Constructive First 2012 Test

The first pre-season test for Asia Racing Team’s 2012 Formula Pilota China season got underway in the past two weeks at Zhuhai International Circuit in People’s Republic of China. After nearly two months, the Asia Racing Team cars were back on track.

Guangzhou’s Zou Si Rui got behind the wheels of Asia Racing Team’s new car and had a good start. The last year one race only racer demonstrated strong pace and was able to complete plenty of mileage on a dry track. “Overall it was a good day. It was my first time driving this car in Zhuhai and a matter of me being comfortable in the car and doing set-up changes to work out what it does to the car. Now I’m looking forward to further testing to get things underway properly for the season.”

 Last season competitor Zhang Ran took the wheel from Zou Si Rui, getting back into the swing of Formula Pilota China after so many months away. The Beijing native female racer did not yet decided where to race next season but took the opportunity to drive the FIAT powered Tatuus car on a track that will host the Ferrari Drivers Academy supported series twice in 2012.

Russian single seater debutant Sergei Karokin took the place of Zhang Ran on the day after. "It was my first time in this car so I concentrated on getting comfortable and up to speed. It was good experience and fun despite the low temperatures", he said.

Team Manager Philippe Descombes added, "We haven’t come up with a decision regarding season 2012 but we want to be prepared. Formula Pilota China is an extremely competitive series and a level playing field where driver talent and teamwork can really make a difference. Last year we finished second in the championship standings and we were the strongest of the Asian teams. Definitely we want to do it again."

The second pre-season test will begin in Zhuhai from February 21.

Sa Silva, 2011 Vice-Champion Formula Pilota China

Asia Racing Team driver Luis Sa Silva became vice-champion of 2011 Formula Pilota China after a mature performance in the last race of the season at Sepang International Circuit. Team-mate Chi Cong Li had also reasons to celebrate as he clinched the third position in the Asian Trophy category.

Starting in 8th in the first race of the weekend, Sa Silva moved up to 6th place despite the inherent difficulties in overtaking on the Sepang circuit. The Angolan driver was quicker than the drivers in front but he couldn’t quite get close enough to find a way past. Chi Cong Li had another great race start and spent the balance of the race in a tightly knit group of cars and crossed the line in 9th place. Sritrai was unable to maintain his opponents’ early pace but the Thai ace fought back with aplomb once more, however, and eventually finished 10th. Series debutant Zou Si Rui made a good start from and picked up a couple of places, but he wasn’t able to keep the position until the end, and was only 14th by the 10-lap race’s conclusion.

Race 2 saw Sa Silva putting in another mature performance to finish 5th and this result warranted to him the second position in the championship. “It was not the best weekend of the season for us but we did what we had to do to secure the second position in the championship. Everybody has done an awesome job, so my thanks go to one and all”, he said.

Chi Cong Li put in a worthy drive in the Asia Racing Team, setting some solid laps to finish 9th, grabbing the third position in the Asian Trophy standings.  Teammate Sritrai lost part of the front wing on first half of the race. He was not a whit discouraged and his 11th place - finishing his second single seater season in fifth place in the points standings - was a poor reflection of his talent.

China’s Zou Si Rui had a tough race in the back of the grid, finishing 15th but hoping to return next season. Said the Guangzhou native, "Overall, it was pretty tough weekend. Everything was new to me, the circuit, the team and the car. I had to get used to all that but it has been a fantastic experience that puts me in good shape for 2012.”

With the season now over, Asia Racing Team would like to thank everyone for their support throughout the year.  The Asia Racing Team look to come back in 2012 stronger, and will soon start testing in Zhuhai.

Overall Championship Standings:

2. Luis Sá Silva – 124 Pts

5. Tin Sritrai – 67 Pts

6.  Chi Cong Li – 67 Pts

16. Eric Lichstenstein – 10 Pts

24. Naomi Zhang Ran – 3 Pts

NC. Zou Si Rui



Asian Trophy Standings:

3. Chi Cong Li – 134 Pts

4. Tin Sritrai – 130 Pts

9. Naomi Zhang Ran – 29 Pts

12. Zou Si Rui – 4 Pts

Asia Racing Team gives Zou Si Rui a Formula Pilota debut

 China’s Zou Si Rui will be driving in next week’s world famous Sepang circuit, after agreeing a one-off deal to drive for top Macau Formula Pilota China outfit, Asia Racing Team.

