With the street circuit lined Armco barrier being as unforgiving as usual, the 68th running of the Macau Grand Prix was just as a bruising affair at it usually is for the nineteen strong entry that competed in the Sands China Macau GT Cup races at the weekend.

Featuring two Aston Martin Racing V8 Vantage GT3’s from the Uno Racing team, this event was the first time that the latest generation of AMR Vantage GT3 had competed in the event since 2015 when three V12 examples raced for the then AMR powered Craft Bamboo team.

Tomorrow sees that start of the formal track proceedings ahead of the running of the 68th Macau Grand Prix this weekend around the distinctive street circuit of the semi-autonomous region of coastal China.

For the first time since a three-car effort back in 2015, this weekend’s event shall see the return of Aston Martin Racing’s latest Vantage GT3 platform, this time running in the hands of Uno Racing for their drivers David Pun and Marchy Lee.

 

This month’s Macau Grand Prix will mark a momentous event in the realms of Aston Martin Racing as the marque again gets represented at the prestigious event for the first time since 2015.

Racing back then with the venerable V12 variant of the Vantage GT3, the Craft Bamboo Racing team entered three such cars into the first running of what was then the FIA GT World Cup for drivers Stefan Mucke, Darryl O’Young and Richard Lyons for which Mucke claimed pole position for the weekend’s first race before eventually finishing P3 in both races.

Belated congratulations to David Pun for securing the runners up position at the weekend in the inaugural running of the GT Super Sprint Challenge after another visit to the Shanghai International Circuit.

Racing in an Aston Martin Racing V8 Vantage GT3 for the first time this season (and indeed in the first AMR Vantage GT3 to be exported into the Chinese racing arena before later extending to a two AMR car team after the enforced break), both COVID and an incident later during testing threw ‘many spanners’ into the works for the Evisu fashion empire boss as the season was first delayed just after the opening round before he (and team co-driver Riokonig) swapped to an Audi R8 GT3 chassis at the last minute after an incident during testing left the Uno Racing team left them with only a single AMR serviceable chassis.

Wanting to finish the season out in an Aston, Pun returned to his fashionably liveried AMR for last weekend's event where he eventually claimed an overall P7 and P4 finishes during Saturday's wet finale - enough to conclude his runners up position in his AM+ class.

Working under the driver coaching of former British F3 racer Adderly Fong, the team now look to this months Macau Grand Prix event for their next action.

Photo credits – Uno Racing

The Shanghai International Circuit welcomes back the GT Super Sprint Challenge Series this weekend for what is their fifth round of their extended 2021 season as well as one of Uno Racing’s Aston Martin Racing V8 Vantage GT3’s for driver David Pun.

Having started the series with a class podium at the first round of the series way back in July, a further enforced break in motor racing events in China saw the teams wait until September when the team returned with two AMR Vantage GT3’s and a Vantage GT4 for the second round in Shanghai.

Since then, the team has skipped a round (for unknown reasons) before coming back at Uno Racing’s home track of Zhuhai – not in there AMR’s but with a pair of Audi R8’s!!

That transpired to be because of a testing incident with one of the cars prior to that round that left one car unrepairable in time for the race weekend with drivers Pun and Riokonig swapping over to two available Audi’s with Team X Works. At that round, the driver crews picked up an overall race win for Pun in Race 1 with a P3 for Riokonig before swapping fortunes in Race 2 with a P2 and P1 race win respectively later that weekend.

For this weekend’s fifth round, we understand from the team that still only one Aston Martin remains in a serviceable condition and will be raced by Evisu fashion boss David Pun whilst teammate Riokonig competes again in the Audi.

Photo Credits – Uno Racing.

The Chinese based Uno Racing team are back in business this weekend with their fourth round of their COVID interrupted GT Super Sprint Challenge Series, this time from their local Zhuhai International Circuit close to the Macau peninsula of the country.

First time out at Shanghai in early May, the team’s sole Aston Martin Racing GT3 entry for David Pun came away with a post-race awarded class win aboard his #91 car for the series to be then postponed again immediately prior to the second round due to an increased infection rate within the country.

Having secured a much deserved second place finish, before being elevated to the top step after a post-race penalty for the chequered flag taking Porsche, Uno Racing’s David Pun was hoping to continue his winning ways at the second round of the GT Super Sprint Challenge Series at Ningbo International Speed park this weekend.

Having raced competitively for many years in GT4 and other brands of GT3, the opening round of the Series from Shanghai in early May was Pun’s first racing experience of his new Aston Martin Racing V8 Vantage GT3 having only taken delivery of it just over a week before the opening round via AMR's new regional strategic partner - MSAA.

 

Although it may not have seemed to be the case but last weekend was yet another successful one for Aston Martin Racing’s Customer and Partner teams beyond those already mentioned with podium finishes being achieved all around the world.

Starting in Shanghai where the Chinese motor racing scene finally got back on track with the inaugural running of the GT Super Sprint Championship with the Evisu clothing magnate David Pun stepping up to the AMR Vantage GT3 for the very first time having only taken delivery of it just over week ago.

A busy weekend ahead over in the Australasia theatre of motorsport as the GT World Challenge Australia moves onto its third round of their season at The Bend Motorsport Park but also sees the opening round of the North Island Endurance Series from New Zealand. Then on top of that, and after more than a year of nothing sees the first GT race within mainland China with all events involving at least one Aston Martin Racing Customer or Partner’s race car.

A month since their last round at Mount Panorama, the GTWC Australia Series moves onto the shorter 4.95km circuit variation of circuit at The Bend for its grid of nineteen GT3 cars that compete within the Championship Pro-Am and Am and Trophy classes.