Macau GP | FIA GT World Cup | FP2 | Picariello puts Porsche back on top in undisturbed session - Motorsport

Spread the love

Porsche and Absolute Racing kept control of the FIA GT World Cup pace during FP2 of the Macau GP. Alessio Picariello ended the day on top, after setting the fastest time with a 2:15.966 in the No. 911 Porsche 911 GT3 R. He lowered the benchmark that Laurens Vanthoor had set earlier in FP1 in the sister No. 992 car. Vanthoor’s day, however, ended early after crashing out in FP1 and missing the second session due to needed repairs.

BMW as primary threat to Porsche at the Guia Circuit

Raffaele Marciello emerged as Porsche’s closest rival. The ROWE Racing driver put his BMW M4 GT3 into second with a 2:16.139, underlining the pace of the Munich-built GT3 machine over a single lap. He ended the session 0.173 seconds slower than Picariello, and as the only other driver to beat Vanthoor’s FP1 time, further confirming BMW as a serious threat over the long runs as well.

Sheldon van der Linde placed third in the Team WRT BMW M4 GT3 EVO, continuing the strong showing for the Bavarian brand. The South African ended the session just over six tenths away from Picariello’s benchmark, a gap that still keeps him very much in touch heading into qualifying. Behind him followed a tightly packed trio of Porsches and Ferraris, underlining how competitive the field is at the front. Reigning DTM champion and Macau rookie Ayhancan Güven impressed with fourth place, making a strong statement on his second appearance at the Guia Circuit, with Laurin Heinrich in fifth, further reinforcing Porsche’s depth in the top ranks of the timesheets.

Yifei Ye led the Ferrari 296 GT3 runners in sixth for Harmony Racing in the No. 83 car. Christopher Haase was the best-placed Audi driver in seventh in the No. 45 Audi Sport Asia R8 LMS GT3 Evo II. AF Corse Ferrari ace Antonio Fuoco, Audi Sport Asia’s Joel Eriksson and Porsche Motorsport Asia-Pacific selected driver completed the top ten with only 1.254 seconds in between the first and the tenth driver on the sheet.

Unlike the disrupted FP1 session, FP2 ran cleanly. The field completed the 30-minute run without any red-flag interruptions, giving teams a valuable first read on race-weekend pace around the Guia Circuit.