The GT Asia Series action ‘heats up’ in Thailand

The GT Asia Series action ‘heats up’ in Thailand
Chang International Circuit, Buriram, Thailand
Rnd#3/4, 2016 GT Asia Series – 10-12 June, 2016

• GT Asia Series takes on the heat of Thailand this weekend
• Competition is tight, with all five marques separated by just over half a second
• Bentley continues to set the pace, but the outcome is a long way from final

The action was hot at Chang International Circuit during official practice for the second event of the 2016 GT Asia Series season, the battle for bragging rights as the fastest team of the day almost as intense as the ambient and track temperatures.. During the peak of session two, ambient temperature peaked at just under 38 degrees, whilst track temperature crept up to 50..

In the car the drivers were feeling the heat, with cabin temperatures well in excess of 60 degrees, but despite the challenge and the impact it had on pace in the heat of the midday sun, the closing session in the ‘cool’ of the afternoon, saw times begin to fall as drivers ignored comfort and went after the top spot.

Ultimately no-one – not even the man himself – could get close to Duncan Tappy’s 2015 pole time of 1:32.438, but they put on a hell of a show, with all five marques within half a second of each other as the clock wound down.

In the end it was Tappy who emerged fastest in the black and magenta #9 Bentley Team Absolute machine, ahead of Bentley Team Absolute team-mate Adderly Fong who had opened the ledger for the day as the fastest man in session one. Sadly the pace-setting #7 Bentley was beached during session two as team-mate Andrew Kim explored the limits, fortunately without damage to the car.

Rising Italian stars Andrea Amici and Edoardo Liberati in the FFF Racing Team by ACM Lamborghini Huracan were next, the two impressive youngsters hauled into race control post-session three for a discussion about track limits, with warnings to drivers earlier in the day that officials would clamp down on cars who started to ‘explore’ track limits. There were no penalties applied, however the Race Director made no secret in driver’s briefing that penalties would apply as soon as qualifying began.

Behind them by just over a tenth of a second were points leader Jonathan Venter and his new German team-mate Fabian Hamprecht, ahead of the always threatening Anthony Liu and Davide Rizzo (BBT Ferrari 488 GT3) and South Korean pole-sitters Marchy Lee and Shaun Thong (Phoenix Racing Asia Audi R8 LMS GT3) – these three teams separated by just two tenths of a second. It was close..

Recent Nurburgring 24-Hour class winner Carlo Van Dam was right in the thick of the action in the Singha Motorsport Ferrari 458 Italia, the talented Dutchman in the end just a tenth slower than the 488 GT3 of Liu and Rizzo and just eight one hundredths slower than the gold Audi.

The two Craft-Bamboo Racing Porsches being further down the order was perhaps the biggest surprise, and whilst just half a second off the lead pack, they looked to be focused on the big picture later in the day, working on race strategy as their rivals battled over position.

The experienced Hong Kong based team through will no doubt have something up their sleeve for qualifying which will happen during cooler temperatures early on Saturday morning.

Ultimately the two Craft-Bamboo machines were split by the GruppeM Racing Porsche of Tim Sugden and young English star George Richardson who became a late replacement for car owner Philip Ma.

In the battle for GTC class honours, the day very much went the way of Aekrat Discharoen in the A Motorsport Porsche during the opening two sessions, before the two Singha Motorsport Ferrari 458 Challenge cars worked their way to the top in the closing stages of session three, Kantasak Kusiri putting the #59 Singha Plan-B Motorsport car to the top, mere tenths clear of Voravud Bhirombhakdi and Tin Sritra in the sister car.

So what did we learn from day one..? That the weekend is a long way from done.

At present the much discussed BoP (balance of performance) looks to be working well, changes post-South Korea have closed up the field, although qualifying will soon show the true pace of each team.

BoP though doesn’t explain the bigger picture, as success parity adjustments to the Compulsory Pit Stop [every team stops for a minimum allocated time (85-seconds) to allow for safe driver changes mid-race] times for South Korea’s dominant #8 Bentley team – along with their silver-silver driver lineup – will see Jonathan Venter and Fabian Humprect stationary for an additional 36-seconds more than the bulk of their rivals, all but putting them out of a podium equation for race one..

The FFF Racing Lamborghini too will endure a longer stop, with an additional 21-second penalty by virtue of their driver rankings and a second placed finish in race two in South Korea, whilst Anthony Liu and Davide Rizzo, Shaun Thong and Marchy Lee, and Tim Sugden and George Richardson will also have an extended visit.

Teams now prepare for qualifying at 9:45am (ICT time) on Saturday morning with two 15-minute sessions separated by a ten minute break, ahead of the opening round in Thailand at 2:25pm, right in the peak of the heat of the day. Round four (race two at Buriram) will be held at 2:00 on Sunday afternoon, with increasing chances that thunderstorms will hit during the day.

This season Fox Sports Asia and Star Sports in China will broadcast every event of GT Asia Series live (race two in full, with highlights of the opening race), whilst the series itself will also live-stream every round with veteran commentators Jonathan Green – the voice of GT Asia – joined by Steve Martin to call both live television and live streaming.

