10 APRIL 2024 – RACE REPORT BIRA, THAILAND
Teamwork Motorsport had a strong opening round of the 2024 Geely Super Cup Pro series at the Bira circuit in Thailand, with Alex HUI and Ronald HUI leaving the weekend with a winner’s trophy and the lead of the drivers’ standings. With the combined efforts of the HUIs, and drivers Eric YIU, Mark YIU, and Howard TAM, Teamwork Motorsport also lead the teams’ classification.
Race 1
In Race 1, Ronald HUI started from fourth on the grid and held position at the start, and was challenging for third during the first phase of the race. He then moved up with just under ten minutes left in the race when the second-placed car suffered a puncture, however he then lost out on the podium on the final lap, dropping to fourth.
The team’s newest driver Mark YIU started from the pit lane and had a steady run to finish the race in 13th position.
Race 2
For the second race, Alex HUI took over at the wheel of the #12 car, starting from seventh place on the reversed grid, while Mark YIU was still aboard the #11, starting the race from 13th.
2018 TCR China drivers’ champion HUI made fast progress, and was up to fifth by the end of the first lap.
HUI moved up to fourth on lap two, and was chasing down the final podium position, making his move up to third at Turn 2 on the third lap.
The race leader then crashed out a lap later, just as HUI moved up to what was now to be the race lead before the race was put behind the safety car and then red-flagged.
After a 25-minute delay to repair the barriers, the race resumed with HUI starting second on the road with the new grid formed by counting back by a lap before the red flag. HUI applied pressure to the race leader lap after lap, eventually making a dive down the inside at the Turn 9 chicane with just under five minutes remaining.
With a minute to go, a multi-car crash behind saw the race red-flagged again and not restarted, with HUI declared the winner, and Eric YIU finishing a fine seventh place.
Race 3
Ronald HUI took over the pole-sitting #12 car, while Eric YIU took over the #11, starting seventh.
HUI held the lead at the start, but a mistake at the Turn 9 chicane cost him two positions, dropping down to third at the end of the opening lap, just as a safety car was called for an incident further down the order, with the race then red-flagged.
The race restarted with just under 13 minutes left to run, with HUI second at the start, but dropped to fourth just as there was another incident with the race quickly red-flagged again.
The race was restarted one final time, with HUI able to restart second, but dropped a spot on the opening lap, and then fell to fourth at the first corner a lap later. HUI was back up to third briefly after the car ahead spun on the start-finish straight with two laps to go, eventually crossing the line fourth with team-mate YIU behind him in sixth.
Race 4
Ronald HUI started the #12 car in sixth place for Race 4, while Howard TAM took over the #11 for the rest of the weekend, and started ninth.
TAM was pushed wide at the final corner on the first lap and dropped to tenth despite having made a good start. At half distance, TAM was spun out by a competitor and lost more track position, while HUI was busy hounding the Geely Cup rival ahead of him for fifth.
With ten minutes to go, HUI dived on the inside for fifth position at the final sequence of corners, then gained one more at the same corner on the penultimate lap to secure another fourth position, while TAM finished a lap down in 12th.
Race 5
Alex HUI now took over the #12, starting seventh on the reversed grid, with TAM 11th, with HUI making quick progress, up to fifth by the end of the first lap in a three-wide battle to the first corner. He was elevated to fourth when one of the front-runners slowed, before he then picked off two cars to move up to second place. HUI was closing fast on the race leader crossing the line in third, but dropped to fourth after a post race penalty.
Race 6
In the final, chaotic race, Ronald HUI was back in the #12 and started from fourth. He was knocked wide at the first turn, losing ground to the top three cars but held position, with the race red-flagged just a few minutes later. After the restart, the top two collided, leaving HUI in second position, however HUI would then lose ground and spend much of the race fighting for fourth in an incident-packed race. HUI would make up a critical place with just under five minutes to go to claim the final podium spot, while TAM would avoid trouble to finish in seventh.
Round-up
At the end of a wild weekend, Teamwork Motorsport dug deep and scored some excellent results, with team principal Alex HUI picking up the winner’s trophy in Race 2, while with all drivers finishing in all six races in a weekend where many cars crashed out or took significant accident damage, was a testament to the skill and capabilities of the team’s drivers and mechanics at the Geely Super Cup Pro season opener.Alex and Ronald HUI lead the drivers’ standings by two points, while Teamwork Motorsport enjoys a nine-point lead in the teams’ standings.The next round takes place at the Chendu Tianfu International Circuit in China on May 24-26.
