point deficit to the points leader .Hot on their heels though are Pinnacle Racing Team (PRT Racing) with Ate De Jong and Charlie Robertson.

Ate De Jong, PRT Racing Owner and Driver: “We’re making good progress in the Asian Le Mans Endurance Series and we hope to improve on our results this weekend. It’s going to be a challenge for me to learn a new circuit. This will also be the first time for Charlie and I to race the full four hours with just two drivers. These things will make the race weekend a lot more exciting for the whole team and I’m hoping we can be on the podium.”

Charlie Robertson, PRT Racing Driver: “I’m thrilled to be back in Asia at the start of the year driving for PRT Racing. The season so far has had its ups and downs, but we’ve always managed to pull through. The team’s Ginetta LMP3 has also proved to be very fast and reliable on every outing and we’ll be chasing after that podium this weekend.”

The 4 Hours of Buriram schedule has two practice sessions with Qualifying on Saturday afternoon. With a provisional 27 car entry, the race is scheduled to start at 12:15 PM local time on Sunday.

A slight tweak to the driver line-up sees some glitter added in the form of Australian Liam Talbot, replacing Frenchman Philippe Descombes on board the McLaren GT650S, with Malaysian Fairuz Fauzy and New Zealander Jono Lester this time eager to make all the steps forward in the last two rounds count this time around.

Fairuz, looking for the team to put the whole package together this time, is positive about the OD squad’s chances.

The team was hard done in Fuji, having come from behind to snatch the lead and were the fastest car in the GT class for much of the race, only to fall foul of a controversial pitlane penalty for an early pit stop which chopped two minutes off their time, effectively ruining their chances for a win.

But this time around, with that lesson taken on board, the positive vibes are centred around the clear pace the McLaren had shown in Fuji and with the whole package coming together, a win is the rightful objective.

“I’m looking forward to this weekend after showing a very good pace in Fuji. We know we can be there. It is just about having the right ingredients and putting everything together to finish in a good spot. Buriram is going to be a very challenging track, especially with the weather and the high brake-wear. We know Buriram is a very tight circuit and a bit of high speed and low-speed corners,” said Fairuz.

“I’d also like to welcome Liam on board. We know he’s got a lot of experience racing in GT3 cars, so he will not have much of a problem fitting in. So, I’m looking forward to working with him.”

The experience Lester brings will be something that the team will count on again and he will be hoping the hard work and sacrifice put in over the Christmas break will lead to victory this time, after coming close in Round 2 at the Fuji Speedway a month ago.

“Really looking forward to Buriram this weekend. It will be my second time racing there after racing in the Lamborghini Super Trofeo last year. I really think the circuit is going to suit the McLaren and the form that we showed in Fuji, I think we’ve got a really good chance of winning this weekend. That is certainly our goal,” said Lester.

“It will be really hot and humid. So, a different dynamic to Fuji and I’ve been training hard over the Christmas break. Not so much of drinking and Christmas cake, just a lot of fitness and so I’m really pumped up for the year and I want to start the year really strong. It will be a busy year with many programmes, so I’m looking forward to joining the OD boys again and let’s make the best of it.”

Making his debut with the team, Talbot is equally driven towards the goals and his good relationship with Lester could only serve up as another positive in the build-up to the weekend.

“My last race was Highlands, New Zealand with the Australian GT.  I’ve been speaking with Jono Lester since my championship win in the 2016 Blancpain Endurance Series about the chance to team up. I’ve seen Jono has been very fast and I’m looking forward to working with him and our second driver to hopefully create a winning combination

I’m excited about Asian Le Mans as a series and I can’t wait to be a part of it,” said Talbot, 34.

A first run on board the McLaren and a debut in Buriram will also be something Talbot will be looking forward to.

“I have seen how the mclaren in action can be an fast car. I’m looking forward to having my first taste of this and the unique challenges it will present. I however don’t underestimate the challenge. New car, new team and new track,” he said.

With the weather forecast reading a dry and sunny early part of the weekend with possible rain during qualifying and on race day, OD Racing founder Cornelius Ee stuck to the positive stance within the team, stating his confidence in the driver line-up.

