19 Jun 2016 Hamprecht takes double victory in scorching heat

(Zhuhai, China – 19 June 2016) – Absolute Racing’s Philip Hamprecht (19) proved unbeatable today in Races 5 and 6 of the Formula Masters China Series (FMCS), taking two convincing victories at the 4.3km Zhuhai’s International Circuit. Second in Race 5 was Eurasia Motorsport’s Aidan Read of Australia, with 18-year-old Chinese driver Sean Zheng Shangguan of Absolute Racing taking his second podium of the season.

Runner-up to Hamprecht in Race 6 was team mate Zheng, a well-deserved finish after a fierce battle with fellow countryman Jeffrey Ye. Ye was the third across the line, celebrating his first FMCS podium of the season. He was also the top performing Chinese Driver of the weekend with consistently strong outings in all three races.

After six of the 18 races on the 2016 FMCS calendar, Hamprecht’ s two wins in Zhuhai give him a 27 point lead at the top of the Drivers Classification ahead of Read, who has a five point advantage over Korean Kim Jeong Tae of Cebu Pacific Air by PRT. Zheng lies fourth after a superb Zhuhai performance, seven points adrift of Kim and ten ahead of Nicholas Rowe of Cebu Pacific Air by PRT. Rowe had to sit out the Zhuhai weekend on medical grounds due to a high fever.

Ye has a four point lead in the Chinese Drivers Classification ahead of Zheng, the top Chinese finishers in Race 6, with Hong Shi Jie of Super License by KCMG third in the standings.

Absolute Racing leads the Team Classification with an impressive advantage of 21 points over Cebu Pacific Air by PRT, with Eurasia Motorsport in third.

Race 5

In the searing heat but under clear skies, the 6-lap Race 5 saw a wheel-perfect performance from Hamprecht who led from pole to flag, resisting unrelenting pressure from Read. Seventeen-year-old Read managed to close the gap to 0.203 second towards the end of the race, posting the fastest, but ultimately having to settle for second.

Behind the pair, a tight, four-car battle was underway. Leong Hon Chio of CHAMP Motorsport lost third position to Kim and Zheng at Turn 1, the pair getting away well from the third row of the grid. Kim climbed to third while Zheng bided his time, the Chinese driver successfully making his move on the main straight on Lap 6. Leong fended off Ye to cross the line fifth.

The fastest Chinese driver in Race 5 was Zheng ahead of Ye and Hong Shijie of Super License.

Race 6

After an eventful opening lap, Hamprecht led the pack and set about building a gap, once again creating an unassailable lead to take the flag more than four and half seconds ahead of Zheng.

Zheng, however, had first to get by first Read and then Ye to claim second place. First he hunted down Read, who made contact with Kim and retired from the race, then Ye, making his move up to second on the penultimate lap. It was an historic moment for the series with two Chinese drivers on the podium for the first time since FMCS began four years ago.

With the first two race weekends of 2016 complete, the fourth season of FMCS travels outside China next month for Races 7-9 – the mid-point of the 18-race season – at Thailand’s Buriram International Circuit, also known as the Chang International Circuit. With the championship making its debut in Thailand, the drivers will have the added challenge of a brand new track, promising plenty of on-track drama.

Driver Quotes – Race 5:

Philip Hamprecht/Absolute Racing/1st Race 5:

“We went for a little bit more risky strategy. We chose to drive old tyres today. It was a short race and I was starting from the pole and tried to pull away. We knew we had the speed from yesterday. The race was quite good at the first two to three laps and I was getting quicker. I managed to pull a little gap on the second lap and held from there. On the last lap I made a little mistake, but I finished the race. I’m really happy for the result. It is good for the championship.”

Aidan Read/Eurasia Motorsport/2nd Race 5:

“It was a good race. This morning I started from the front row. On the first lap, I tried to apply pressure and go for the lead, but Philip defended well. So we were one and two for the entire race with quite a small gap. I just started to get stabilized in the middle of the race. Towards the end, I closed up a little bit and had a go to run for the chequered flag. It wasn’t enough, but it was close. I know I’ve got the speed and the car. We are looking to go for the win this afternoon.”

Sean Zheng Shangguan/Absolute Racing/3rd Race 5:

“I had a good start and managed to jump to third. But Kim took it back at T1 and I stayed in 4th for some time. Kim was quick and had a different pace to mine. I had been waiting for the opportunity to overtake him while the cars behind me had given me a lot of pressure. At T11 and T12, which were good locations to pass, Kim defended well and I was unable to challenge him. On the last three laps, I passed him on the long straight and defended my position at T1. I am glad that I finished in third. I’d like to thank my team and sponsors for their great support.

Drivers Quotes – Race 6:

Philip Hamprecht/Absolute Racing/1st Race 6:

“I had a reasonably good start. I won the start and then just led in to the first lap of the race. I had to defend a little bit at the first and second corners until I pulled a little gap. Once I created the distance, it was really easy to control the race. I tried to do consistent lap times and I did it for about three or four laps. Then the time started to drop and tyre wear started to get worse. But I had pulled a big enough gap. Luckily there were fights behind and that gave me more space. I am really, really happy with the weekend. Honestly it wasn’t a perfect weekend and I had a second place yesterday. If I finished that race first, it would have been fantastic. But for the championship it was really good. I am really glad my teammate and myself finished one two, it was really great! ”

Sean Zheng Shangguan/Absolute Racing/2nd Race 6:

“I finished the two qualifying sessions in fourth and due to a mistake I made, I didn’t finish the first race, but I was glad to be on the podium in the second race. The third race was pretty hard to fight. I managed to keep my position and passed one car at T1 and jumped to third. Read was behind me and gave me a lot of pressure. Unfortunately he had contact with another car and withdrew. I kept my head down and continued to chase Jeffrey [Ye]. The gap between us was pretty big on the first few laps, but I took the chance on the second last lap and overtook him. I am very happy with the result and grateful for the team who gave me a good car.”

Jeffrey Ye/Cebu Pacific Air by PRT/3rd Race 6:

“I wasn’t happy with my performance in the first two races this weekend. But I did well in the third race. The team gave me a good car. The car has some issue with its gear box before the race started. The team fixed it quickly and put me on the grid without any delay. I had a good start and maintained my position. Later, the gap to the leading car was pulling away and Sean Zheng caught up with me. I tried my best to defend, but he overtook me in the end. I was very pleased that I finished third and this was my first podium of this season. This was great!”

Fastest Lap (Race 5): Aidan READ / Eurasia Motorsport/ 1:40.963 / top speed at 153.323k/h

Fastest Lap (Race 6): Zheng Shangguan / Absolute Racing/ 1:41.469 / top speed at 152.559k/h