Raffaelle Marciello led home a Mercedes AMG one-two in Saturday 12 lap qualification race ahead of the GT World Cup race on Sunday around the streets of Macau.
The Swiss-flagged Italian took his #48 Mercedes to the front from the start and was never headed, keeping clear of trouble that saw a pair of Porsches eliminated on the first lap, Thomas Preining and Matteo Cairoli both in the wall at T4, Cairoli in the #120 Tsingtao-liveried GT3.R after contact from the #33 R&B Racing Porsche of Hongli Ye, Preining running wide and into the barriers, possibly in reaction. The #120 left with front left damage, the #28 with damage front and rear.
Both drivers are OK, Cairoli though went to the medical centre post-race with a headache.
All of that was after Maro Engel had toughed his way by Eduardo Mortara for second place in the run to Turn 2.
The Safety Car was scrambled to allow recovery of the two stricken Porsches and at the restart Mortara was under attack again from an AMG, this time the #91 of Dani Juncadella, the Spaniard fully alongside into T3 but Mortara held firm, elbows firmly out, the AMG brushing the barriers to the outside with a secondary contact from the passing Farfus-pedalled BMW plucking off the M4 GT3’s mirror, the AMG getting back underway with a chunk of front left bodywork also missing, he would drop down to 9th.
5 laps to go and the Safety car was out again after a huge hit into the barriers from Adderly Fong, the Uno Racing driver brushing the outside barrier at the exit of T2 sending the car hard into the inside wall – it would be a Goodbye from the Hello Kitty car!
With major barrier damage the Red Flag was inevitable as the repair crews went to work, the race restarting behind the Safety Car with three laps remaining after a 30 minute pause in proceedings.
After a single circuit under the Safety Car the field was released for a two lap dash to the flag, Sheldon van der Linde dragging by Daniel Serra after a great run though Turn 2 on the restart, the Brazilian dong well to gather up the 296 after marginally missing his braking point.
Marciello, though under pressure all the way from Engel would come home untroubled with Mortara and Farfus set to make up row two tomorrow.