“I think Liam will form a great partnership with Jono and Fairuz, thus our driver line-up will be very competitive in Buriram,” said Ee.

A two-three result in the 4 Hours of Zhuhai preceded another podium for the #25 Nissan-powered Ligier at Fuji in Japan and, as no one team has dominated thus far, the championship remains wide open entering the third and penultimate round of the 2016-17 season in Thailand.

Algarve Pro holds second and third in the overall standings and the objective is to overturn an 11-point deficit to the leading Jackie Chan DC Racing entry by finishing ahead of the #35 car on the road at the state-of-the-art Chang International Circuit.

With this in mind, the Extreme Energy Drink-backed team has rotated its drivers; to maximise its chances of beating rivals with Pro line-ups, including DC Racing, it is teaming its most experienced drivers, Andrea Pizzitola, Matthew McMurry and Andrea Roda, in the #25 Ligier and creating an all-Bronze line-up by partnering Michael Munemann with Tacksung Kim and Mark Patterson in the #24.

Previous form suggests Algarve Pro has the potential to win and the Albufeira, Portugal team is ensuring its gentleman drivers are as polished as possible by putting them through their paces in a two-day test at the state-of-the-art Thai track (3-4 January).

Algarve Pro Team Principal, Stewart Cox, said: “Because most of our rivals have Pro line-ups and we have a combination of Silver and Bronze drivers, it’s difficult for us to compete for outright wins, but it isn’t impossible and we’ve possessed enough speed to at least match the championship leaders until now.

“We feel that shuffling our drivers, switching Michael Munemann and Andrea Pizzitola, should give us a better chance to achieve our target of beating DC Racing and overturning what is still a small points deficit in the championship. We finished second at Buriram last year and we’re leaving no stone unturned by testing our gentleman drivers this week. It’s a good, safe track on which they can improve in the LMP2 car.”

After a short winter break, the Asian Le Mans Series will be heading to the Chang International Circuit in Buriram, Thailand for the third round of the 2016-2017 series. Held over three days, from the 6-8th of December, this event will see the teams of each category continue their fight for the titles and, for some, their chances to take part in the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2017.

At the halfway mark, the points are all still really close, with no one team having dominated both rounds one and two at Zhuhai and Fuji.

In LMP2, Jackie Chan DC Racing is currently leading with the #35 Oreca 03R Judd with 43 points, after a win and a podium from the first two rounds. Algarve Pro Racing aren’t far off, with the #25 Ligier JS P2 Nissan crew on 32 points and the #24 Ligier JSP2 Judd on 30. Having won Fuji but not finishing the race in Zhuhai, the #8 Race Performance Oreca 03R Judd rounds off the LMP2 table with 25 points. There are still 52 points on offer over the next two race weekends, so it’s still wide open.

In the LMP3 class, the #26 Tockwith Motorsports Ligier JSP3 is leading the points table with 44 points, having a win, a podium and a pole position to their name. Jackie Chan DC Racing’s LMP3 entry, the #1 Ligier JSP3, is only 4 points behind after their performance so far this season. ARC Bratislava’s two entries are next in the points, with the crew of the #4 Ginetta LMP3 in third with 30 points, and the #7 Ginetta LMP3 in fourth with 22 points

In the GT Class, the #5 DH Racing Ferrari 488 GT3 team is currently topping the points table with 37. VS Racing is sitting second with 27 points for their #6 Lamborghini Huracan GT3. The crew of the #38 Spirit of Race Ferrari 488 GT3 are very close with 26 points and Clearwater are 4th in the GT points with 24 thanks to their #61 Ferrari 488 GT3.

Round three in Buriram will see a field of 27 cars take to the track, with the whole field from Fuji joining us for round three, apart from the GT Cup entry TKS and the #92 Team AAI AMG GT3. This means that there will be action from 4 LMP2, 9 LMP3 and 12 GT3 cars, as well as a GT Cup entry and a CN entry. Team NZ, 2016 GT Cup Champions in the Asian Le Mans Sprint Cup, will be joining us from Buriram onwards in the GTCup class with the #77 Porsche GT3 Cup, with drivers Graeme Dowsett, John Curran and Paul Kanjanapas sharing the wheel. PS Racing are bringing their Ligier JS53 back for another round, with Kenji Abe, Akihiro Asai and Qin Tianqi back to share the wheel after missing out on Fuji.

