Porsche Carrera Cup Asia 2021
Porsche Carrera Cup Asia firing on all cylinders as the series gets back on track
– Porsche Carrera Cup Asia 2021 season firmly back on track
– All new 911 GT3 Cup (Type 992) debuts on the track for the first time in Asia
– Porsche Carrera Cup Asia Porsche China 20th Anniversary Trophy
– Two F1 support races
– 15 races over seven stops
Shanghai/Sanya. The Porsche Carrera Cup Asia is back! With an all-new calendar, an all-new car, yet the same high-octane racing thrills that have made this championship the premier one-make racing series in Asia. A new driver category will also be launched this year, adding an Am category to the existing Pro and Pro-Am categories, with its own separate points table, podiums and trophies, allowing for even more racing glory to be earned on the track. Also returning in 2021 will be the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia Talent Pool, open to drivers under the age of 26 and featuring coaching from Porsche Junior Coach Sascha Maassen as well as fitness regimes, training camps and the opportunity to win free entry into the 2022 Porsche Carrera Cup Asia.
All new 911 GT3 Cup (Type 992) makes its on-the-track debut in Asia
Following a successful sneak-preview event held on 11 September 2020 at the Porsche Experience Centre Shanghai, the brand-new Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (Type 992) will make its on-the-track Asia debut with the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia. The Carrera Cup Asia will be among the first six series in the world to run the new 911 GT3 Cup (Type 992). As the first sixth-generation 911 GT3 Cup car to hit the track, the new 911 GT3 Cup (Type 992) is a major highlight and is sure to make the Carrera Cup Asia’s return even more thrilling.
Two-tiered, seven-stop calendar launches alongside F1 China Grand Prix
Following the worldwide motorsport shutdown during 2020 due to the global pandemic, the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia returns with a two-tiered season that incorporates a series of exhibition races alongside China’s burgeoning Porsche Sports Cup China in the first half of the year, before smoothly transitioning to the full series launch in the back half of the year. This innovative structure was developed to ensure that the Carrera Cup Asia would be firmly back on track in the first half of 2021, and also to ensure that the series’ renowned line up of international stars – since 2003 the series has seen 177 drivers from 24 countries and regions – will not be adversely affected by any lingering travel restrictions as the pandemic finally subsides in the second half of the year.
The Official Test Days in March will serve as an informal reunion for the Carrera Cup Asia family, before the series moves on to the first two rounds in early April as a support race for the Formula 1 China Grand Prix in Shanghai.
Porsche Carrera Cup Asia Porsche China 20th Anniversary Trophy alongside the Porsche Sports Cup China
Rounds 3 to 8 of the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia 2021 will be held alongside the Porsche Sports Cup China, as part of a special event: The Porsche Carrera Cup Asia (PCCA) Porsche China 20th Anniversary Trophy. 2021 marks the 20-year Anniversary of Porsche’s entry into the Chinese mainland, a significant milestone which the marque will celebrate with special events, products and experiences. With international travel still likely restricted at the start of 2021, the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia exhibition races that will cap off every Porsche Sports Cup China stop will feature mostly teams and drivers with access to China’s mainland, and the points from these races will not count towards the series eventual 2021 Porsche Carrera Cup Asia championship totals. The exhibition races will only be open to drivers and teams committed to the full 2021 season, and will receive their own championship table, earning points for drivers who competed in Rounds 1-8. To honour Porsche China’s 20-year milestone, the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia will present the drivers with the most points from the exhibition races with a unique PCCA Porsche China 20th Anniversary Trophy. Meanwhile, the Porsche Dealer Trophy will run for the entire season, and will be decided based on points earned from Rounds 1 to 15.
Following the season opener in Shanghai, the next three stops take a whirlwind tour around the China’s mainland’s most prestigious racing circuits, visiting Zhuhai, Zhuzhou and Ningbo over the next three months for Rounds 3 to 8 alongside the Porsche Sports Cup China. The Porsche Sports Cup started in Germany 16 years ago, and has since grown to become the world’s most popular programme for entry-level racing enthusiasts. Having been launched in China at the Porsche Sports Car Together Day in 2019, the Porsche Sports Cup China returned in 2020 for a highly successful two-stop season in the shadow of the pandemic.
International stops and international competitors to take us over the finish line
For the fifth stop of the season, the series leaves China and launches the official points table for the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia 2021. First off, the legendary Suzuka Circuit in August, where the Carrera Cup Asia made its inaugural appearance in 2019, with the two races in 2021 serving as support races for the Suzuka 10 Hours event. Next up, the series sees its second F1 support race of the season at the Singapore Grand Prix in October, where the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia has appeared every event but one since the first ever Singapore Grand Prix in 2008.
The season finale sees the series return to China, once again meeting up with the Porsche Sports Cup China for a motorsport carnival that will round-off Porsche China’s year-long celebrations for their 20-year Anniversary. The Night of Champions in 2021 will therefore feature the winners of the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia, the winners of the Porsche Dealer Trophy, and the winners of the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia Porsche China 20th Anniversary Trophy for the most prize-filled night in Carrera Cup Asia history.
