Alex Yoong relegated to second spot as Picariello wins in Taiwan to reclaim Cup lead

Alessio Picariello of MGT Team by Absolute climbed atop the podium and the championship standings after Round 10 of the Audi R8 LMS Cup, relegating Malaysian ace Alex Yoong to second spot.

His win at the Penbay International Circuit was his first of the season and came after Castrol Racing Team’s Rahel Frey had dominated Round 9 to finish first.

Heading into next month’s season finale, Picariello leads the GT3 sprint series on 151 points, with reigning champion Alex Yoong of Audi TEDA Racing Team just three points behind on 148 points and Frey in third on 137 points.

It was a difficult weekend for Team Audi Hong Kong’s Marchy Lee (117 points) and Champion Racing Team’s Martin Rump (110 points) whose championship ambitions were hit by early exits.

“We saw two exciting races at Penbay, with lots of action and overtaking,” said Bernd Goeres, Director of Audi Sport customer racing Asia.

“With only 14 points separating the top three drivers and two more in mathematical contention, the stage is set for an explosive finale in Shanghai next month.”

In Round 9, Frey burst off the grid passing Yoong to take the lead - a position she built on as the race progressed - finishing almost 13 seconds ahead of Picariello, who was second.

Rump continued the pace he had shown in the previous day’s sessions to complete the podium ahead of Yoong, who dug deep to fend off an onslaught of attacks from a number of rivals over the race.

In Round 10, Picariello’s time finally came. After five second place finishes so far this season, the Belgian took the chequered flag for his first Cup victory.

In a reverse from Round 9, Frey came second with a masterclass on how to drive with 50 kilogrammes of ballast, and Yoong finished a difficult weekend on a high, finishing third.

Local star Jeffrey Lee of Team Audi Volkswagen Taiwan recorded back-to-back victories in the Am Cup classification, clinching the championship title in front of joyous home fans at the season’s penultimate race weekend.

The Taiwanese privateer has raced with the Cup in each of its five seasons, dominating the classification in 2016 with seven wins in the 10 races thus far. The season-ending grand finale takes place at the Shanghai International Circuit on Nov 4 and 5. -- BERNAMA