Five drivers from three teams are readying to compete for the FIA GT World Cup behind the wheel of the Audi R8 LMS GT3. The world’s most prestigious GT sprint race is part of the 64th edition of the Macau Grand Prix, which takes place on the streets of the Asian metropolis on November 16-19.
Battling for Audi Sport’s fifth victory on the Guia street circuit will be reigning Formula E world champion, Lucas di Grassi, who is competing as part of HCB-Rutronik Racing. The Brazilian knows what it takes to win on the challenging 6.2 kilometre track, having done just that in the Formula 3 Grand Prix in Macau in 2005.
Leading the factory-team charge for Audi Sport is last year’s GT World Cup winning team, Audi Sport Team WRT, with a two car entry. 26 year-old Dutchman Robin Frijns, a current Blancpain GT Series Sprint Cup champion, will be joined on the grid by Swiss teammate Nico Müller. The 25-year-old DTM-campaigner suffered disappointment on the unforgiving streets of Macau last year, when an accident in the qualifying race rendered his car unable to start the main event.
Two ambitious German privateer drivers complete the line-up: Markus Pommer will be tackling the competition in a Team Aust Motorsport Audi R8 LMS GT3. In 2015, he achieved a remarkable fifth place in the Formula 3 Grand Prix in Macau. Fabian Plentz made his debut in Macau a year ago and came eighth, climbing the ‘Non-manufacturers’ podium in the process. The 29-year-old race driver is again driving for Team HCB-Rutronik Racing.
In addition to the world’s leading GT sprint race, the legendary Macau Grand Prix also features the FIA Formula 3 World Cup, the Macau Motorcycle Grand Prix and the Guia Race touring car event.
The single, 30-minute qualifying session for the GT World Cup kicks off at 16:25 on Friday 17th November. This is then followed by the 12-lap qualifying race at 12:25 on Saturday 18th November, after which comes the main event, the 18-lap FIA GT World Cup at 12:10 on Sunday 19th November (all times UTC+8).
