San Luis: Series championship race report

Double joy for Aston Martin

The Hexis Aston Martin No.9, starting from pole, scored a dominant victory in the Championship Race at San Luis.

Second was the Matech Ford GT No.5 of Richard Westbrook and Thomas Mutsch with the sister Hexis Aston Martin No.10 of Clivio Piccione and Jonathan Hirschi.

First and third for Hexis secured them second place in the teams' championship behind the Vitaphone Maserati team which clinched both titles following the Qualifying Race results earlier in the day.

It also meant that Aston Martin won the SRO Trophy for manufacturers.

The Championship Race settled the squabbles for second and third in the drivers' and teams' points battle.

Mutsch finished second in the drivers' championship with Makowiecki third and Darren Turner and Tomas Enge in the Young Driver Aston Martin No.7 fourth.

In the teams title, Reiter Engineering took third place behind Vitaphone Maserati and Hexis AMR.

For the Hexis Aston No.9 it was a dominant weekend on the magnificent Potrero de los Funes. Having won the Qualifying Race, they eclipsed the field by over 15 seconds at the flag.

San Luis Championship Race: What the drivers say ...

Fred Makowiecki, Hexis Aston Martin No.9

"It has been a great weekend for Hexis and the Aston. The car was really strong on this circuit which is quite tricky and new for a lot of the drivers and the teams. I got a good start and just tried to keep a good pace going and we were lucky enough to build a lead and keep it until the end. I have to thank all the guys at Hexis as they did another great job this weekend and for the whole season."

Yann Clairay, Hexis Aston Martin No.10

"Fred did a fantastic job -- this is the perfect result to end the season. Overall I think it's a beautiful championship because you have the best drivers in GT and the best cars. The format is good with two races. I like the Qualifying format of Q1, Q2 and Q3. I am looking forward to next year."

Thomas Mutsch, Matech Competition Ford GT No.5

"It was a really pleasing end to the season for me to finish second in the race today and to finish second in the drivers' championship. I am really pleased for Matech that we were able to finish on a high. I knew I had a hard job to do to finish second in the points. When I looked at the prognosis for all the drivers and which cars were strong at which circuits there were are a lot of possibilities coming to Argentina so to drive so strongly this weekend is a nice feeling.

"The championship is very competitive -- nice brands, professional teams and we visit some historic circuit and some brand new ones. I hope to be back next year."

Richard Westbrook, Matech Competition Ford GT No.5

"We didn't quite have the legs this weekend. Certainly the Aston was the car to have around here. Well done to Thomas for second place in the drivers' championship. It just shows that when we have a clean race and he is not being pushed around he can compete with the best."

Clivio Piccione, Hexis Aston Martin No.10

"I tried to do the best I could to keep the car on the track which was quite difficult with lots of close racing in the early part and some dust on the track surface in some areas. I was concentrating on bringing the car back in good shape for Jonathan (Hirschi) so he could finish the job for us and he did."

Jonathan Hirschi, Hexis Aston Martin No.10

"We had a great car for the last race. It was tough for the last 10 minutes because I had to push really hard as the Lambo (Reiter Lamborghini No.25) was quite strong behind me. It is a great result for Hexis. We are a young team, but we proved we can be competitive."

-source: gt1 world