The 2024 Fanatec GT World Challenge Asia by AWS season came to an end, with Absolute Racing pair Anthony Liu and Alessio Picariello clinching the GT3 Pro-Am title during a dramatic race weekend at the Shanghai International Circuit.
The No.1 Absolute Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) team won the opening race of the weekend and remained in contention for the GT3 Drivers Championship title until the end, finishing just 7 points shy.
But Absolute Racing's excellent performance was not limited to just one car. Audi Sport Asia Team Absolute’s James Yu Kuai and Akash Nandy also had a strong showing, winning the GT3 Silver Cup class on Saturday as Absolute Racing newcomer Antares Au finished on the GT3 Am class podium twice. Last but not least, Eshan Pieris and Tanart Sathienthirakul secured a spot on the Silver Cup podium on Sunday.
Unfortunately, despite a very promising qualifying performance, Absolute Corse drivers were unable to finish any of the races.
LIU AND PICARIELLO'S MISSION FOR THE TITLE
Anthony Liu and Alessio Picariello emerged as major figures of the weekend. The duo knew they had to win and embraced the challenge with determination from the practice sessions to the final race.
Three red flag periods during the 15-minute Q1 session meant that most cars only completed two flying laps. Liu’s fastest lap was enough to place him fourth on the grid. The Q2 session concluded early due to a stationary car, but Alessio Picariello, who had found significant time just before the red flag, ended up fifth fastest.
Interestingly, recent resurfacing work and slight changes to the Chinese F1 track profile ensured that the fastest times were five seconds quicker than the last time the Fanatec GT Asia qualified at Shanghai in 2019.
Liu and Picariello had their sights set on an opening race win. Theoretically, they knew it was possible and put their plan into action. The early retirement of the championship leader gave Absolute Racing’s crew an opportunity to close the 19-point deficit. They achieved far more than that, with a new chassis that finally resolved the issues which had previously hindered Liu’s sustained title defence.
Liu lost a position at the start of Race 1 when he attempted to move up to third but quickly recovered, passing the car to his teammate in fourth place. Picariello used a similar strategy, moving from fourth to second. The decisive moment came after a late Full Course Yellow period, when Picariello passed Audi Sport Asia Team Absolute’s Akash Nandy at Turn 12 in the final four minutes of the race, turning a one-point deficit into a six-point lead.
Heading into the last race of the season, Liu and Picariello were six points and four grid positions ahead of their GT3 Drivers Championship rivals but faced a 15-second Success Penalty during their pitstop.
Picariello had a great start and quickly moved to second. Unfortunately, the No. 1 Absolute Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R struggled to maintain pace and dropped to fourth, though he closed the gap to the cars in front. With no Safety Car period, the 15-second penalty proved too costly. Liu exited the pits in ninth and managed to climb to fifth by the finish.
While it was short of the overall GT3 Drivers Championship title, it earned the Chinese-Belgian duo the runner-up spot and a well-deserved GT3 Pro-Am class title.
On the other side of the garage, Eshan Pieris and Tanart Sathienthirakul were holding second place in the Silver Cup standings ahead of the season’s final two races. Qualifying session was not brilliant due to the consecutive red flags, and a P20 start on Saturday meant they the No. 911 Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) would have to battle hard to climb positions.
The arduous task of recovering position was looking good, as Pieris was driving in P12 for a moment, until he has been pushed out. Bouncing back ended up being limited when Pieris touched lightly the rear of a rival and damaged the Porsche's front-bonnet, compromising the car's stability and performance. Even so, Sathienthirakul still managed to see the chequered flag in 20th position overall and fourth in the Silver Cup.
The Sri Lankan-Thai duo continued to struggle with pace in Sunday's race, though they fought hard to secure a spot on the Silver Cup podium, which they successfully achieved. With these results, Pieris and Sathienthirakul finished the season as the runners-up in the Silver Cup class.
AUDI’S SILVER CUP VICTORY
The Audi Sport Asia Team Absolute had another strong weekend, with China’s James Yu Kuai and Malaysia’s Akash Nandy securing an impressive win in the Silver Cup on Saturday. The Audi Sport Asia duo came close to replicating their spectacular overall win at Okayama, but this time they had to settle for second place.
The second race of the weekend was marred when Yu was taken out by an opponent from another class while braking for Turn 14. The No. 41 Audi Sport Asia Team Absolute Audi R8 LMS GT3 evo II crew was on Silver Cup podium position.
In the No. 40 Audi Sport Asia Team Absolute Audi R8 LMS GT3 evo II, Antares Au had his first experience with the car and with the team. The Hong Kong driver ended up racing in the Am class after Markus Winkelhock withdrew from the event due to illness. German ace Winkelhock was one of seven title contenders, although he was 49 points behind with 50 points available.
Au had studied the lesson well and kept improving his times each time he went out on the track. After finishing third in the Am class on Saturday, Au was close to a second-place finish on Sunday. However, he received a drive-through penalty, which was converted to a 31-second time penalty added to his race time, for allegedly causing a collision.
UNLUCKY WEEKEND FOR ABSOLUTE CORSE
The Shanghai round marked the first time ever that Absolute Racing ran a Ferrari on home soil in China, but it won’t be one to remember as the 'Gods of Racing' seemed to be against the team. The quick pace shown by André Canard and Finn Gehrsitz in qualifying did not translate into results.
Saturday morning's qualifying went very well for the team, with Canard setting the sixth-best time in Q1. Absolute Corse’s Ferrari appeared on course for pole in the second 15-minute session, thanks to Gehrsitz posting consecutive fastest times. The German youngster, who had never driven in Shanghai before, set a spectacular time just 0.172 seconds off pole position, securing a spot on the front row for Sunday’s race.
At the start of Saturday’s race, Canard went wide and picked up dirt, dropping him to tenth place. However, the Filipino driver remained relentless, going on the offensive and quickly climbing back up to seventh. On lap 9, as he attempted to overtake for sixth at Turn 1, his rival shut the door, resulting in contact between the two cars and a frustrating early retirement for the Ferrari 269 GT3.
Sunday’s race was even shorter, as the Ferrari lost power on the warm-up lap, forcing Gehrsitz to pit and retire.