See you on the 6th of January for round 3 of the Asian Le Mans Series!

Our usual driver roster, Graeme Dowsett and John Curran, will be in the #77 Porsche 997 GT3 Cup for both races while Thai driver Paul Kanjanapas will join us for the 4-hour race in Buriram, which will give us a very well rounded lineup.

Contesting the ‘second half’ of the Asian Le Mans 2016/2017 season was a logical step for Team NZ as we come off the back of winning last summer’s 3-round/6-race Asian Le Mans Sprint Cup ‘GT Cup’. It proved to be a superb entry into the inaugural ‘Sprint Cup’ as we comprehensively won the Drivers’ and Teams’ championship after claiming victory in five of the six races despite stiff opposition – in fact we won the last five 1-hour ‘sprint’ format races consecutively. John and Graeme, as well as the whole team, really raised their game and took a big step forward.

We had been planning to round the racing year out last month by joining the 10th anniversary edition of the Bangsaen Thailand Speed Festival, the street racing jewel in the crown of Thai motorsport, promoted by Thailand Super Series. But the late rescheduling of that event gave us a useful break in proceedings and set us up nicely to join the prestigious Asian Le Mans Series which has grown in just its second year into one of the top sportscar championships in the world and grids approaching 30 racecars are expected in Buriram and Sepang.

Team NZ Motorsport will be supported by Completion Products, Asia Pacific Spiral, Motosure, Pioneer Consultants, Nam Aik, FC and IMPACT SpeedPark in Buriram and Sepang.

Graeme Dowsett (New Zealand): “I’m really looking forward to the upcoming event and the 4-hour platform. Welcoming new sponsors Nam Aik, FC and Pioneer as well as Thai Porsche driver Paul Kanjanapas. All three of us have local track knowledge and 12-hour experience giving us a good starting base for setup and race lap times. Should be loads of fun al-a-carte Team NZ style.”

John Curran (Ireland): “Unfortunately due to work commitments, we couldn’t contest the first two rounds of the series, nonetheless we will be ‘all out’ for the remaining two rounds. To that end, the car has had a major overhaul and a new beating heart. This time last year we were preparing for the Bathurst 12 Hour, which was strangely successful, so we are all looking forward to a new and exciting start to the 2017 season. Graeme and I are very excited to share the seat with Paul, a good friend to Team NZ and a great driver. With CQ in charge and Will Bamber coming to coach the drivers, I can only suspect there will be as much fun off the track as on it.”

DH Racing is an international and professional racing team jointly established by Daohe Group and Ferrari. Ferrari values this cooperation very much and assigned the remarkable Amato Ferrari to help run DH Racing. The line-up consisted of six drivers from Belgium, Italy, France, Spain and Monaco. With the backup of strong operation and world champions, with the team’s confidence and performance, DH Racing took a competitive battle in Fuji.

Through the race in Zhuhai, the drivers’ collaboration are further improved. In the qualifying session of Fuji on December 3rd, #5 of DH racing made the second fastest lap time in GT category, while #3 make the fifth. Endurance race is always a huge test for every driver in terms of the speed and stamina. For the entire team, the wisdom and perseverance is particularly important.

In the first lap of the race,  DH Racing was not in the pursuit of speed and ranking as the ultimate goal, but chose the right speed to fully warm the tire. In the second lap, two cars began to accelerate forward. The team got ready in the formation lap, showing its very experienced and stable status.

During the four-hour race, the Ferrari 488 GT3 selected by DH Racing showed its powerful performance. Thanks to Ferrari’s larger fuel tanks and efficiency, the team was able to save quite a lot pit stop time. The team used a good time-saving pit stop strategy, saving like two minutes for fueling compared with other cars.

