In the hotly contested qualifying on the 6.115- kilometre Guia Circuit, the Porsche works drivers Earl Bamber (New Zealand) and Laurens Vanthoor (Belgium) narrowly missed out on a better grid position. Porsche Young Professional Mathieu Jaminet (France), who contests the race in Macau for the customer team Craft Bamboo Racing, achieved tenth place. His teammate Darryl O’Young from Hong Kong qualified on P13.
Bamber made his intentions clear with a top time in free practice. In the qualifying session, the two-time Le Mans winner pulled out all stops in the first lap in cooler conditions and made sure he got a free run in his attempt to claim P1. At times, the New Zealander topped the time sheets in the ca. 500 hp No. 912 Porsche 911 GT3 R, but was eventually knocked off the top spot. His works driver teammate Vanthoor followed in the No. 911 sister car just 0.131-seconds behind.
Jaminet, who races for the first time on the legendary Guia Circuit in Macau, took things cautiously after an encounter with the barriers. With his personal best time in the last minute, the Frenchman secured tenth place. Just 65 kilometres from his home in Hong Kong, local hero O’Young also touched the guardrails and was also hampered by a puncture.
#GTWorldCup – Goodbye from #Macau! Tomorrow’s qualifying race will start at 13:05 local time pic.twitter.com/Cp5jysb54h
— Porsche Motorsport (@PorscheRaces) 16. November 2018
Dr Frank-Steffen Walliser (Vice President Motorsport and GT Cars): “After the qualifying we’re not quite where we thought we would be. Ultimately we were only two or three tenths of a second off the second grid row, and not much more off second place. You have to take your hat off to the polesitter – a strong lap. To start such a city race from the third grid row is definitely not ideal. Based on this, it’ll be a difficult qualifying race for us.”
Laurens Vanthoor (Porsche 911 GT3 R #911): “We’re all very close. This shows that we made the most out of what we had. But we’re not happy. The car’s balance wasn’t great. At midday, when the temperature in free practice got considerably warmer, everything went better, but then that changed in the cooler conditions of the qualifying. We didn’t get the front tyres to the right temperature, which led to understeer – and personally I don’t like that at all.”
Earl Bamber (Porsche 911 GT3 R #912): “In free practice the car was a dream to drive, which we underlined by setting the top time. It was cooler in the qualifying. Perhaps we didn’t opt for the right tyres. We hadn’t changed the car since midday, but the balance just wasn’t as good. This coupled with traffic during some laps made it difficult. Our car runs well over the distance, our top speed is good, so I’m feeling optimistic about the qualifying race.”
Mathieu Jaminet (Porsche 911 GT3 R #991): “I had bad luck on the first qualifying lap. The brakes didn’t respond as I’d imagined and I touched the guardrail. Such things are not great for the self-confidence that you definitely need on such a racetrack. I hope we can improve by the qualifying race. My starting position isn’t the best, let’s see what’s still possible.”
Darryl O’Young (Porsche 911 GT3 R #55): “The car felt better than ever before. But I experienced an incident typical of Macau: I brushed the barrier and sustained tyre damage after I drove over parts left by other cars. It’s a pity because I certainly feel that I could have done much more. I can only look ahead now. The decision will be made in the main race on Sunday. A lot can happen. Perhaps it’ll rain – then the cards will be reshuffled.”
1. Raffaele Marciello (I), Mercedes AMG GT3, 2:16.800 minutes
2. Augusto Farfus (BR), BMW M6 GT3, + 0.557 seconds
3. Maro Engel (D), Mercedes AMG GT3, + 0.622 seconds
4. Edoardo Mortara (CH), Mercedes AMG GT3, + 0.631 seconds
5. Earl Bamber (NZL), Porsche 911 GT3 R, + 0.917 seconds
6. Laurens Vanthoor (B), Porsche 911 GT3 R, + 1.048 seconds
7. Robin Frijns (NL), Audi R8 LMS, + 1.242 seconds
8. Christopher Haase (D), Audi R8 LMS, + 1.779 seconds
9. Dries Vanthoor (B), Audi R8 LMS, + 1.894 seconds
10. Mathieu Jaminet (F), Porsche 911 GT3 R, + 2.449 seconds
11. Alexandre Imperatori (HKG), NISMO GT-R GT3, X+ 2.521 seconds
12. Adderly Fong (HKG), Audi R8 LMS, + 3.200 seconds
13. Darryl O’Young (HKG), Porsche 911 GT3 R, + 3.573 seconds
14. Oliver Jarvis (GB), NISMO GT-R GT3, + 3.611 seconds
15. Tsugio Matsuda (J), NISMO GT-R GT3, + 4.910 seconds
The 911 GT3 R has been designed by Porsche for the global GT3 series. This customer sports racer which has over 368 kW (500 hp) of power celebrated its racing première at 24 Hours of Daytona in January 2016, showcasing the cutting-edge four-litre, six-cylinder boxer engine with direct fuel injection. It’s won many international racing series since then, including the IMSA SportsCar Championship, World Challenge, ADAC GT Masters, and the 24-hour race on the Nürburgring.
There will be four Porsche 911 GT3 R at the starting line of the FIA GT World Cup in Macau (China) from 15 to 18 November. The Manthey-Racing team will be using two of the vehicles – each with around 500 hp – driven by Earl Bamber (New Zealand) and Laurens Vanthoor (Belgium). Two-time Le Mans winner Bamber will be joining the race in a car that has been given a particularly special look: an eye-catching red and gold design that’s inspired by the Chinese year of the dog. Two more cars will be prepared by customer team Craft Bamboo Racing, for Porsche Young Professional Mathieu Jaminet (France) and Chinese local hero Darryl O’Young.
The Guia Circuit, 6,115 km long and located in the former Portuguese colony of Macau, is considered one of the most difficult street circuits in the world. Located in Asia’s gambling paradise, this track’s long straights, fast bends, and spectacular sections such as the Lisboa Bend are renowned far beyond China’s borders. And the course has another extraordinary feature too: in all training sessions and races, there’s a strict ban on overtaking in the “Melco Hairpin”. Car and motorbike races have been held on the streets of Macau – some of which are just seven metres wide – since 1954, and the FIA GT World Cup has been a fixed item on the agenda of the Macau Grand Prix weekend since 2015.
Factory driver Laurens Vanthoor is aiming for his second victory at the GT World Cup in the car with starting number 911. The Belgian won the 2016 race in spectacular fashion. Shortly before the finish line, Vanthoor slid into the crash barrier as he battled Earl Bamber – now his colleague – flipped the car, and then crossed the line on its roof, taking first place. These two Macau specialists were the key players during that weekend of racing two years ago. Bamber will drive the car with starting number 912 in 2018, with Porsche Young Professional Mathieu Jaminet taking to the start line for the first time. The Frenchman will be driving in the Porsche 911 GT3 R with starting number 991. In the sister car (number 55), Hong Kong Chinese driver Darryl O’Young is celebrating a home game, just 65 km from where he lives.
Laurens Vanthoor is aiming for his second victory at the GT World Cup
The qualifying race over twelve laps starts on Saturday, 17 November, at 13.05 hrs local time (06.05 hrs CET). The main race over 18 laps takes off on Sunday, 18 November, at 12.25 hrs local time (05.25 hrs CET).
