ASTC: Paul Morris Macau GP Guia Super Touring Race Report

46TH MACAU GRAND PRIX GUIA TOURING CAR EVENT MACAU: Race Report, Sunday, November 21

MORRIS WINS SUPER TOURING RACE AT MACAU

Paul Morris today became the first Australian in 10 years to win at the Macau Grand Prix when he took the chequered flag in the second of two Super Touring car events on the Guia Street Circuit.

The previous Australian to win at the international meeting on the 6.1km Macau track was David Brabham, who took the honours in the Formula 3 event in 1989.

Morris won the second of the two 10 lap races at Macau in 25-mins 34.200-secs driving the NEMO Racing BMW 320 in which he clinched his third BOC Gases Australian Super Touring Championship title this year. The 31-year-old Gold Coast driver finished 2.436-secs clear of second-placed Michael Bartels of Germany in an Audi A4 quattro. Morris led the race from start to finish, surviving a touch with a trackside barrier on lap two and overcoming persistent pressure from Bartels.

Earlier Bartels had won the opening race in 25-mins 28.488-secs, with Morris in second place and 12.523-secs behind. When the combined times of the two races were aggregated, Bartels was declared overall winner by a margin of 10.087-secs. German Oliver Mayer was third overall in an Audi A4 quattro after finishing fifth in the opening race and third in the second event.

Sydney’s Peter Hills, the Independents Cup winner in this year’s Australian championship, was a creditable sixth in the first race in his Ford Mondeo. However, he was forced out of the second heat after one lap because of a broken engine mount.

NSW’s Jamie Miller was 11th overall in a Phoenix Motorsport Toyota Camry. He was 17th in race one and 10th in the second heat. Queenslander David Auger crashed his Gun Racing Alfa Romeo at 240-km/h in the first race, which eliminated him from the remainder of the event.

New Zealand’s Tony Newman was 15th in race one, but retired from the second event with a broken driveshaft. Australian Greg Waters was able to complete only two laps of the first race in a Toyota Carina because of mechanical problems.

DRIVER QUOTES:

PAUL MORRIS (NEMO Racing BMW 320): “I made a bad start in race one - the clutch slipped and I was fourth. I passed one of the Audis and then a BMWs lost it when I put the pressure on so I came home second. In the second race I made a much better start. I got the drag off the line and won the race to the first corner. I’ve raced a (Audi) quattro at Bathurst so I know it’s strengths - I knew once I was in front the race was mine so long as I didn’t make any mistakes. The Audi was close behind, but he wasn’t going to do anything stupid because he only needed to finish behind me to take the combined result. This is the best circuit I’ve ever raced on. The more committed you are the greater the reward. I’ll be back next year.”

MICHAEL BARTELS (Phoenix Racing Audi A4 quattro): “Paul (Morris) did a great race. I couldn’t pass him, quite frankly. At one stage we were side-by-side across the top of the hill and I think we frightened the marshalls! After I lost the start to the first corner I could not get past Paul.”

PETER HILLS (Team Ford Mondeo): “I was disappointed with not finishing the second race. After sixth in the first race I thought I’d be a chance for fourth overall if I could finish. I knew something was wrong on the warm-up lap - there was a bang under the bonnet which we later found out was a broken engine mount. Despite that I had a great start, passing Oliver Mayer, but then the car started grinding so I had to bring it into the pits.”

TONY NEWMAN (TC Motorsport Peugeot 406): “The driveshaft broke (in race two) coming out of the Melco Hairpin on the second lap. I had made a good start, and was in front of the Volvo and the Audi of (Frederich) Wegerer. The track is fantastic.”