When the race saw its remaining an-hour-and-thirty-eight minutes, the spectators witnessed an amazing battle for the lead of GT category between #37 and #5 of DH Racing, driven by Michele Rugolo and Matthieu Vaxiviere. Firstly, #5 overtook #37 with a better pace, but #37 immediately got back the lead in the next minute. Michele Rugolo took his time, adjusted, accelerated and overtook #37 calmly in the corner, showing his mental stability. The commentator and the fans all felt the exciting and thrilling moment lively. Since DH Racing’s silver driver Michele Rugolo is very popular in Japan,  we can see lots of fans there expressing their support with their banners and applause in the 4 Hours of Fuji.

After 4 hours strong battle, #5 of DH Racing finished as the winner of GT category and fifth overall, among 13 GT cars from a full line-up of 27 speed machines.  Top four were LMP2s, while the fastest LMP3 finished sixth overall. That is to say, 5# of DH Racing got a faster pace than LMP3 cars in Fuji, which is an incredible result and a big reward for the team.

Jiang Dong, president of Daohe Group，presented the awards to the GT and GTCup teams. Jiang also received EPM’s live interviews. He said, “Thanks to DH Racing and the drivers’ efforts to win the championship with wisdom, confidence and perseverance. The two cars didn’t run into any problems. We are lucky, but it is the strength bringing us here. I believe that through the experience of Zhuhai and the teamwork in Fuji, we will be more confident in the rest rounds in Thailand and Malaysia.”

As the exclusive title sponsor of 2016/2017 Asian Le Mans Series, Daohe Group is committed to bring China’s motorsport industry to go globally. Meanwhile, through practical actions, Daohe Group also integrates multi-resources, promote the relevant industries and boost the motorsport development in China. This time, through its own powerful media resources and integration of the global coverage of foreign media resources of Le Mans race events, Daohe Group keeps expanding its influence, shining the brand in Japan.

As we all know, China’s motorsport industry is still in the early stage of development. There is a long way to go before it becomes a popular sport fully accepted and participated proactively by the publci. The title sponsorship with Asian Le Mans Series, the establishment of DH Racing together with Ferrari, as well as other activities are all strong evidences showing Daohe’s confidence and commitment to invest on motorsport. Meanwhile, Daohe is also putting the promotion of China’s motorsport into practice. It keeps seeking a way to combine the public needs for sports and the mass consumption market, in order to form a new sports ecology circle with motorsports as the core, covering the catering, exhibition, entertainment, tourism, culture, training and other industries.

DH Racing ranked first in the Asian Le Mans Series. We wish DH Racing continue to succeed in the championship battles  the following rounds of 2016/2017 Asian Le Mans Series in Thailand and Malaysia.

Phil Hanson and Nigel Moore drove their Ligier JS P3 to victory after scoring a dominant pole position the previous day.

Starting from the front row of the LMP3 grid, Nigel made a good start, but slipped back into second place before an early safety car period. Once the race resumed, Nigel was battling with Charlie Robertson in the #67 PRT Racing Ginetta LMP3 for the lead, until a slight tap knocked Nigel into a spin and down the order. Recovering well after losing around 20 seconds, Nigel handed over the #26 Ligier JS P3 to Phil in third place overall just as the safety car was called out. Phil went out for his stint in the Ligier while still under the safety car caution. Phil drove a faultless race, holding onto the lead for the majority of his stint, then pitting with 65 minutes left on the clock so Nigel could finish the race. In the final hour, Nigel was catching the leading #85 Ligier JS P3 by at least two seconds a lap, eventually clinching the lead. He set the fastest lap of the race on the way to taking the chequered flag by almost 60 seconds to the second placed #4 Ginetta LMP3 car.

Their win in Fuji marks the second time Tockwith Motorsports have been on the podium in the Asian Le Mans Series, after scoring a second place finish at the opening round of the season in Zhuhai, China. They are now leading the championship with two rounds remaining.

The next round of the Asian Le Mans Series is at Buriram, Thailand on 7-8 January.
Phil Hanson, driver, Tockwith Motorsports:
“I feel my stint went well and I managed to work my way up to the lead in the first half. My pace was good enough to secure us the front of the field so when Nigel got back in he was in a competitive position. The team did a great job and the Ligier was fantastic. I’m very happy with the performance that gave me my first Le Mans Series victory. I’m looking forward to many more in the future.”