Details of the streams and the broadcast times will be available on the GT Asia Series website – www.gtasiaseries.com – and through social media; www.facebook.com/GTAsiaSeries will also post news, video clips, images and updates, and you can also get involved in the conversation on www.twitter.com/GTAsiaSeries

The GT Asia Series is sanctioned by the FIA as an International Series and is clearly recognised as the Region’s leading GT Championship. It is solely managed and promoted by Motorsport Asia Ltd and is backed by Singha, Michelin, KW Automotive, Motul, Race Room, Panta and YOFC.

Chang International Circuit, Buriram, Thailand (10 June)
Official Practice#1 (60-minutes)

1. Fong/Kim (Absolute Racing Bentley Continental GT3) – 1:34.235
2. Rizzo/Liu (BBT Ferrari 488 GT3) – 1:35.264
3. Lyons/ Yu (Craft Bamboo Racing Porsche GT3-R) – 1:35.389
4. Amici/Liberati (FFF Racing Lamborghini Huracan GT3) – 1:35.480
5. Venter/Hamprecht (Absolute Racing Bentley Continental GT3) – 1:35.555
6. Lee/Thong (Phoenix Racing Asia Audi R8 LMS GT3) – 1:35.673
7. Tappy/Inthraphuvasak (Absolute Racing Bentley Continental GT3) – 1:35.853
8. O’Young/Bhirombakdi (Craft Bamboo Racing Porsche GT3-R) – 1:35.944
9. Bhirombhakdi/Van Dam (Singha Motorsport Ferrari 458 Italia GT3) – 1:36.122
10. Yoong/Au (Phoenix Racing Asia Audi R8 LMS GT3) – 1:36.387
11. Sugden/Richardson (GruppeM Racing Porsche GT3-R) – 1:37.155
12. Aekrat Discharoen (True Vision Motorsports Porsche 991 Cup Car*) – 1:39.506
13. Kusiri/Bhirombhakdi (Singha Plan-B Motorsport Ferrari 458 Challenge*) – 1:39.806
14. Bhirombhakdi/Sritrai (Singha Motorsport Ferrari 458 Challenge*) – 1:40.832

Official Practice#2 (60-minutes)

1. Rizzo/Liu (BBT Ferrari 488 GT3) – 1:34.047
2. Lee/Thong (Phoenix Racing Asia Audi R8 LMS GT3) – 1:34.906
3. Tappy/Inthraphuvasak (Absolute Racing Bentley Continental GT3) – 1:35.061
4. Amici/Liberati (FFF Racing Lamborghini Huracan GT3) – 1:35.206
5. Bhirombhakdi/Van Dam (Singha Motorsport Ferrari 458 Italia GT3) – 1:35.305
6. O’Young/Bhirombakdi (Craft Bamboo Racing Porsche GT3-R) – 1:35.416
7. Lyons/ Yu (Craft Bamboo Racing Porsche GT3-R) – 1:35.421
8. Venter/Hamprecht (Absolute Racing Bentley Continental GT3) – 1:35.567
9. Yoong/Au (Phoenix Racing Asia Audi R8 LMS GT3) – 1:35.791
10. Sugden/Richardson (GruppeM Racing Porsche GT3-R) – 1:36.389
11. Fong/Kim (Absolute Racing Bentley Continental GT3) – 1:36.739
12. Aekrat Discharoen (True Vision Motorsports Porsche 991 Cup Car*) – 1:39.699
13. Kusiri/Bhirombhakdi (Singha Plan-B Motorsport Ferrari 458 Challenge*) – 1:39.946
14. Bhirombhakdi/Sritrai (Singha Motorsport Ferrari 458 Challenge*) – 1:40.290

Official Practice#3 (60-minutes)

1. Tappy/Inthraphuvasak (Absolute Racing Bentley Continental GT3) – 1:33.719
2. Fong/Kim (Absolute Racing Bentley Continental GT3) – 1:33.932
3. Amici/Liberati (FFF Racing Lamborghini Huracan GT3) – 1:33.962
4. Venter/Hamprecht (Absolute Racing Bentley Continental GT3) – 1:34.168
5. Rizzo/Liu (BBT Ferrari 488 GT3) – 1:34.335
6. Lee/Thong (Phoenix Racing Asia Audi R8 LMS GT3) – 1:34.349
7. Bhirombhakdi/Van Dam (Singha Motorsport Ferrari 458 Italia GT3) – 1:34.432
8. Lyons/ Yu (Craft Bamboo Racing Porsche GT3-R) – 1:34.727
9. Sugden/Richardson (GruppeM Racing Porsche GT3-R) – 1:35.503
10. O’Young/Bhirombakdi (Craft Bamboo Racing Porsche GT3-R) – 1:35.579
11. Kusiri/Bhirombhakdi (Singha Plan-B Motorsport Ferrari 458 Challenge*) – 1:38.669
12. Bhirombhakdi/Sritrai (Singha Motorsport Ferrari 458 Challenge*) – 1:38.981
13. Aekrat Discharoen (True Vision Motorsports Porsche 991 Cup Car*) – 1:40.372
14. Yoong/Au (Phoenix Racing Asia Audi R8 LMS GT3) – NTR