The 23 years old from Guangzhou is not a strange to the team as he has been testing the Macanese team’s Formula Renault 2.0 in Zhuhai International Circuit during the summer.  Zou Si Rui racer learnt his race craft in the Formula West and did a single appearance in Asian Formula Renault Championship.

Team Manager Philippe Descombes said of the new partnership “It will be the first race for Zou Si Rui this season and with us but he is not a stranger to the team. We tested him in Zhuhai and he showed a great potential. We look forward to working with him and developing him into a front-running driver.”

Sepang was designed to be a great challenge for the drivers, with wide-sweeping corners, high-speed sections, and tight corners to create overtaking opportunities. The country’s climate also means that both car and driver will have to cope with some of the highest temperatures of the season.

Zou Si Rui is also looking forward to working with Asia Racing Team adding “It will be the first I will be driving the Formula Pilota car and this is my first time in Sepang but I learn fast. I am looking forward a podium spot in both races in Asian Category.”

Qualifying Speed but Torrid Saturday for ART in Tianma

Asia Racing Team drivers Luis Sa Silva, Tin Sritrai, Chi Cong Li and Eric Lichtenstein couldn’t translate the Free Practice and Qualifying speed into results across two eventful races at the Shanghai Tianma Circuit.

The Asia Racing Team quartet showed a promising pace in Free Practice and Qualifying. Sa Silva demonstrated his growing ability as his finished the Qualifying session fourth quickest, while guest driver Lichtenstein was also on the pace and was seventh quickest. Teammate Chi Cong Li lined up eighth for race one, while Sritrai started 11th.

Sa Silva’s hopes of clinching the championship ended in first race of Saturday, when the Angolan talented driver was punted off by Riccardo D’Agostini in the last lap when he was running third overall. Teammate Lichtenstein had a near miss in the early stages; the Argentinean racer went off the track while fighting in the middle pack, but managed to recover to finish 10th.

Chi Cong Li and Tin Sritrai had better luck and both finished in the podium of the Asian category. Starting eighth for the race the Chinese prodigy had an excellent start by moving up to fifth. Chi Cong Li resisted the pressure from behind throughout the entire race, and still managed to finish fourth overall. Teammate Sritrai did a good start and kept his car out of trouble to cross the line in fifth.

A drama filled Race 2 at the Shanghai Tianma circuit Saturday afternoon yielded a disappointing result for the Asia Racing Team. Despite lining up on the grid third, ninth and eleventh respectively, Sa Silva, Sritrai and Lichtenstein failed to finish, while Chi Cong Li who started seventh, crossed the line eleventh in a wet race which started behind the safety car.

In the first lap Sa Silva lost control of his car ending up crashing the concrete wall, putting him into immediate retirement. “There are days to forget and today is one of it”, he held. One lap after, Lichtenstein tried to overtake his teammate Sritrai and both cars collided which created the second safety car period of the race.

Meanwhile Chi Cong Li was already sixth, and getting its steam up. In the race restart the 17-years old tried to overtake his opponent but . With a damaged front suspension, the Guangzhou native still managed to finish eleventh. Said Chi Cong Li: "The car was perfect in the wet and I was much quicker than D’Agostini. When we were side by side he deliberately hit me."

Commenting about the weekend, Team Manager Philippe Descombes said, “Seriously tough day, all our four cars were involved in accidents in Race 2 and Luis lost a solid podium position after being hit by a guest driver, the same driver who put Chi Cong Li out of Race 2. Everything just went wrong for us, mainly for Luis, although it’s still mathematically possible to win the Championship, we would need a miracle now to turn things around. But, we’ll do everything we can to finish the season strong and hopefully we’ll win some more races and especially at Sepang, where it would be a nice way to sign off for the year.”

