The season entry for the 2016 GT Asia Series is high on quality, but perhaps disappointingly low on numbers at present, though more cars are set to join proceedings from round 2.
Craft-Bamboo Racing, as announced many weeks ago, who have shifted their allegiance to Porsche, campaigning two of the all-new Type 991 Porsche GT3-Rs.
Team-leader Frank Yu will once again be joined by Ulsterman Richard Lyons, the experienced Asian GT campaigner will be fresh from an outing of SuperGT at Fuji in the lead up to the opening event, the pair again behind the wheel of an ‘Interush’ supported Craft-Bamboo entry, whilst team-mate and 2016 champion Darryl O’Young might sport familiar VLT colours, but he has a new partner this season.
Naiyanobh Bhirom Bhakdi will join the experienced Porsche campaigner for the 2016 season in his GT3 debut season, although the Thai driver is no stranger to a race circuit as an experienced touring car campaigner in his home country.
There will also be a third new Porsche entry in the championship, with the return of the GruppeM Racing name to the tracks, running a car for experienced former GT Asia Series regular Philip Ma, and Englishman Tim Sugden, who raced for the Gruppem squad in Europe over a decade ago. He is also the 2007 Carrera Cup Asia Champion, having defeated Craft-Bamboo’s Darryl O’Young for the title..!
FFF Racing Team by ACM too will return to the GT Asia Series for a second season, but without their 2015 driver lineup, and like Craft-Bamboo, they too have changed marques, their 2015 McLarens are replaced by new Lamborghini Huracan GT3s for two of Lamborghini Squadra Corse’s junior drivers. Rising Italian stars Edoardo Liberati and Andrea Amici will front the new look FFF team. Liberati is the reigning Super Trofeo Asia champion, whilst Amici was a race winner during the Super Trofeo world final at Sepang in late 2014, so they do have some knowledge of the Asian teams and circuits.
Bentley Team Absolute will be back with a three car team, which includes 2015 race winners Keita Sawa and Adderly Fong, although this year the two-time race winners and series runners-up will drive in separate entries; Fong alongside Korean sensation Andrew Kim, whilst Sawa will share driving duties with one his toughest opponents from last season, Australian Jonathan Venter – the two-time 2015 race winner who moves across from Craft-Bamboo.
The third entry too will have an impact on the championship, former GT Asia front-runner Vutthikorn Inthraphuvasak from Thailand will be joined by inaugural Lamborghini Super Trofeo world champion, and part of Absolute Team Bentley’s USA-based team alongside Fong, American Andrew Palmer.
Perhaps the most visible addition to the GT Asia Series field though, will be the two new Audi entries from Phoenix Racing Asia. The two cars, one for former GT Asia race winner Marchy Lee and rising star Shaun Thong, and a second for former F1 driver and two-time Audi R8 LMS Cup champion Alex Yoong and Hong Kong’s Alex Au, will feature two of the most impressive liveries in GT3 racing anywhere in the world. With 2015 Nurburgring 24-Hour experience under their belts too, the new team can be expected to be strong title contenders this season.
Ferrari too will have a new look for 2016, with three-time GT Asia Series champions Clearwater Racing campaigning an all-new twin-turbo Ferrari 488 GT3, as will rivals and arguably the favourites for the opening round, BBT Racing’s Anthony Liu and Davide Rizzo, whilst 2015 series rookies and race winners Singha Motorsport, will return in their Ferrari 458 Italia GT3, which will provide an intriguing battle between the Ferrari teams.
The driver lineups stay essentially the same, although three-time GT Asia Series champion Mok Weng Sun will sport a new co-driver for the opening round of the 2016 season, with former GT Asia Rookie-of-the-Year ‘Rocket’ Richie Wee stepping from his own car into the second seat in the new #3 488.
