Chinese powerhouse Tianshi Racing Team (TSRT) have rung in the new year with the announcement of an impressive Pro/Am driver squad for round three of the Asian Le Mans Series. French touring car ace Jean-Karl Vernay swaps the Audi RS 3 LMS he took to fifth overall in last season’s FIA WTCR for Tianshi Racing Team’s Audi R8 LMS GT3, and will be joined behind the wheel by two former Audi Sport R8 LMS Cup class champions, David Chen and Alex Au.
The three-man squad will tackle the 4 Hours of Buriram endurance event, the penultimate race of the Asian Le Mans Series 2018/19 season. The overall GT class championship-winning team will be awarded with an entry into the 2019 24 Hours of Le Mans LM GTE Am category. TSRT currently sits third in the class standings on 27 points, 14 points off top spot with two races to go.
“TSRT are one of China’s biggest and most professional teams. The driver squad they have assembled for this weekend’s Asian Le Mans Series event underlines that. Jean-Karl Vernay was Audi Sport’s leading driver in last year’s WTCR, David Chen is an exciting young Chinese talent and Alex Au is one of the region’s most capable privateers. Behind the wheel of the Audi R8 LMS GT3, they will be a tough team to beat,” said Martin Kuehl, Director of Audi Sport customer racing Asia.
The 15-minuite GT qualifying session kicks off on Friday January 11 at 16:35, with the headline 4 Hours of Buriram getting underway on Saturday January 12 at 11:45 at the Chang International Circuit in Thailand.
