The FIA World Cup is already underway on the incredible Guia circuit. Dino Beganovic has raced here before in Formula Regional, while Tuukka Taponen is making his street circuit debut.
When asked to name their favourite track, many drivers including those who make it to Formula 1, will still cite Macau. The circuit has been a fixture for decades now, this year being the 71st edition of the event that takes place in the former Portuguese protectorate, now part of China since 1999. The event pioneered motorsport in Asia and today it is a classic with a long and illustrious history. This year, the main event is the Formula Regional World Cup, regarded as something of a world championship in a single race. Dino Beganovic and Tuukka Taponen are part of a 27 driver field, this being the final race of the year for the Scuderia Ferrari Driver Academy duo. Dino first raced here last year, also at the wheel of a Formula Regional car. He dominated that category two years ago and jumped at the chance to return to the track in his “old” Prema team car.
Dino. “Macau is a very special place,” commented Dino. “Last year I raced here for the first time and I promised myself I’d come back. And here I am, with more experience and a great team behind me. Always being on the limit, pushing the car to its maximum, making the most of every centimetre, brushing the walls, is a truly unique feeling, which is why I think Macau is one of the greatest tracks in the world.”
Tuukka. Taponen is making his debut here and did not hesitate when he got the call from the R-ace GP team. “It is a completely new challenge,” said Tuukka. “It’s my first time at Macau and on this type of street circuit. It’s going to be interesting and fun to race against other Formula 3 drivers and I will be aiming to bring home the best result possible.”
The track. The Guia Street Circuit is 6.120 kilometres long with 24 corners. Its unique feature is the very long almost two kilometre straight which runs from the R corner before the start-finish line to the Lisboa corner. This means cars run with very low downforce, which makes life tricky for the drivers when it comes to the twisty street section. Track action began on Thursday, while qualifying took place today for the Qualifying Race which gets underway at 15.00 tomorrow (08.00 CET) over 10 laps. Dino will start 15th, with Tuukka 20th. Sunday’s 15 lap race that crowns the winner as world champion, starts at 15.30.