Shigeta, Chong and Hutasoit triumph in Sepang and make their mark on the Asia Pacific championship
Sepang, 2 October – After a long summer break of over one month, the Asia Pacific series of the Ferrari Challenge Trofeo Pirelli returned to action at the Sepang circuit for the fourth and penultimate round of the season, leading up to the World Finals, which take place over the weekend of 6 November at Mugello.
Adding to the excitement of the busy programme from a racing point of view, is the demanding nature of the track, which highlights the effort Ferrari puts in to offering something new to its owner-drivers. The Sepang circuit, on the outskirts of the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur has been home to the Malaysian Formula 1 Grand Prix since 1999, where the extremely humid conditions combine to add even greater challenges for both races.
Saturday’s action featured qualifying, while today the twenty 458 Challenge cars took to the track for the weekend’s two races. In the first one, the Trofeo Pirelli category was dominated by Japan’s Hisao Shigeta, who crossed the line ahead of his compatriot Hisamori Hayashi and the Singapore driver Ringo Chong, while of those competing in the Coppa Shell, the victory went to the Indonesian Renaldi Martin Hutasoit, with the Australian Steve Wyatt and Gregory Teo (Singapore) coming home second and third. Ringo Chong won the second race of the main category, from Jeffery Lee and Eric Kwong, while in the Coppa Shell, Renaldi Martin Hutasoit stood again on the top step of the podium, with Tack Sung Kim and the Malaysian Erwin Azizi alongside him. Among the entrants for the Coppa Shell, Azizi made his championship debut at his home race, finishing on the podium.
A special guest at the event was Enrico Galliera, Ferrari’s Commercial and Marketing Director. After he presented the prizes to the winners of the two races, he wanted to underline the importance of the new Ferrari Challenge Asia Pacific championship: “Our customer-drivers have always had an important role to play in Ferrari’s motorsport activities ever since the foundation of our Company. The number of cars entered into the new series and the enthusiasm that I’ve seen from everyone here confirms the success of this new championship. It allows our racing clients to compete on the most beautiful circuits, experiencing competition from first-hand and breathing the passion that has always set apart Ferrari’s single-make championships.”
Now, competitors in the APAC series of the one-make championship can look forward to the Ferrari World Finals, which take place at the Mugello International Circuit over the weekend of 6 November.
Credit: Ferrari S.p.A. (www.ferrari.com)
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