Luis Sa Silva is still second in the championship standings, while Sritrai now lay fourth and Chi Cong Li fifth. Sritrai and Li are second and third in Asian category standings.

The 2011 Formula Pilota China Season Finale will be held at Sepang International Circuit (Malaysia) Sunday November 27. Chinese female driver Zhang Ran should retake her place at the wheel of the team’s fourth car.

Lichtenstein steps in for ART in Shanghai Tianma

Asia Racing Team are pleased to announce that Argentinean Driver Eric Lichtenstein will be joining the team for the Formula Pilota China Series Round 9 & 10. Lichtenstein will race alongside the team’s regular drivers; Luís Sá Silva, Chi Cong Li and Tin Sritrai.

 17-years old Lichtenstein proved himself one to watch this season in only his first year of formula racing, finishing 5th in the Round 6 of the championship.  The Argentinean driver skipped Ordos event but he has been testing in Europe.

 The Shanghai track is unknown from most of the paddock. Shanghai Tianma circuit is short and narrow, almost a “mickey-mouse” track, where it will be difficult for the Formula Pilota China cars to reach top speed. Hence the importance for Asia Racing Team drivers to be in the front in Qualifying and ensure the best possible grid positions for Race 1.

 Speaking ahead of the weekend, the driver sponsored by Restaurant De Marco and Que Rico said "I don’t know the circuit and this is my first time with the team but I hope to adapt quickly and get onto the pace. The competition will be strong but I hope to put in a good performance.”

Team Manager Philippe Descombes added, "We will miss Zhang Ran this weekend but Eric is a welcome addition to the team. He has already shown himself to be extremely quick and we are looking forward to working with him." 

Asia Racing Team …1…2…3!

Asia Racing Team drivers Luis Sa Silva, Tin Sritrai and Chi Cong Li stole the show at the opening race of the Ordos’ weekend.

The weekend started well for the Macau founded and Zhuhai based team, when Sa Silva shot to the second place of the Qualifying. If Luis’ performance didn’t come as surprise to anyone in the paddock, the same couldn’t be said about Sritrai third spot in the grid. The tight and twisting Ordos track suits Sritrai driving style, and the Thai racing hero knew how to take the maximum out of it. Teammate Chi Cong Li qualified fifth and Zhang Ran was eleventh out of twelve cars. With three cars in the first five positions, Asia Racing Team had reasons to smile but the best was yet to come.

The three ART top drivers had a good getaway. Sa Silva secured the second spot, and Chi Cong Li jumped to third in front of teammate Sritrai. Knowing that the leader was going to be penalized for jump-start, Sa Silva managed his race to win for the second time in the series.  Sritrai and Chi Cong Li had a hot fight for the second place and Asian trophy win with the Thai driver crossing the line in front of his Chinese colleague. Race 1 was short for Zhang Ran as she got sandwiched by two opponents at the start, damaging the front wing, ending up later in the gravel at T5.

Speaking about his second race win, Sa Silva said, “I’m very happy to have closed the gap to the first, its good to get some more solid points today. I knew Matheo was going to be penalized and that I was actually the new leader, so I decided to keep cool and take it easily till the end”.

For the second race of the weekend Sa Silva lined up second with his team mate Chi Cong Li just behind him in third, Sritrai in fifth, and Zhang Ran started in twelfth. The Angolan prodigy got away cleanly off the line and fell into place behind the leader. Sa Silva soon started to charge towards race leader however the championship leader had an answer and maintained the gap well. Chi Cong Li did a good start and kept his third position for a couple of laps but wasn’t able to sustain the speed and was caught by his Thai teammate. Sritrai finished again in the podium and celebrated the second Asian Category win at Ordos.

in the end of the weekend, Sritrai commented, "It feels really good to have finally finished in the podium after a difficult start to the season. I  made no mistakes and I was fast from the beginning so it’s a great feeling. The team did a good job, and this will definitely give us momentum as we move forward".

Meanwhile Chi Cong Li was involved in an accident and finished sixth. Zhang Ran was eleventh but dropped to twelfth and last at the wire.

