Round 2 of the 2019 Ferrari Challenge Asia Pacific series came to a close today under warm and sunny conditions at Albert Park in Melbourne. The 21 drivers in the field once again showcased great driving skills throughout Race 2.
Trofeo Pirelli AM Philippe Prette (Blackbird Concessionaires HK),
James Weiland (Ferrari of Cincinnati) and
Go Max (M Auto Hiroshima) dominated the second day. The leaders turned the first corner unscathed with Prette ahead of Weiland and Max. Italian driver Prette, after clinching a podium on Saturday after a difficult race, experienced a perfect day on Sunday. He started off pole position and shot quickly to a solid lead pulling half a second a lap on the field. He also set the fastest lap of the race. Max and Weiland set about chasing down Prette, whilst battling for second position.
Hector Lester (Zagame Melbourne) stayed wide at the start on the run into Turn 1 and lost a few places in the process dropping to sixth, leaving him a lot of work to do. Prette managed to keep his lead throughout the race and came in first, followed by Weiland and Max. Prette wins the round by a single point over Max, proving again the importance of the bonus point in qualifying.
Coppa Shell The highlight of the day was the battle from fourth to eighth position involving
Michael Choi (Blackbird Concessionaires HK) and fellow compatriot
David Pun, Weiland,
Yanbin Xing (CTF Beijing) and Lester. With multiple position changes amongst the group in each lap, they put on a great show for the record crowd in Melbourne. But it was Xing’s race to win in his class following his disappointing race on day one. He managed to keep his lead in his class all the way to the end of the race. Choi took the second step on the podium followed by newcomer Pun.
Coppa Shell AM. Coppa Shell AM class saw Jay Park (FM Korea) winning the first place finisher following his pole position in his class and 4
th position overall on the grid. He drove a solid race throughout. In second place was Andrew Moon, also from FM Korea, and third place went to
Baby Kei (Cornes Osaka). On lap 8, Atsushi Iritani ran wide and got stuck in the gravel, bringing out the safety car until the checkered flag.
Yansheng Liang (CTF Beijing) was the winner of the Gentlemen Cup while
Kanthicha Chimsiri (Cavallino Motors Bangkok) took the Ladies’ Cup.
Schedule The next round of the Ferrari Challenge Asia Pacific will be held at Sepang International Circuit in Malaysia for a night race from 19
th – 21
st April.