Inje, Korea. Team Eagle’s Martin Ragginger of Austria put in a wheel-perfect performance on the 4.208km Inje Speedium International Circuit today to take a convincing victory in Round 9 of the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia. Second across the line was PICC Team StarChase driver and reigning champion Alexandre Imperatori, who defended superbly throughout the 14-lap race from a persistent Earl Bamber of Nexus Racing, third.
In Class B, Mentos Racing’s Egidio Perfetti took his fifth successive victory, while category pole-man Alif Hamdan of Nexus Racing took second and Dorr McElrea Racing’s Yuey Tan of Singapore claiming the final podium spot.
Ragginger’s victory narrows the gap between him and Bamber on the championship leaderboard to just 13 points. With three races to go, and a total of 62 points on offer, five drivers remain in contention for overall honours. Third in the running is Team Jebsen’s Rodolfo Avila followed by LKM Racing Team’s Keita Sawa and Budweiser Kamlung Racing’s Tung Ho-Pin.
Perfetti has a comfortable points advantage at the top of Class B ahead of Asia Racing Team’s Li Chao and Yuey Tan.
On Saturday’s Round 8 race, Budweiser Kamlung Racing driver Tung Ho-Pin took his maiden Porsche Carrera Cup Asia victory. The Chinese driver started from the third row of the grid, and adeptly avoided multiple dramas to stay out of trouble and take the win.
Second was Team C&D ace rookie Jason Zhang Zhiqiang, his best result so far in his debut Porsche Carrera Cup Asia season, with Team Jebsen’s Rodolfo Avila of Macau taking the final podium finish.
However, first across the finish line was Team Eagle’s Martin Ragginger, but he was subsequently handed a 30 second penalty by race officials for a false start. It was a disappointing end to what had been a challenging race for the Austrian, who had recovered well from an early incident.
Continuing his spectacular run of Class B victories this season, Mentos Racing’s Egidio Perfetti added a win on the new track to his impressive racing CV, finishing fourth overall in front of Korean guest driver Recardo Bruins who, like much of the field, had more than his fair share of incidents. Second in Class B was Nexus Racing’s Alif Hamdan of Malaysia, his first podium finish since the season opener in Malaysia. Dorr McElrea Racing’s Yuey Tan took third, describing the incident-filled race as “pretty crazy!”
As the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia leaves the mountains of Inje, next up for the region’s premier sportscar championship is a highlight of the season, the Porsche SC Global Carrera Cup Asia – Singapore 2013, held at the FORMULA 1 SINGTEL SINGAPORE GRAND PRIX. With three rounds of the 2013 season to go, the championship remains wide open and the competition will be red hot as the 25-strong field swoops down on the Marina Bay street circuit.