Sa Silva, Sritrai and Chi Cong Li are now second, fourth and fifth respectively in Formula Pilota China drivers’ standings. Sritrai and Chi Cong Li are both in the Top-3 of the Asian Category.

The Formula Pilota China will now take a month break, with the racing action resuming in earnest at Guangzhou in China, for the FIA World Touring Car Championship support event, which will take place 4-5 November 2011.

Asia Racing Team fights back with a second place in Shanghai

 Round five and six of the burgeoning Formula Pilota China were a mixed affair for Asia Racing Team drivers. Torrential rain didnt prevent Luis Sa Silva from claiming a stunning second place, while team mate Chi Cong Li got his first overall podium of the season. But what could have been a spectacular 1-2 for Asia Racing Team drivers in Race 2 turned into disappointment.

 On Saturday Chi Cong Li proved to be well-adapted for the ever-changing weather conditions, putting in a stunning effort to qualify in second position in the wet-turned-damp qualifying session. “I knew I would be quick in the rain but I wasn’t expecting to be second overall. The team did a good job, and this will definitely give us momentum as we move forward”, said the 18 years old driver from Guangdong Province.

Sa Silva was equally fast and posted the fourth quickest time. Teammates Sritrai and Zhang Ran lined up in sixth and eleventh. Both races occurred on Sunday.

Eventually 11 cars lined up behind the safety car for the rolling start on Sunday morning for the Race 1. The four Asia Racing Team drivers got away well off the grid for the wet 10-lap race but Chi Cong Li held on however, to fall into third behind his Angolan team mate. The 2009 Asian Formula Renault Challenge runner up had a great getaway, holding onto second to take another well-deserved podium. Chi Cong Li finished third after an eventful race, achieving his first victory in the “Best Asian Driver Trophy”.

 Meanwhile Sritrai ascended to fifth after one lap but the Thai driver would drop to seventh due to a spin on last corner. He would stay seventh until the chequered flag. The safe race of Zhang Ran in the back of the field paid off, finishing tenth and scoring her first points in the series.

 Rain at the Shanghai circuit held off offering spectators a dry Race 2. And as the first lap got underway all Asia Racing Team drivers were quickly making their way up the field. Starting from third, Sa Silva was a big winner during the first lap storming two places up the order into first position and Chi Cong Li jumped to second behind his team mate. They would keep their position until lap 3 when Sa Silva missed the brake point on T9, costing him four positions. The late braking destroyed his tyres and a new lock-up would throw him to sixth where he finished.

 Struggling to keep his podium position Chi Cong Li fitness fading just as his opponents cars started to come good. Lap after lap he lost positions to finish fifth. On the other hand, his teammate Sritrai was coming up after a so-so first half of the race. An overtake on the final lap of the race put Sritrai in fourth position as the best of ART drivers in Race 2, equalling his best result of the season so far.

 Reflecting on his race, Sritrai said, “Today, on dry, was good. I had a really good feeling and everyone did a good job. Everyone wanted to do well, and we put ourselves into position to do that. I’m pleased for the team that we finished the weekend with a podium in Asian category.”

 Without the pace to match the front runners and fighting in the cockpit against the high temperatures Zhang Ran had a lonely run home, finishing ninth, scoring two valuable points.

 The championship reached halfway point of the season and Luis Sa Silva is a solid second in championship standings.

 The 12-round series will resume in three weeks with races 7 and 8 at the challenging Ordos circuit in Inner Mongolia (China) over the weekend of 4/5 September as part of the FIA GT1 World Championship racing weekend.

Asia Racing Team and Luis Sa Silva victorious in Shanghai

Thousands of fans flocked to the Shanghai International Circuit last weekend for the first Ferrari Racing Days weekend in China to watch Asia Racing Team and Luis Sa Silva scoring its maiden victory of the 2011 Formula Pilota China.

Inspired by a strong return in Guangzhou race, Sa Silva started the weekend being the fastest in Free Practice and getting the second place in qualifying. The Angolan motorsport biggest hope quickly went to work in Race 1, piling the pressure on the race leader and in the final laps, Sa Silva moved into first as result of a leader car mechanical failure.

