16.11.2003 NO LUCK FOR ALFA ROMEO AT MACAU AS LAST LAP ENGINE FAILURE ELIMINATES COUTO

RACE 2

FIA ETCC Independents Trophy winner Duncan Huisman and his BF Goodrich-shod BMW 320i took a dominant win in the second leg of the Macau Guia Race. The Carly Motors Dutch driver also established a new record, claiming his third consecutive win in the Guia Race. This was also BMW’s 15th victory in the event. Jörg Müller’s BMW and André Couto’s Alfa Romeo did not make the grid.

Priaulx took the best start, but Huisman outbraked him at the Mandarin bend. Five BMW cars were setting the pace (Huisman, Priaulx, Engstler, Scharmach and Hennerici), chased by James Kaye’s Honda Civic.

During the first lap, Paul Poon’s Honda Civic spun at Moorish Hill, causing a giant traffic jam. The race was red-flagged. While the leading cars slowed down, Priaulx’s BMW retired due to an engine failure.

When the race restarted, Huisman took the lead, from Engstler, Scharmach and Hennerici. Kaye was fifth, first of the non-BMW drivers. From the beginning, Huisman created a gap, and increased it lap after lap. Behind him, the positions remained frozen for long time, then on lap 6 Hennerici overtook Scharmach for third.

On lap 8 Kaye outbraked Scharmach at the Lisboa bend, they clashed and the German driver’s BMW, its front suspension collapsed, crashed at the following San Francisco Hill turn.

Positions did not change again until the end; Huisman won with a 2.3-second margin ahead of Engstler, while Hennerici took the final podium position. Second Nordauto driver, Angelo Barretto from Philippines, managed to complete a brilliant recovery, and was classified seventh after he started from the 29th position.

Guia Race; final results: 1. Duncan Huisman (Carly Motors BMW 320i) 24 laps in 41:10.602; 2. Franz Engstler (Engstler Motorsport BMW 320i) same lap; 3 Marc Hennerici (Engstler Motorsport BMW 320i) same lap; 4. James Kaye (Edenbridge Honda Civic Type-R) same lap; 5. Ka Fai Lo (778 Autosport Honda Integra) same lap; 6. Richard Meins (GR Asia Ford Focus) same lap; 7. Angelo Barretto (Nordauto Alfa Romeo 147) same lap; 8. Nick Thomas (GR Asia Ford Focus) same lap; 9. Chong Seng Lei (Honda Civic Type-R) same lap; 10. Cheong I Ng (FLL Racing Honda Integra) same lap. Fastest lap: Simon Harrison (GR Asia Honda Integra) 2:39.634 on lap 6 of leg 1.

RACE 1

FIA ETCC drivers Duncan Huisman and Andy Priaulx finished first and second for BMW and Carly Motors in the first leg of the Guia Race. André Couto in the Nordauto Alfa Romeo retired on the last lap, when he was fighting for the second position.

At the start, the three Carly Motors BMWs jumped into the lead: Andy Priaulx was first, Duncan Huisman second and Jörg Müller third; they were chased by Simon Harrison’s Honda Integra and André Couto’s Alfa Romeo 147. A crash at the Mandarin bend involved the Honda Integras of Naoya Yamano, Kenneth Look and Benjiamin Chan, plus the BMW of Paul Chan, causing the safety-car’s intervention.

The race restarted at the end of the fourth lap. The positions remained frozen until the seventh lap, when Huisman jumped into the lead, outbraking Priaulx at the Lisboa bend; Harrison overtook Müller for third. On the following lap, also at the Lisboa, Harrison passed Priaulx for second. Huisman was able to pull away, while Harrison was chased by Priaulx, Müller and Couto.

On lap 10, at the Lisboa, Couto made an impressive move, overtaking both Priaulx and Müller at the same time, and moving up to third. The Macanese driver was closely chasing Harrison, but he did a mistake and handed the position back to Müller. However on the following lap Couto outbraked Müller again.

At the beginning of the last lap, Huisman had a comfortable lead, while Harrison was chased by Couto; suddenly the latter slowed down and stopped, due to an engine problem. Müller tried to steal the second position from Harrison, but they clashed at Dona Maria bend and crashed into the wall. Huisman won the first leg, from Priaulx and Engstler.

Guia Race; Leg 1: 1. Duncan Huisman (Carly Motors BMW 320i) 12 laps in 41:10.602; 2. Andy Priaulx (Carly Motors BMW 320i) 2.634; 3. Franz Engstler (Engstler Motorsport BMW 320i) 3.664; 4. Peter Scharmach (Schubert Motorsport BMW 320i) 26.571; 5. Marc Hennerici (Engstler Motorsport BMW 320i) 30.382; 6. James Kaye (Edenbridge Honda Civic Type-R) 32.003; 7. Paul Poon (China Dragon Honda Civic Type-R) 55.686; 8. Ratanakul Prutirat (Engstler Motorsport BMW 320i) 1:09.683; 9. Nobuteru Taniguchi (Team Advan Toyota Altezza) 1:09.852; 10. Jakthong Navasoopanich (Soopanava Motorsport Toyota Altezza) 1:38.199. Fastest lap: Simon Harrison (GR Asia Honda Integra) 2:39.634 on lap 6.

Nordauto Alfa Romeo 147 driver André Couto commented after his first race retirement : “I had a clutch problem at the start, and this cost me four positions. Then, during the second lap, I ran over the debris left by the pile-up at the Mandarin bend, and some piece made a hole in my radiator. I could feel there was a problem, but I hoped it was not serious. However my car was very good at the Mandarin, and also up the hill.

"In the second part of the race I was in a position to attack, and I passed Priaulx and Müller. I was closing on to Harrison, but I was happy with my third place. I just wanted to finish the first leg, settle the problem and fight for the win in the final race. Unfortunately, with one lap to go, there was no more water in the radiator, and the engine died. It’s a shame, because I’m sure my car was the fastest on the track.”