The GT race that forms part of the Macau Grand Prix meeting around the fast and technical 6.120-kilometre Guia street circuit was described to the DSC Editor some years ago by a prominent Asian team owner/driver as “our Le Mans”, a mark of the prestige and importance that the event holds in a tight-knit regional racing community.
It’s an event that has drawn international attention too for many years, in its single-seater (F3) event. Back in the 1950s, it began as a sportscar race before it morphed from a Formula Libre contest to a Formula Pacific and eventually F3 race. It’s a contest that has seen a string of big-name winners, establishing a reputation as a yardstick for talent.
The first F3 winner in 1983 was none other than Ayrton Senna with a galaxy of future stars in F1, sportscars and Touring cars following suit.
The supporting package though is what takes our primary interest this year, as the FIA GT World Cup returns after a three-year, COVID-induced, gap.
A star-studded 20-car grid sees Porsche, Audi, Mercedes-AMG, BMW and Ferrari represented on the grid, with every previous winner of the event as the FIA GT World Cup on the entry, and only two previous winners of the event since it began as a GT3 event back in 2008 missing. One of them, Darryl O’Young, won the inaugural event in 2008 and won again in 2021 when the race ran during the COVID-affected period as the regional ‘Greater Bay GT Cup’.
O’Young also won this past weekend in the first weekend of action of the meeting with the Greater Bay race again run separately from the main GT event.
There is factory talent aplenty amongst the 20 cars, with 15 drivers who are current and/or very recent factory, or factory contracted, racers, plus five Chinese / Hong Kong drivers adding local talent and spice into the mix!
This year marks the return of FIA racing to the streets of Macau for the first time since 2019 and, therefore, the first edition of the FIA GT World Cup in four years.
Mercedes-Benz’s fleet of AMG GT3s includes the most recent FIA GT World Cup winner, Raffaele Marciello. The 28-year-old is one of the most decorated and formidable GT3 racers of his era, who – in addition to his 2019 Macau triumph – has two GT World Challenge Europe crowns, as well as Blancpain GT Series Sprint Cup and ADAC GT Masters titles.
On top of this, prior to making GT racing the focus of his career, Marciello also clinched the FIA Formula 3 European Championship in 2013.
It will though be Marciello’s final race for AMG, an emotional occasion for the hugely successful racer. To mark the final chapter of his Mercedes career, he will be sporting a commemorative helmet design, and his #48 Mann-Filter liveried Landgraf car will feature “Grazie Lello” on each side.
Seeking his second triumph on the streets of Macau, and first with a roof over his head, will be Mercedes’ GT regular, and 2011 Formula 3 winner, Daniel Juncadella. He too will be leaving AMG after this event, having already been confirmed as a Corvette Factory driver for 2024. His ride for the week is the #91 AMG GT3 from Craft-Bamboo.
Another vastly experienced racer from Mercedes’ stable who should be in the mix is the winner of the inaugural FIA GT World Cup, Maro Engel, who is driving the sister #77 Craft-Bamboo AMG.
His relationship with the three-pointed star dates back to his Formula 3 stint in the mid-2000s and includes spells in some of the world’s most competitive closed-roof series such as DTM and Australia’s Supercars Championship.
Jules Gounon meanwhile, perhaps surprisingly, will be making his Macau debut this year in the #2 Climax Racing machine.
The Andorra-based Frenchman is a force to be reckoned with behind the wheel of a GT car. His resume includes a hat-trick of Bathurst 12 Hours victories, an ADAC GT Masters title as well as two GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup titles in a row.
Seeking its revenge in Macau is BMW, with a pair of M4 GT3s. One car will be operated by Rowe Racing and the other by Team WRT.
Both BMW and WRT have been victorious in Macau in the past, though on different occasions. BMW won in 2018 with Augusto Farfus, while Team WRT triumphed in the memorable 2016 edition. Back then it was with Audi and emerged victorious with current Porsche racer Laurens Vanhtoor behind the wheel.
The Brazilian, who is with Rowe this time out, was triumphant in the 2018 FIA GT World Cup, taking a win for BMW in a Schnitzer Motorsport-operated M6 GT3.
2022 DTM champion Sheldon van der Linde will be making his Macau debut driving the Team WRT entry.
Audi’s squad brings ‘Mr Macau’ Eduardo Mortara back to try to add to an amazing total of wins at this event. The 36-year-old has seven victories at the Guia Circuit, including taking back-to-back victories in Formula 3 in 2009 and ’10, and winning the 2017 FIA GT World Cup for Mercedes.
He also scored a hat-trick of GT Cup victories from 2011 to 2013 for Audi, before the event earned FIA World Cup status, and won in the Audi Sport R8 LMS Cup support race. Now back with Audi, the Swiss racer will be seeking yet another Macau triumph.
Christopher Haase provides a further factory-backed bullet to the Audi gun with Congfu Cheng and Adderly Fong adding local spice for the four rings.
Porsche hasn’t yet won the GT race, but should be considered a contender this year. It will challenge for its maiden FIA GT World Cup victory with a fleet of seven cars.
The manufacturer’s challenge will be headlined by a pair of its FIA World Endurance Championship Hypercar class star drivers. 2016 FIA GT World Cup winner Laurens Vanthoor, as well as FIA WEC LMGTE Pro champion and 24 Hours of Le Mans class winner Kévin Estre will drive for TORO Racing (above) and HubAuto Racing (below) respectively.
Another WEC Hypercar regular, who is set to drive a Porsche in Macau is Earl Bamber. The two-time Le Mans winner, who currently drives for Cadillac in the WEC, will be making his fifth FIA GT World Cup appearance for Porsche.
On this occasion, he is driving a car operated by his eponymous Earl Bamber Motorsport outfit, although entered under a D2 Racing Team banner. The New Zealander came third in 2019 but has tasted Macau victory having won a Porsche Carrera Cup Asia race back in 2013, passing rally legend Sébastien Loeb on his way to win.
Porsche’s line-up will be completed by FIA WEC regular and Nürburgring 24 Hours winner Matteo Cairoli (in the #120 from Absolute) as well as Gold-ranked drivers Thomas Preining (this year’s DTM champion, 2018 Porsche Carrera Cup Germany title winner) and Alessio Picariello (European Le Mans Series GTE class title winner and FIA WEC regular).
Preining’s chariot is the handsome-looking #28 911 from HubAuto Racing.
Picariello, in the #15 Luanzhou International Circuit 911 GT3 R, is making his second FIA GT World Cup outing, having competed in a Mercedes in 2019.
Last but not least, we have Ferrari, which will challenge for victory with its new 296 GT3 and become the first non-German marque to win the FIA GT World Cup.
The prancing horse’s effort will be led by its stalwart factory driver and two-time Le Mans class winner Daniel Serra, whose career highlights also include a hat-trick of titles in his domestic, but very competitive, Stock Car Brasil series.
The FIA GT World Cup takes place from November 16-19 with two 30-minute practice sessions followed by a single qualifying session of the same duration. Racing action will be held across two heats, with a 12-lap qualifying race followed by a 16-lap title-deciding main race.
The action will be streamed on the event website with commentary by the estimable duo of David Addison and Alan Hyde.
Images courtesy of Audi, BMW, Ferrari, Mercedes-AMG and Porsche
