Porsche Carrera Cup Asia 2023 Rounds 9 & 10 Sepang International Circuit
The series heads back to Sepang as the season championship grows increasingly fierce
– The series returns to Sepang, the second-most visited Porsche Carrera Cup Asia host circuit
– Meidong Racing’s Florian Latorre leading the overall table by 19 points
– Zheng Tong Auto’s Bao Jinlong looks unstoppable in the Pro-Am category
– Am category remains wide open despite strong performance from BD Group’s Yang Ruoyu
Sepang. The Porsche Carrera Cup Asia 2023 season heads back to Malaysia’s Sepang International Circuit from 25-27 August for the second time this season. Sepang is where the series held its first ever race all the way back in 2003. This year’s 20th anniversary season began in Sepang with the Official Test Days followed by Rounds 1 and 2, solidifying Sepang’s position as the series’ second-most visited track after Shanghai International Circuit.
Tough at the top: the battle for overall
With returning international Carrera Cup Asia veterans this year – including three-time Carrera Cup Asia champion Team Shanghai Yonda’s Chris van der Drift, and Porsche Holding’s Martin Ragginger, the man with the most wins in the series’ history – many enthusiasts predicted a clash between series veterans this season. However, the story that has dominated the track so far has been the clash between TORO Racing’s Luo Kailuo, who managed an impressive second-place finish in the 2022 season championships where he made his debut, and Meidong Racing’s Florian Latorre, who came to the series after having made a name for himself in the Carrera Cup France.
Luo Kailuo took home the first two victories of the season at the series’ previous visit to Sepang, while Latorre had to wait until Round 3 before adding a win to the scoreboard. With 8 Rounds now completed, Luo Kailuo has four wins, and Latorre has three wins, however Latorre earned himself a second-place finish in every other Round except one, and has taken home every single available pole position point so far this season. Luo Kailuo is sitting on four victories so far – the most of any driver this season – however he’s still trying to make up points from his disappointing Round 5 race in Suzuka, where a wet tyre gamble saw him slip down the grid.
Currently, with a mere 19 points separating the two rivals, making Meidong Racing the top of the Porsche Dealer Trophy rankings, but there is still plenty of space in the season for Luo Kailuo, together with TORO Racing, to take the top spot again. And with van der Drift stalking the top spots from third place in the championship, just 16 points behind Luo Kailuo, there’s still an outside chance that the Kiwi will earn himself a fourth championship title.
Can anyone catch Bao Jinlong?
The Pro-Am contest has been a hard-fought one so far this year. The season opened with series veteran Team BetterLife’s Li Chao taking home the first victory, with TORO Racing’s Eric Zang also taking home a Round 4 victory in his debut season, and Porsche Beijing Central & Goldenport’s Zhou Bihuang snatching a victory in Round 7. The remaining five victories all belong to one man, however. Zheng Tong Auto’s Bao Jinlong, with three Pro-Am series championships already under his belt, has raced a stunning season, taking home two second-place finishes on top of all his wins. The points distance between Zhou Bihuang and Bao Jinlong is growing, with 26 points now separating the two. With six races left in the season, the Sepang stop will be a crucial one for all pro-Am competitors with a hope of catching up to Bao Jinlong.
Newcomers dominate the Am table
The Am competition this year has been dominated by newcomer BD Group’s Yang Ruoyu, who has stormed the scoreboard this year taking home three wins and three podium finishes so far. Just 18 points behind him we have R&B Racing’s Wu Jiaxin, who impressed early on with his first Round victory. Z.SPEED Motorsport’s Li Xuanyu, currently just 10 points behind Wu, has also had an impressive season, taking home two victories and two podium finishes. The Am competition remains wide open. Aaron Foong with EMB Giga Racing and Zhang Yaqi with TORO Racing will join as a guest driver in round 9 and 10.