2016 will also see the GTM class and GTC classes battle for title honours. Frustratingly, a number of the GTM contenders were unable to prepare ahead of South Korea, so are expected to join the battle in Thailand or Japan, whilst the GTC class will see a great battle between Audi, Ferrari and Porsche.
Based on the closing round of the 2015 GT Asia Series, Bhurit Bhirom Bhakdi and team-mate Kantasak Kusiri will start favourites as both were GTM class race winners in Thailand, although at that stage they were sharing different cars. They will have to watch out though for Audi’s dynamic duo JingZu Sun and Franky Cheng, the two experienced drivers lining up to represent reigning GTM class champions Absolute Racing. The final member of the GTC class for South Korea is Thailand’s Suttiluck Buncharoen, who like compatriot Vutthikorn has been competing in Carrera Cup Asia in recent seasons.
Whilst a part of the outright battle in past seasons, former GT Asia Series champion Dilantha Malagamuwa will contest the GTM class title in 2016, sharing driving duties with his Dilango Racing Super Trofeo team-mate, Indian Armaan Ebrahim, a driver who brings a wealth of experience from European GT into the team.
Entry List
1. GT3 3 TBC/ MOK Weng Sun (B) Ferrari 488 GT3 Clearwater Racing
2. GT3 5 Marchy LEE (S) Shaun THONG (S) Audi R8 LMS GT3 Phoenix Racing Asia
3. GT3 6 Alex YOONG (P) Alex AU (B) Audi R8 LMS GT3 Phoenix Racing Asia
4. GT3 7 Adderly FONG (G) Andrew KIM (B)# Bentley Continental GT3 Bentley Team Absolute
5. GT3 8 Jonathan VENTER (S) Keita SAWA (S) Bentley Continental GT3 Bentley Team Absolute
6. GT3 9 Andrew PALMER (S)/ Vutthikorn INTHRAPHUVASAK (B) Bentley Continental GT3 Bentley Team Absolute
7. GT3 12 Carlo VAN DAM (G)/ Piti BHIROM BHAKDI (B) Singha Motorsport Team Ferrari 458 GT3
8. GT3 13 Franky CHENG (G) SUN JingZu Armaan EBRAHIM (S) Dilantha MALAGAMUWA (B) Audi R8 LMS Absolute Racing
9. GTM 24 Lamborghini Gallardo FL2 GT3 Dilango Racing
10. GT3 37 Davide RIZZO (S)# Anthony LIU Xu (S)# Ferrari 488 GT3 BBT
11. GT3 55 Edoardo LIBERATI (S) Andrea AMICI (S) Lamborghini Huracan FFF-Racing Team by ACM
12. GTC 59 Kantasak KUSIRI (S) Bhurit BHIROM BHAKDI (B) Ferrari 458 Challenge Singha Plan-B Motorsport
13. GTC 78 Suttiluck BUNCHAROEN (B) Porsche 991 Cup True Vision Motorsports
14. GT3 88 Richard LYONS (G) Frank YU (B) Porsche 911 GT3R Craft Bamboo Racing
15. GT3 91 Darryl O’YOUNG (G) Naiyanobh BHIROMBHAKDI (B)# Porsche 911 GT3R Craft Bamboo Racing
16. GT3 98 Tim SUGDEN (S) Philip MA (B) Porsche GT3R GruppeM Racing
17. GT3 TBC Richard BRADLEY (G) Terry FANG Aston Martin V12 Vantage GT3 TBC
2016 GT Asia Series calendar
TEST DAYS, 9-10 May Korea International Circuit (South Korea)
Rnd#1/#2, 13-15 May Korea International Circuit (South Korea)
Rnd#3/#4, 10-12 June Buriram International Circuit (Thailand)
Rnd#5/#6, 1-3 July Okayama International Circuit (Japan)
Rnd#7/#8, 15-17 July Fuji International Speedway (Japan)
Rnd#9/#10, 19-21 August Shanghai International Circuit (China)
Rnd#11/#12, 21-23 October Zhejiang Circuit (China)