RACE 1 RESULTS (10 laps): POS DRIVER CAR TIME 1. Michael Bartels (Germany) Phoenix Racing Audi A4 quattro 25:28.488 2. Paul Morris (Australia) NEMO Racing BMW 320 25:41.011 3. Max Angelelli (Italy) Phoenix Racing Audi A4 quattro 25:43.894 4. Charles Kwan (Hong Kong) EKS Motorsport BMW 320 26:08.088 5. Oliver Mayer (Germany) Mayer Motorsport Audi A4 quattro 26:28.354 6. Peter Hills (Australia) Team Ford Mondeo 26:36.008 7. Henry Lee Jnr (Hong Kong) Ericsson Racing Team Volvo S40 26:37.252 8. Masanori Sekiya (Japan) Team AAI Toyota Chaser 27:05.919 9. Paul Chan (Hong Kong) EKS Motorsport BMW 320 27:24.270 10. Chan Chi Wah (Hong Kong) Ericsson Racing Team BMW 320 27:32.280 OTHER AUSTRALIANS/NEW ZEALANDERS: 15. Tony Newman (NZ) TC Motorsport Peugeot 406 1 lap down 17. Jamie Miller (Australia) Phoenix Motorsport Toyota Camry 1 lap down NC. David Auger (Australia) Gun Racing Alfa Romeo 4 laps NC. Greg Waters (Australia) Toyota Carina 2 laps

RACE 2 RESULTS (10 laps): POS DRIVER CAR TIME 1. Paul Morris (Australia) NEMO Racing BMW 320 25:34.200 2. Michael Bartels (Germany) Phoenix Racing Audi A4 quattro 25:36.636 3. Oliver Mayer (Germany) Mayer Motorsport Audi A4 quattro 26:14.623 4. Masanori Sekiya (Japan) Team AAI Toyota Chaser 26:18.073 5. Paul Chan (Hong Kong) EKS Motorsport BMW 320 26:18.073 6. Henry Lee Jnr (Hong Kong) Ericsson Racing Volvo S40 27:05.473 7. Frederich Wegerer (Austria) Mayer Motorsport Audi A4 quattro 27:26.494 8. Chan Chi Wah (Hong Kong) Ericsson Racing BMW 320 28:01.739 9. Rui Valente (Macau) Ericsson Racing Nissan Primera 1 lap down 10. Jamie Miller (Australia) Phoenix Motorsport Toyota Camry 1 lap down OTHER AUSTRALIANS/NEW ZEALANDERS: NC. Tony Newman (NZ) TC Motorsport Peugeot 406 2 laps NC. Peter Hills (Australia) Team Ford Mondeo 1 lap NC. David Auger (Australia) Gun Racing Alfa Romeo 0 laps NC. Greg Waters (Australia) Toyota Carina 0 laps

OVERALL/FINAL RESULTS (aggregate times Race 1 & Race 2): POS DRIVER CAR TIME 1. Michael Bartels (Germany) Phoenix Racing Audi A4 quattro 51:05.124 2. Paul Morris (Australia) NEMO Racing BMW 320 51:15.211 3. Oliver Mayer (Germany) Mayer Motorsport Audi A4 quattro 52:42.977 4. Masanori Sekiya (Japan) Team AAI Toyota Chaser 53:23.992 5. Henry Lee Jnr (Hong Kong) Ericsson Racing Volvo S40 53:42.725 6. Paul Chan (Hong Kong) EKS Motorsport BMW 320 53:42.835 7. Frederich Wegerer (Austria) Mayer Motorsport Audi A4 quattro 55:16.734 8. Chan Chi Wah (Hong Kong) Ericsson Racing BMW 320 55:34.028 9. Rui Valente (Macau) Ericsson Racing Nissan Primera 1 lap down 10. Max Angelelli (Italy) Phoenix Racing Audi A4 quattro 2 laps down OTHER AUSTRALIANS/NEW ZEALANDERS: 11. Jamie Miller (Australia) Phoenix Motorsport Toyota Camry 2 laps down NC. Peter Hills (Australia) Team Ford Mondeo 11 laps NC. Tony Newman (NZ) TC Motorsport 11 laps NC. David Auger (Australia) Gun Racing Alfa Romeo 4 laps NC. Greg Waters (Australia) Toyota Carina 2 laps FASTEST LAP: Bartels 2-mins 30.638-secs (av speed 146.26-km/h)

Mike Porter mikep@qldnet.com.au