16 April 2016
Abu Dhabi, 16 April, 2016 – The second round of the 2016 Ferrari Challenge Asia Pacific took place on the Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi last night, for the final day of high-octane race activity. The field of drivers harnessed the power of their 458 Challenge cars on the F1 track to full effect in a breathtaking display of Ferrari’s sporting heritage. Day two dawned clear and sunny, making the rain of the previous day a distant memory and allowing drivers to achieve some impressive times in the qualifying rounds before the final face of the weekend at 7:00pm.
Trofeo Pirelli. Steve Wyatt from Australia, the 2015 Asia Pacific Champion and victor of day one, entered the race keen to maintain his winning streak. However, the eventual champion was Kantasak Kusiri from Thailand, in his first win of the Ferrari Challenge series. Kusiri saw off aggressive moves from Wyatt in a replay of the action from day one, but this time beating him to the finish with the fastest lap time of the day of 2”11.204. Florian Merckx from Belgium came in third. Kusiri is proving one to watch as he moves with increasing confidence through the Ferrari Challenge series.
Pirelli AM. Eric Cheung from Canada streaked across the finish line in first place following an assured performance. Victory was claimed following a battle between Xin Jin from China and Hidehiko Hagiwara from Japan in an exhilarating display of speed and precision. In the press the conference, Cheung said how much he enjoyed the race, and that the appearance of the safety car in an early lap allowed him to regain his rhythm and power through subsequent race with a powerful finish.
Coppa Shell. In the Coppa Shell class, it was Chinese Liang Wang to win following his third position on day one. Ken Seto from Japan reclaimed second position whilst Yuan Yang from China came in third. Wang attributed his success to his increased knowledge and focus that allowed him to improve his performance from his earlier race and relax and begin to enjoy the Abu Dhabi track. The next round of the Ferrari Challenge APAC will be at Shanghai, in China, at the beginning of June.