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CHANG INTERNATIONAL CIRCUIT

Chang International Circuit, Buriram (Thailand)
Track length: 4.554-kilometres
Corners: 12
Rotation: clockwise
Designer/Circuit first opened: Hermann Tilke, 2014
GT3 Lap record:
1:33.635 – Race (Adderly Fong – Bentley Continental GT3, October 2015)
1:32.438 – Qualifying (Duncan Tappy – Bentley Continental GT3, October 2015)
website: www.gtasiaseries.com
Support classes: TCR Asia Series, Clio Cup Asia, Asian Formula Renault

GT ASIA AND CHANG INTERNATIONAL CIRCUIT

Chang International Circuit at Buriram – 400-kilometres east of the Thailand’s capital Bangkok – made it’s first appearance on the GT Asia Series schedule in 2015, hosting the final round of the season. The venue was both popular with teams and fans alike, with a record crowd attending the circuit on the Sunday, to watch Craft Bamboo Racing’s Darryl O’Young claim the 2015 title by a mere point over Bentley Team Absolute’s Keita Sawa and Adderly Fong. This weekend’s round could well provide the same level of excitement as teams contest the second event of the 2016 season.

2015 – Rnd#10 (60-minutes – 38-laps)

Pole position: Duncan Tappy (Absolute Team Bentley Continental GT3) – 1:32.438
1. Duncan Tappy/Benny Simonsen (Bentley Continental GT3)
2. Alvaro Parente/Hiroshi Hamaguchi (McLaren 650S GT3)
3. Keita Sawa/Adderly Fong (Absolute Team Bentley Continental GT3)

2015 – Rnd#11 (60-minutes – 35-laps)

Pole position: Adderly Fong (Absolute Team Bentley Continental GT3) – 1:32.563
1. Daniel Lloyd/Darryl O’Young (Craft Racing Aston Martin Vantage GT3)
2. Anthony Liu/Davide Rizzo (BBT Ferrari 458 Italia GT3)
3. Adderly Fong/Keita Sawa (Absolute Team Bentley Continental GT3)

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Rnd#3/#4 – 2016 GT Asia Series

Chang International Circuit, Buriram, Thailand
Schedule (ICT – GMT +7)

Saturday, 11 June
9:45 – Qualifying #1 (15-minutes)
10:10 – Qualifying #2 (15-minutes)
14:25 – Race#1 (60-minutes)

Sunday, 12 June
14:00 – Race#2 (60-minutes)

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GT3 Championship points (after two rounds of 12)

1. Keita Sawa/Jonathan Venter (36-points), 2. Anthony Liu/Davide Rizzo (28), 3. Piti Bhirombhakdi/Carlo Van Dam (19), 3. Marchy Lee/Shaun Thong (19), 4. Edoardo Liberati/Andrea Amici (16), 4. Adderly Fong/Andrew Kim (16), 5. Alex Yoong/Alex Au (14), 6. Franky Cheng/JingZu Sun (13), 7. Darryl O’Young/Naiyanobh Bhirombhakdi (11), 8. Mok Weng Sun/Richard Wee (10), 9. Andrew Palmer/Vutthikorn Inthrapuvasak (8), 10. Philip Ma/Tim Sugden (6)

Pro-Am Cup points (after two rounds of 12)

1. Anthony Liu (34-points), 2 Piti Bhirombhakdi (28), 3. Shaun Thong (26), 4. Andrew Kim (18), 5. Alex Au (17), 6. JingZu Sun (16), 7. Naiyanobh Bhirombhakdi (15), 8. Philip Ma (12), 9. Vutthikorn Inthrapuvasak (10), 10. Frank Yu (0)

Pro Cup points (after two rounds of 12)

1. Jonathan Venter/Keita Sawa (36-points), 2. Davide Rizzo (28), 3. Carlo Van Dam (19), 3. Marchy Lee (19), 4. Adderly Fong (16), 4. Edoardo Liberati/Andrea Amici (16), 5. Alex Yoong (14), 6. Franky Cheng (13), 7. Darryl O’Young (12), 8. Tim Sugden (9), 9. Andrew Palmer (8), 10. Richard Lyons (0)

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2016 GT Asia Series – calendar

TEST DAYS, 9-10 May – Korea International Circuit (South Korea)
Rnd#1/#2, 13-15 May – Korea International Circuit (South Korea)
Rnd#3/#4, 10-12 June – Buriram International Circuit (Thailand)
Rnd#5/#6, 1-3 July – Okayama International Circuit (Japan)
Rnd#7/#8, 15-17 July – Fuji International Speedway (Japan)
Rnd#9/#10, 19-21 August – Shanghai International Circuit (China)
Rnd#11/#12, 21-23 October – Zhejiang Circuit (China)

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