 A delighted Sa Silva said "The car felt really good and I was able to push quite hard from the beginning. When I saw Matheo slowing down I didn’t want to push any harder than necessary. These points are definitely what I needed for the championship."

Having started from ninth on the grid, Sritrai made a steady start to the race before steadily working his way through the field to his best result so far this season. Sritrai did celebrated a well-deserved fourth place finish and the valuable championship points that go with it. "I had a consistent run and the car was handling very well. It was definitely fun out there; there was a lot of side-by-side racing and it really was quite exciting", held Sritrai

Chi Cong Li initially made a positive impression on the field, but his walk to the top had to stop when one opponent damaged his rear wishbone. There onwards the car balance was not too great and it was all about damage control to finish seventh. Compatriot Zhang Ran had a short race, spinning out into the gravel in the first lap.

Sunday morning’s race began with Luis Sa Silva losing one position at the start. The Angolan driver tried to follow the leaders pace but soon he found himself struggle on the approach to T6 and T7. An adversary was able to capitalize on Silva’s problems pushing our man down into fourth.

If Sa Silva had a weak start, his teammate Chi Cong Li had a great getaway and gained two places into the first corner. Things were to change on lap 5 however, the Chinese prodigy got himself trapped in the mid-field, and couldn’t defend his position, dropping back to ninth position. For once though, and starting from P7, Sritrai didn’t make his strong getaway off the line and he found himself down in tenth place at the end of the opening lap. The Thai driver didn’t get much opportunity to progress further and finished ninth. Naomi Zhang Ran had a humdrum race in the back of the field but managed to finish the race in sixteenth, doing her best laptime of the weekend.

Team Manager Philippe Descombes, commented, "This was just our second event with these cars. This result in Shanghai has given us the feeling that we are heading in the right direction."

Asia Racing Team’s Sa Silva is currently second in the Drivers’ Standings eight points adrift from first.  Sritrai and Li are in contention for Asian Drivers Trophy, lying third and fourth in the category standings.

The energy within the team is all focused on making it to the podium again in the next round. After taking the next three weekends off, the 2011 Formula Pilota China returns to Shanghai International Circuit, China, on August 14.

Strong start for ART in Formula Pilota China

Asia Racing Team’s Luis Sa Silva took a strong third place in the first ever Formula Pilota China race this weekend at the Guangdong International Circuit.

The Zhuhai-based Macau Team made a promising start in the inaugural weekend of Formula Pilota China on Saturday, with a strong showing from three of the team’s drivers in the first ever-qualifying session.  It was Sa Silva who got the most out of the drying track to qualify fourth.  Tin Sritrai meanwhile was 7th with Chi Cong Li in 8th place. Zhang Ran qualified in 15th.

After one year away from the track Sa Silva was clearly on a charge and showed he is a serious contender for the championship. In the Race 1 the Angolan driver didn’t make a strong getaway but made lightning progress from his 5th place in lap one to finish 3rd.  Making a great start Chi Cong Li moved straight up to 7th on the first lap. The Guangzhou-native pushed hard from the outset to finish 6th, conquering the 3rd place in the Asian trophy. Sritrai had an uninspired start but the Thailand ace managed to recover and cross the line 7th. Still inexperienced as a race driver, Zhang Ran had a clean first race to finish 14th.

Starting from 5th on the Race 2 grid, Sa Silva quickly moved to 4th after a superb overtaking maneuver on David Zhu. “I knew I had to overtake him early which I did, then I put some quick laps. I started to pick up the pace in the front to try to close the gap but but I couldn’t catch up with him", he said. Teammate Tin Sritrai had a solid race, climbing from 10th to 7th overall and Asian trophy’s 3rd at the chequered flag. Chi Cong Li had a good race start but the young Chinese couldn’t keep the front drivers pace. “I had the speed but I was very tired by the end of the race. I need to work harder on my fitness”, he said. Zhang Ran was 15th and left Zhaoqing empty-handed. 

Sa Silva sits second in the drivers’ championship standings following the inaugural Formula Pilota China event.  Team Manager Philippe Descombes was pleased with team’s performance stating, "It was a long and tough week for everybody but it’s been a great start to our Formula Pilota China campaign. Luis was strong from the beginning and Cong and Tin are not so far from the front pace. We gained a huge amount of information that will help us going forwards."

