Audi R8 LMS Cup Press Release
· Alex Yoong seizes early pole in flawless comeback performance
· Lightning Jeffrey Lee quickest in Amateur Cup
· Top six within less than once second
Zhuhai, September 15, 2012 – Audi GQ Driver Alex Yoong took pole position for Round 7 of the Audi R8 LMS Cup today after a flawless performance in a powerful shot across the bows to his rivals.
Championship leader Marchy Lee of Audi Ultra could not better Yoong’s impressive lap of 1: 34.014 around the 4.3km Zhuhai International Circuit, despite a close-run session which saw the top six all within a second of each other.
Starting from the second row of the grid for Round 7 will be China’s Sun Zheng of Team Erdos Xinan, currently 4th in the championship chase, alongside KLM Team’s Adderly Fong of Hong Kong. Fong trails Marchy by just two points on the championship leaderboard, but with Yoong looking so strong this weekend, the pair will be watching their backs.
Fastest in the Amateur Cup was Pauian Archiland J-Fly Racing driver Jeffrey Lee, back with the series after missing the Ordos rounds due to racing duties in Suzuka with the Audi R8 LMS ultra entry in the GT Asia series. Second quickest in the class was star of stage, screen and race track, Aaron Kwok, who is on scorching form this weekend, with Alex Au, class winner of both races in Ordos, third in the session.
The session saw Yoong, who is roaring back after a tough weekend in Ordos, set his best time on his fourth lap out to take his second pole position of the season. David Zhu, impressing on his Audi R8 LMS Cup debut with Team Zhe Jiang Aotong, was fifth fastest in the session.
Sun Chao of PD Group Team was eighth on the time sheets, but was earlier penalized by Race Stewards for a regulations infringement during free practice and demoted two places on the grid for Round 7.
Commented Director of Audi Sport customer racing in China, Rene Koneberg: “The times were incredibly close today, which is testament to both the quality of skill amongst our field, and the extraordinary performance and reliability of the Audi R8 LMS Cup right on the limit. We’re all looking forward to two hard-fought, thrilling battle this weekend.”
Quotes after Round 7 Qualifying:
Alex Yoong (Audi GQ)
“I’m very happy, and my car is fantastic. I had a couple of clean laps, which was good because the times are so close. I need to win races if I want to get back into the fight with Adderly and Marchy, so I need to get right into it this weekend. We tried a couple of things on the set up yesterday, but they didn’t really work so we went back to basics today with great results.”
Marchy Lee (Audi Ultra)
“We are very close in the times today. I’m quite happy with the set up but I still want to do some fine-tuning before the race. In qualifying it’s only one lap where you need to be really quick, but in the race it’s 21 laps, so you need the set up to be really balanced. Given how close the times are, I expect it to be a wonderful race.”
Sun Zheng (Team Erdos Xinan)
“It is proof that drivers from Mainland China have the strength to compete with international drivers, so I’m very happy to be (third). With just a tenth of a second difference between each other, it’s going to be an intense race this afternoon.
Jeffrey Lee (Pauian Archiland J-Fly Racing)
“The new tyre is unfamiliar to me, and I think I got caught out with my tyre strategy. It’s great to be back in the Audi R8 LMS Cup, and I hope to take maximum points this weekend to re-take the lead in the Amateur Cup.”
Round 7 – Qualifying
No | Comp No | Name | Class | Entrant | Time |
1 | 8 | Alex YOONG (MAL) | Audi GQ | 1:35.014 | |
2 | 1 | Marchy LEE (HKG) | Audi Ultra | 1:35.137 | |
3 | 33 | SUN Zheng (CHN) | Team Erdos Xinan | 1:35.198 | |
4 | 68 | Adderly FONG (HKG) | KLM Team | 1:35.199 | |
5 | 6 | David ZHU (CHN) | Team Zhe Jiang Aotong | 1:35.676 | |
6 | 7 | Jeffrey LEE (TPE) | Am | Pauian Archiland J-Fly Racing | 1:36.007 |
7 | 9 | WANG Jian Wei (CHN) | Team Betterlife | 1:36.413 | |
8 | 77 | SUN Chao (CHN) | P D GROUP Team | 1:37:202 | |
9 | 88 | Aaron KWOK (HKG) | Am | Team Audi R8 LMS Cup | 1:37.623 |
10 | 27 | Massimo VIGNALI (GBR) | Audi Driving Dreams | 1:37.660 | |
11 | 23 | Alex AU (HKG) | Am | AK Racing | 1:37.999 |
12 | 99 | TIAN Li Ying (CHN) | Team Chengdu New Elements | 1:38.605 | |
13 | 3 | Hugues RIPERT (HKG) | Am | Spark Motorsport | 1:38.920 |
14 | 66 | ZHANG Ran (CHN) | Am | Audi Castrol | 1:39.886 |
15 | 13 | Adrian FU (HKG) | Am | FuSpeed Racing | 1:40.876 |
16 | 75 | Eric HSIANG (TPE) | Am | J-Fly Racing Team | 1:45.657 |
(AM) Amateur Cup Competitor
Audi R8 LMS Cup Official Website at: www.audir8lmscup.com
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