The AF Corse Ferrari 296 GT3, driven by Antonio Fuoco, wins the FIA GT World Cup in Macau, the most prestigious FIA award for drivers and constructors in GT racing. It was a weekend dominated by the Ferrari official driver, who secured the Super Pole, victory in the Qualifying Race, victory in the Main Race and the fastest lap. For Ferrari, this is the first success on the Guia Circuit, one of the most technical and selective venues in motor racing, and in this event. Fuoco’s performance was accompanied by the fourth place obtained by Yifei Ye, fifth over the line but promoted after the race following the penalty imposed by the marshals on Eriksson.

The race. The start proved particularly exciting and not without drama. Immediately after passing along the main straight, behind Fuoco – who had started from pole position – and Ye, Picariello lost control of his Porsche and hit the barrier. The Harmony Racing driver made contact that damaged the car’s aerodynamic balance and was forced to fend off the attacks of several cars. However, taking advantage of a multi-car incident at Lisboa involving four drivers, Ye managed to limit the damage, emerging fifth from the insidious right-hand bend. The situation on the track brought out the Safety Car, which bunched up the field, with the second 296 GT3 of Winhere Racing, driven by Deng, lying in sixth. The race director’s car returned to the pit lane with thirteen laps to go, and Fuoco was determined to avoid any possible threat from Marciello right from the restart. The AF Corse driver caught the Swiss competitor off guard, accelerating while he was still warming his tyres and pulling out valuable tenths which, over the following laps, grew to almost five seconds, thanks also to an impressive sequence of fast laps, the best of which in 2’16”581. Immediately behind them, Ye tried to launch his attacks on Eriksson, fourth and not too far from Heinrich, third past the chequered flag. Deng, meanwhile, lost some positions before consolidating eighth place. Fuoco managed the lead in the closing stages to take victory for the first time in Ferrari’s history with the AF Corse 296 GT3, while Ye finished fifth for Harmony Racing and Deng eighth representing Winhere Racing. After the race, the decision by the stewards to penalise Eriksson, promoted Yifei Ye to the fourth place, while Yi Deng kept his eight position.

Post-race comments. In a crowded press conference held at the end of the race, a beaming Antonio Fuoco said: “It is really special to win here in Macau, particularly after what happened last year. We came back with a clear objective and I think we did an excellent job throughout the whole weekend. Today we managed every phase of the race with clarity and determination and I am happy to share this success with the team. After yesterday’s good start we tried to repeat that today, although I was concerned when I saw Marciello behind me. At the restart after the Safety Car, I almost lost the car at Mandarin just to create the margin needed not to be attacked at Lisboa, but everything went well and I am very happy.”

A different tone came from Yifei Ye: “It was a difficult race. I had a good reaction at the start and the initial getaway was positive, but at Mandarin I was alongside and then overtaken by a car that could count on a higher top speed. At that moment I made contact, lost momentum and several positions before Lisboa. From then on everything was difficult because in the traffic I didn’t have the momentum to fight back. It’s a pity because we were competitive in all the sessions, but I still want to thank the team and congratulate Ferrari on winning the FIA GT World Cup.”

There was satisfaction in the words of Antonello Coletta, Global Head of Endurance and Corse Clienti: “We are obviously delighted; we have reclaimed that victory which eluded us last year through no fault of our own. We are happy for Antonio and for the whole of Ferrari, which brings home this world cup, representing the right reward for a solid and cutting-edge project - that of the 296 GT3 - for the AF Corse team which worked commendably throughout the weekend, and for Fuoco, a true champion and the reference point for all the drivers over the last two years here in Macau. It is a shame not to have seen Yifei on the podium as well because throughout the weekend he was able to consistently improve his performance and proved to be a real team player; he would have deserved it but contact at the start affected his performance. Thanks also go to Harmony Racing because getting two cars into the top 8 at Macau is not at all simple and rewards their great effort.”

Sharing the same view, Ferdinando Cannizzo, Head of Endurance Race Cars, added: “This is a wonderful way to end an extraordinary season. We worked very well because we knew we didn’t have the fastest car on this circuit and we optimised its behaviour in all the other sectors of the track. The decisive moment came at the restart after the Safety Car, when Antonio was really brilliant in launching the car again while he was still warming the tyres. This victory is a great team result and pushes us to do even better in the future.”