Nigel Moore, driver, Tockwith Motorsports:
“I’m so pleased for all the team that we won in Fuji. It was a good race, but frustrating that I had a spin early on. But still, I managed to get back up to the front of the field and maintained my position until I handed over to Phil. He drove a great race, keeping the lead and only dropping to second due to another team’s different strategy. He handed the car over to me in a perfect position, where I could catch the leading LMP3 car and come home with a win. To come away with a pole position and our first Le Mans Series win is great. I can’t wait for the next one now.”

Simon Moore, Tockwith Motorsport Team Principle:
“The team did a great job last weekend in Fuji and I couldn’t be happier with the result. Credit must also go to the guys at Onroak Automotive for producing a fantastic race car in the Ligier JS P3. We now need to maintain our success and keep scoring more podiums and build on our points advantage.”

Who would be the form team was unclear at the conclusion of free practice at Fuji International Speedway, as the top four LMP2 runners were split by just 0.262s in FP1, before the order shifted and the #25 Algarve Pro Ligier JS P2 of Andrea Pizzitola, Michael Munemann and Andrea Roda set the pace with a 1m33.523s in FP2 (Friday 2 December).

The snow-capped Mount Fuji provided a magnificent backdrop to Asian LMS qualifying on Saturday (3 December) morning and Italy’s Pizzitola was brisk in the bright and fresh conditions, recording a 1m32.646s to secure Algarve Pro’s second successive pole position of the 2016-17 season.

But the Portugal-based team was just at base camp and its ascent to the top step of the rostrum would be frustrated by penalties and inadequate tyre warming in the race proper.

Munemann and Tacksung Kim were elected to start the Asian LMS 4 Hours of Fuji on Sunday (4 December), but a protracted Safety Car intervention lasting 20 minutes caused tyre temperatures to fall significantly and prompted the Algarve Pro pit wall to reassess its strategic options.

It was deemed sensible to keep Munemann in position near the front of the train, but Kim was boxed for fuel twice during the Safety Car period in a bid to extend the Korean Am’s opening stint in the #24 entry, when many teams ran their Pro drivers.

Munemann made way for Andrea Roda 50 minutes into the race to keep the #25 Ligier on the lead lap and give the Italian and teammate Andrea Pizzitola a chance to bridge the gap to the lead LMP2 cars in the final three hours.

However, Algarve Pro’s hopes of getting back in the fight for victory all but evaporated when the Safety Car reappeared immediately after Roda’s first stop and the team was served with two drive-through penalties for a pair of pit lane infringements.

Both Roda and Pizzitola possessed race-winning speed for the duration of their stints and matched the leaders’ fastest laps with heavily worn tyres, but a lap down, could only take the #25 Nissan-propelled Ligier to third in the overall classification.

Meanwhile, in the #24 Ligier JS P2, Mark Patterson followed Kim and put in a stellar stint before passing the reins to Swiss Pro John Hirschi, who drove faultlessly to fourth on the road at the chequered flag.

Algarve Pro Racing Team Principal, Stewart Cox, said: “It’s really difficult running gentleman drivers against teams who are fielding super-quick young guns from the FIA World Endurance Championship, but I’m pleased with the rate of progress. The cold conditions at Fuji made generating and maintaining tyre temperature a challenge – you had to push very hard to keep them in the window – but it’s all part of the learning curve for our Am drivers and we are trying to give them as much mileage as possible.

“Our Pros have shown that they’re faster than those in rival teams and we would have had a one-two in qualifying if John (Hirschi) hadn’t encountered traffic and made a mistake in the final two sectors of his fastest lap. Michael (Munemann) and Tacksung Kim started the race against quick Pros and unsurprisingly lost time, but we extended both drivers’ stints, confident we could get back in the mix.”