Asia Racing Team will be in action again in Formula Pilota China from July 23-24 for Rounds 3 & 4 at the Shanghai International.

Zhang Ran to race Formula Pilota China

Naomi Zhang Ran has joined Asia Racing Team for the 2011 Formula Pilota China Series season. Zhang Ran is the second Chinese driver to form part of Asia Racing Team’s Formula Pilota China Series team and will race alongside China’s Chi Cong Li, Angola’s Luis Sá Silva and Thailand’s Tin Sritrai this season.

27 year-old Zhang Ran has completed half season of Formula Renault with Asia Racing Team in only her third season of motor racing. The Beijing born racer previously raced GT cars. Zhang Ran is not just another pretty face in racing. During the winter she has been testing in Zhuhai for the coming season with Asia Racing Team’s Formula Renault cars, and she is looking and she is determined to repay the team’s faith in her. Zhang Ran’s learning process continues in this season in Formula Pilota China Series where shining results are not the prime goal.

Speaking about the exciting season ahead, Zhang Ran said, "First of all it is an amazing feeling to be with a great team again, especially after what I learnt from them last year. I hope last year’s experience will help me this time. I am still an inexperienced driver, and I will be driving this car for the very first time. I will do best and I will try to improve every single race. I hope everybody can see the progress. I am also very proud to represent China in this fantastic new race series."

Philippe Descombes added, "Last season was our first together and as expected it was a scholarship year.  In 2011, we plan to go to the next level. This season will be a tough learning curve for her, but she has the attitude to be able to turn whatever challenges she faces this season into relative success. I think we’ve got a very strong team this season and I look forward to seeing them on track at Guangzhou."

Associated with the most famous Formula 1 teams of all via sponsorship from the Ferrari Driver Academy, Formula Abarth was introduced in Italy in 2010, and its expands for 2011 to include the inaugural Asian and European Series. The 2011 calendar includes five events in China and one in Malaysia.

Formula Pilota China: Sa Silva (re)joins Asia Racing Team

Luís Sá Silva is the most recent reinforcement of the Macanese outfit Asia Racing Team for the recently launched Formula Pilota China Series; a brand new single seater championship introduced this year in Asia with the support of prestigious Ferrari Drivers Academy.

After conquering the 2009 Asian Formula Renault runner up spot with Asia Racing Team, Sá Silva moved to Europe last season, where he raced in German F3 Championship until an accident and a serious hand injury took him away racing.

Speaking ahead of the new season, Sá Silva said: “After one year without racing, I am very satisfied to relaunch my career, and nothing better than do it in the team where I started racing and where I got my best results.”

Based in Zhuhai International Circuit, Asia Racing Team, founded in 2003 in Macau, is one of the most well known racing teams in the region. Knowing the strong competitors he will face, after one year out of competition, Sá Silva admits Asia Racing Team give him the confidence to win again.

“With Asia Racing Team I know that I will have a very competitive car from the start of the season and guarantees to win. I’ve really enjoyed the times we raced together and already feel part of the team. I learnt a lot last season in F3 and I want to build on that this year and put together a strong championship campaign. I will do my best and I look forward to defend my nation with proud”, held the 20 years old Angolan driver.

Team Manager Philippe Descombes, added, “Luis gave the first steps in motor racing in this house, and in 2009 we were decidedly unlucky to lose the Asian Formula Renault championship. After one-year forced break, Luis needs to get back the rhythm of racing and trust. We are certain that the European experience will help him to be competitive from the outset as we mustn’t squander any points.”

2011 Formula Pilota China Series will run over six double-header rounds – five in China and one in Malaysia. Formula Pilota China introduces the most up-to-date Formula Abarth vehicles to Asia, featuring chassis manufactured by the Italian Tatuus, engine of 1400cc turbo powered by FPT (Fiat Powertrain Technologies), which provides 180HP and outstanding aerodynamics.

The season proper begins in Guangzhou from July 1-3.