Nineteen-year old Hong Kong driver Shaun Thong took his maiden victory in the new Audi Sport TT Cup, with a lights-to-flag victory at the Norisring city street circuit in Nürnberg, Germany. Thong, who is part of the Audi Sport customer racing Asia young driver development programme, had a dominant Saturday, securing pole position for both races before his Round 3 victory.
“Starting from pole, I definitely had the advantage of a clear track without spray,” said Thong of racing under challenging weather conditions. “It was a case of driv-ing smart, adapting to the conditions and not overdriving the car. It is a great feeling for me, as it is my first race win with this type of race car.”
With the win, Thong is now 9th in the Audi Sport TT Cup standings. Although Thong started Sunday’s Round 4 from pole, he lost the position and ultimately finished 16th.
As part of the Audi in Asia young driver development programme, Thong also competes in the Blancpain Endurance Series with 2012 Audi R8 LMS Cup champion Marchy Lee and Audi Sport TT Cup driver coach and 2014 Nürburgring 24 Hour champion Markus Winkelhock. Thong and Lee, along with Alex Yoong and Franky Cheng, were also part of the first all-Asian Audi team to compete at this year’s Nürburgring 24 Hours where they finished an impressive 12th.
Rounds 5 and 6 of the Audi Sport TT Cup take place August 1-2 at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg, Austria.