Cox added: “Unfortunately, we were given two drive-throughs; Andrea Roda switched the car on while refuelling and was then unable to switch it off when the nozzle went on during the second stop, having failed to engage the pit limiter. Nevertheless, our pace suggests we would have been well in the hunt. Andrea Pizzitola was undoubtedly the star of the weekend – he was consistently quick throughout free practice, qualifying and in race-trim, driving exceptionally well on tyres that had run four stints.”

The team completed just over one hundred laps in testing and free practice, gathering precious data for the four hour race. Cozzolino qualified the car and secured a place on the fourth row of the GT grid, just seven tenths off the pole set by Ferrari.

It was Cozzolino at the wheel of the number 6 Lamborghini when the lights went green. After only a handful of corners the Safety Car was bought out and stayed on track for over twenty minutes. Most of the GT field, including VSR, chose to make one of their three mandatory stops and when racing resumed Cozzolino was running in 10th. On the half hour mark Cozzolino passed the 31 Audi for 9th and gained another place when the FFF Lamborghini returned to the pits after a spin. One of the fastest GT cars on the track he soon gained another place passing Ferrari number 7 but then his progress was halted by another Safety Car. As the caution period dragged on the top GT runners stopped and VSR bought Cozzolino in to the pits to hand over to Lewis.

Ten minutes later the race went green again and Lewis found himself sandwiched between the Ferraris of Rizzo and Rugolo in 8th place. A thrilling dice ensued as Lewis kept pace with the Ferraris and the three of them set about catching the cars in front. Their first victim was the number 51 Audi and as the race entered its second half at the head of the field there were three Ferraris and the VSR Lamborghini covered by a handful of seconds. With just under ninety minutes left of the race Lewis pulled into the pits and handed the Lamborghini over to Sekiguchi during the team’s final mandatory stop.

As the last pit-stops played out Sekiguchi was running in third behind two Ferraris but had Eng in the BMW chasing him down. With no further Safety Car periods the VSR team were forced to bring their car in for a splash and dash with ten minutes left. The stop cost them just under a minute and forced them to concede 3rd to the BMW. Finishing fourth meant they moved into 2nd in the Championship.

The final two rounds of the Asian Le Mans Series will take place in January at Buriram and Sepang.

Vincenzo Sospiri: We all worked very hard this weekend and if it hadn’t been for the need to stop for fuel right at the end of the race we would have achieved another podium. Now we will go back to Italy and work very hard to improve for the final two rounds.

Kei Cozzolino: Starting P8 was a good enough position to fight for a podium this weekend because we knew we had a good race pace. We were running third for a long while and only lost the podium when we had to refuel right at the end of the race. For the next rounds we will do everything we can to get back on the podium.

Corey Lewis: Overall it was a great day for the Championship as we are now 2nd. As a team we fought very hard to get on the podium but it was just out of our reach today. The crew performed faultlessly and we had a car that was capable of running at the front. I’m very much looking forward to race three in Thailand.

Yuhi Sekiguchi: I had some difficulties getting used to the car in the short time that I drove it in testing and free practice so my pace was not what I wanted it to be. However I will be working hard to ensure that this improves for the next rounds.

The results in both free practice sessions were quite varied and predict a close race ahead, with Free Practice 1 seeing the top 4 within 0.262 seconds! The #35 Jackie Chan DC Racing Oreca 03R Nissan topped the first two-hour session on Friday afternoon with a best lap of 1:34.486 and the #25 Algarve Pro Racing Ligier JSP2 Nissan topped Free Practice 2 with a lap of 1:33.523.

In LMP3 the #26 Tockwith Motorsports Ligier JSP3 was quickest in FP1 with a lap of 1:37.159. The #99 Wineurasia Ligier JSP3, who were 3rd quickest in FP1 just beat that time in Saturday morning’s FP2 with their best of 1:37.041. The Ginetta LMP3 was also setting good times, with PRT Racing going 2nd quickest in FP1 (1:37.550) and Aylezo Ecotint Racing 3rd in FP2 (1:37.385).

Team AAI’s new #91 BMW M6 GT3 (that replaces the McLaren 650 they raced with in Zhuhai) was the fastest GT car in both sessions, whose quickest lap was 1:37.744 on Saturday morning. The Ferraris are also strong here, with the DH Racing, Spirit of Race and Team BBT Ferraris all setting some of the quickest times in the Free Practice sessions.

