Floirendo makes dream debut in Audi R8 challenge race
Credit to Author: MIKE POTENCIANO| Date: Sat, 18 May 2019 16:20:29 +0000
The country’s lone racer in the Audi R8 Challenge Trophy Cup, Vincent Floirendo, made a dream debut by winning both races of the inaugural series at the Zhuhai International Circuit in China recently.
The veteran international campaigner Floirendo applied his strategy of driving consistently and avoiding the accidents happening around him, especially during the wet afternoon race. Since it was his first race in the tricky Zhuhai Circuit, his strategy proved successful as it brought him two first places in the Challenge Trophy class and two third overall places in the premiere R8 LMS Cup GT3 Class.
“I just focused on my driving and [being] consistent on both wet and dry races,” said a very happy Floirendo after the races. “I haven’t raced in the rain for a long time and visibility was bad from the start. I was very happy to move up from P8 (eighth position) in qualifying to third in the end and win both Challenge Trophy Class races.”
The banana magnate has now taken a superb lead in the Challenge Trophy class for drivers new to the series or who have not been competing regularly. Vincent is a first time driver in the Audi R8 series but has impressed the entire field, including the organizers who gave him the prestigious Castrol Performance of the Weekend award.
“I would like to thank my family and chief mechanic Mato Tan for supporting me,” added Enteng, as his friends fondly call him. “They have been there with me in every race, and I would like to dedicate this race to them and our fellow countrymen!”
In the first race of the Zhuhai leg, Floirendo took a tentative seventh position in qualifying after exploring the demanding Zhuhai track for the first time. But his confidence grew slowly during the race, and he finished first in the Challenge Trophy class and fourth place overall. However, second-placer driver Bhurit Bhirombhakdi from Thailand was penalized for overtaking during a yellow flag condition, dropping him to fourth. This promoted Vincent to third place.
The hardest challenge came on the next day’s race when a big downpour and a lot of drama happened after the start. There were three times the safety car came out during the race because of cars spinning out and getting stranded on dangerous parts of the track. But Floirendo kept his cool and went up to second place with his strategy and great car control. After starting in eighth place, he climbed to second overall during the race. Yet, he didn’t risk fiercely defending his position in the final laps against his teammate, 2018 champion Andrew Haryanto. Floirendo finished third.
Floirendo is only seven points away from the leaders in the battle for a seat in the prestigious Audi R8 LMS team that will compete in next year’s 10-hour endurance race in Suzuka, Japan. The deciding race will be held in Shanghai on June 1 to 2.
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