2012 Porsche Carrera Cup Asia Concludes 10th Season at the Top

The 2012 Porsche Carrera Cup Asia has concluded a successful 10^th season at a spectacular finale in Shanghai last weekend. The series scaled new heights this year with its most prestigious entry ever. For FastMotoring, we have worked our best to follow each race and even flew to China once to experience the race event. Trust me, the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia is absolutely one of the most exciting motorsports in this region. Just a note to Porsche Malaysia, do consider to send us invitation for 2013 season again!

 

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Porsche AG, President and Chief Executive Officer – Mr. Matthias Mueller commented, “When Porsche China took over the organisation of the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia in 2010, we were pleased to welcome a new era for the series, and we are committing all available resources to building a strong racing culture across China.” Evidence of this pledge, the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia delivered an outstanding 2012 season, with superb on-track competition ultimately producing two new champions.

 

The season roared to life in fitting style supporting the prestigious 2012 FIA FORMULA 1 UBS CHINESE GRAND PRIX in Shanghai in April, followed by 2 exciting races at the Zhuhai International Circuit in June. In July, the series traveled to the challenging Inner Mongolian Ordos circuit, before racing in support of Malaysia’s Merdeka Millennium Endurance Race for the first time a month later. In September, the series raced in support of the FORMULA 1 SINGTEL SINGAPORE GRAND PRIX at the Marina Bay street circuit, before November’s season finale in Shanghai.

 

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The 2012 season saw a 28-strong field of race-prepared Porsche 911 GT3 Cup cars, the finest line-up of GT specialists ever assembled in Asia. A record eight Porsche China dealer teams entered, with three new teams joining regulars: Team Jebsen, who once again fielded Macau driver Rodolfo Avila; Team StarChase with a two-car entry, the PICC Team StarChase car for 2012 champion Alexandre Imperatori and the Budweiser Team StarChase entry for series and GT racing newcomer, Tung Ho-Pin of China; Team Kangshun with veteran Singapore racer Ringo Chong; the series’ only lady driver returning with Team C&D; and Team Betterlife with reigning Class B champion Wang Jian Wei of China. The newcomers were Team Eagle – Jiejun & Junbaojie with Porsche specialist Martin Ragginger of Austria, Team Yongda Dongfang with Frenchman Benjamin Rouget, and Team Basetex with exciting young Chinese talent Zhang Da Sheng.

 

The battle for both the overall and Class B championship titles went right down to the wire at the final race meeting of the season in Shanghai, with Imperatori taking the title after the qualifying session for the penultimate round.  Second was defending champion Keita Sawa of LKM Racing Team, with Ragginger third.  Modena Motorsports’ Wayne Shen had to wait until the final round before taking a well-deserved Class B title.

 

With a field packed with emerging and established talent, the 2012 Porsche Carrera Cup Asia season has been widely acclaimed as the most competitive yet, but plans are already well advanced to ensure the championship further strengthens its richly-deserved reputation as the series for pure racing drivers.

 

Porsche China Chief Executive Officer Mr. Helmut Broeker announced the 2013 provisional calendar during the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia gala prize giving: “As we mark a decade as Asian motorsports pioneers in 2013, we can look forward to field of outstanding drivers and a prestigious calendar to match.  I am delighted to announce that we have three Formula 1 support races on the provisional calendar:  Here in Shanghai, in Malaysia, and at the glittering Singapore Grand Prix.  In addition, the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia will support two rounds of the Asian Le Mans Series, including a round at a new race track in South Korea, and a round of the China Touring Car Champion before ending the season here at the Shanghai Sportscar Champions Festival 2013.”

 

The Porsche Carrera Cup Asia will celebrate its 10^th anniversary in 2013, and as it embarks upon its second decade leading the way for Asia sports car competition, a new chapter will be written.  Organisers are preparing to scale new heights, raising the bar yet again on Asian motorsport as the series has done each year since its launch in 2003.  With a new circuit to expand the series’ reach and supporting three rounds of the FIA Formula 1 World Championship, its loyal supporters can look forward to more thrills, more excitement and more superb motorsport as the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia prepares to go one better.

 

2012 Porsche Carrera Cup Asia Final Points Standings (top 10)

 

Overall

Pos	Comp No	Driver	Entrant	Points
1	99	Alexandre IMPERATORI	PICC Team StarChase	199
2	1	Keita SAWA	LKM Racing Team	155
3	20	Rodolfo AVILA	Team Jebsen	137
4	86	Martin RAGGINGER	Team Eagle-Jiejun & Junbaojie	133
5	98	TUNG Ho-Pin	Budweiser Team StarChase	130
6	8	Benjamin ROUGET	Team Yongda Dongfang	103
7	37	David RIZZO	BBT	77
	78	ZHANG Da Sheng	Team Basetex	77
9	9	WANG Jian Wei	Team Betterlife	71
10	88	Egidio PERFETTI	Seminole Racing Team	61

 

Class B

Pos	Comp No	Driver	Entrant	Points
1	16	Wayne SHEN	Modena Motorsports	178
2	21	Francis TJIA	OpenRoad Racing	152
3	88	Egidio PERFETTI	Seminole Racing Team	146
4	81	HUANG Chu Han	Asia Racing Team	139
5	5	Yuey TAN	Dorr McElrea Racing	107
6	6	ZHENG Ting	BBT	100
7	25	Christian CHIA	OpenRoad by ART Motorsports	84
8	27	Adrian Henry D’SILVA	Nexus Racing	72
9	23	Pail TRESIDDER	Hewlett Motorsport	70
10	28	John SHEN	Modena Motorsports	69

 

 

Porsche Carrera Cup Asia 2013

 

Provisional Race Calendar

Date	Circuit, Country	Event	Round(s)
March 02 – 03	Sepang Intl. Circuit, Malaysia	Test Days	–
March 22 – 24	Sepang Intl. Circuit, Malaysia	Formula 1 Support Race	Round 1
April 12 – 14	Shanghai Intl. Circuit, China	Formula 1 Support Race	Round 2
May 03 – 05	Zhuhai Intl. Circuit, China	China Touring Car Championship*	Round 3 & 4
July 05 – 07	Ordos Intl. Circuit, China	Asian Le Mans Series*	Round 5 & 6
August 02 – 04	Autopia Intl. Circuit, Korea	Asian Le Mans Series*	Round 7 & 8
September 20 – 22	Marina Bay Circuit, Singapore	Formula 1 Support Race	Round 9
October 25 – 27	Shanghai Intl. Circuit, China	Shanghai Sports Car Champions Festival*	Round 10 & 11