On Saturday afternoon, in bright but fresh conditions with the clouds coming in, the cars took to the track for qualifying, with Andrea Pizzitola claiming the second consecutive pole for the #25 Algarve Pro Racing Ligier JSP2 Nissan in the Asian LMS with a time of 1:32.646. Just behind him was Gustavo Menezes in the #35 Jackie Chan DC Racing Oreca 03R Nissan with his time of 1:32.916. The #8 Race Performance Oreca 03R Judd was 3rd fastest thanks to Struan Moore’s lap time of 1:33.089. Algarve Pro Racing’s second LMP2 entry, the #24, saw Jonathan Hirschi set a time of 1:33.771.

The LMP3 pole went to the #26 Tockwith Motorsports Ligier, thanks to the time of 1:36.054 set by Nigel Moore. Charlie Robertson was very close to claiming pole with his time of 1:36.115 in the #67 PRT Racing Ginetta LMP3. Current class points leaders, the #1 Jackie Chan DC Racing Ligier JSP3, were third in class after James Winslow set a time of 1:36.523.

The #48 PS Racing ADESS 03, representing the third type of LMP3 chassis in the Asian LMS, has got off to a slow start this weekend, but Louis Prette managed to set a time of 1:40.439.

The second qualifying session, this one for the GT and GTCup cars, saw Ferraris claim the top three slots, with Alessandro Pier Guidi going quickest in the #37 Team BBT Ferrari 488 GT3 with his lap time of 1:37.083. The #5 DH Racing Ferrari 488 GT3 was second thanks to Matthieu Vaxviere’s lap of 1:37.228 and the third best GT time was set by Marco Cioci in the #38 Spirit of Race Ferrari 488 GT3 with a time of 1:37.243. Things will be close in the GT class with the top 9 setting times within 1 second of the class pole sitter. The GTCup entry, the #96 TKS Porsche 911 GT3 Cup set a lap time of 1:43.974 with Shinyo Sano at the wheel. This team also sees the Asian Le Mans Series’ first handicapped driver with Takuma Aoki sharing the wheel of the #96 with Shinyo Sano and Shigeto Nagashima.

With the good weather set to continue, tomorrow’s 4-Hour race is set to be a closely fought one! See you at 12:15 local time for the start of the race! You can follow it on live streaming with on-site commentary from DSC’s Graham Goodwin, just click on the link below.

Watch the 4 Hours of Fuji live from 12:15 on Sunday 4th December!

#25 Algarve Pro Racing Ligier JSP2 Nissan, Andrea Pizzitola: “I love this track. It’s really nice with this car. Fast and slow corners, a bit of everything. It’s also special for me because this time last year I was here testing the GT500 and that was an important test for my career. I feel happy to be back on this track and I’m happy for the result for the team. It was a nice quali. It was a bit stressful, I was second for the whole quali and then on the last lap, I did a good lap with no traffic, which is important. I’m happy.”
 
#26 Tockwith Motorsports Ligier JSP3, Nigel Moore: “It wasn’t bad. We held back a bit before we went out. Went out and were in the top pretty much from the start. The Ginetta got close at one point but I put it in its place. We got pole for the first time at a circuit and I think the whole team is enjoying it, so we’re happy. Really enjoying it. It’s quite different, and the characteristics of the circuit are quite good. It’s going to be a close race, with the P2s as well at the start of the race. I’m looking forward to it.”
 
#37 Team BBT Ferrari 488 GT3, Alessandro Pier Guidi: “It was a really good quali. To be honest, I was surprised with the lap time, but the track looks quick this weekend. The team did a very good job. This pole is for them. We had bad luck last race in Zhuhai, so I think we deserve something good. To be on pole is always nice. But pole is only the first part of the race. Tomorrow we have to push to be back here at the end of the race.”

#96 TKS Porsche 911 GT3Cup, Shinyo Sano: “This is my home circuit, so I could relax and enjoy myself. We’re also the only team in the GTCup class, so it was fun and I’m enjoying the weekend.”