Porsche has finished the 2018 FIA GT World Cup in Macau (China) on fourth place. In a fiercely contested race on the Guia Circuit, works driver Earl Bamber (New Zealand) narrowly missed out on claiming a podium spot.
“It was a really tough race,” commented Bamber. “I managed to defend my position at the start, then the gaps varied occasionally. Towards the end, when the car became lighter with less fuel on board, we were really fast.
“The qualities of the Porsche 911 GT3 R came into their own, which allowed a consistently fast speed even on used tyres. We’ve underlined that our car is without doubt one of the strongest GT3 vehicles. If we’d started further up the grid we could’ve done much better, but that’s just the way it is in Macau.”
Porsche Young Professional Mathieu Jaminet (France) concluded his maiden outing in the Asian gambling paradise on position seven, while his Craft Bamboo teammate Darryl O’Young crossed the finish line in 14th. After being shunted out of contention by another competitor, works driver Laurens Vanthoor was unable to take part in the race. His ca. 500 hp Porsche 911 GT3 R had been too badly damaged by a crash into the barriers.
Shortly after the start, Bamber launched a pursuit of the leaders, but found insufficient space to overtake. Instead, the New Zealander safeguarded his tyres in preparation for the final stage of the ca. 110-kilometre race over 18 laps. This strategy paid off.
In the closing phase, Bamber was the fastest driver on the 6.115-kilometre racetrack. However, the narrow street circuit left no room for a successful attack on the leading vehicles. At the flag, the two-time Le Mans winner was just 1.460 seconds of claiming a podium place with the No. 912 Porsche 911 GT3 R.
Jaminet concluded his Macau debut with a strong and flawless drive in the main race. The Frenchman made up two positions in the vehicle fielded by the Porsche customer team Craft Bamboo Racing – a feat no other driver managed to achieve. His teammate Darryl O’Young (Hong Kong) crossed the finish line in 14th in front of home crowds.
Race result
1. Augusto Farfus (BR), BMW M6 GT3, 18 laps
2. Maro Engel (D), Mercedes AMG GT3, 18 laps
3. Edoardo Mortara (CH), Mercedes AMG GT3, 18 laps
4. Earl Bamber (NZL), Porsche 911 GT3 R, 18 laps
5. Robin Frijns (NL), Audi R8 LMS, 18 laps
6. Christopher Haase (D), Audi R8 LMS, 18 laps
7. Mathieu Jaminet (F), Porsche 911 GT3 R, 18 laps
8. Dries Vanthoor (B), Audi R8 LMS, 18 laps
9. Raffaele Marciello (I), Mercedes AMG GT3, 18 laps
10. Alexandre Imperatori (HKG), NISMO GT-R GT3, 18 laps
11. Adderly Fong (HKG), Audi R8 LMS, 18 laps
12. Oliver Jarvis (GB), NISMO GT-R GT3, 18 laps
13. Tsugio Matsuda (J), NISMO GT-R GT3, 18 laps
14. Darryl O’Young (HKG), Porsche 911 GT3 R, 18 laps
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