Team Porsche Holding's Martin Ragginger crossed the finish line to perfect a flawless lights to flag victory as Round Nine of the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia (PCCA) wrapped up another exhilarating race weekend in Singapore.
Having qualified in pole position, Ragginger had to hold off the constant charge from PICC Team Starchase's Nico Menzel in P2. Just behind them was KLM Racing's Maxime Jousse. However, solid and composed driving from Ragginger meant that the drivers chasing him did not find any opportunities to overtake.
Flagging off at 5:00pm on Sunday, the Singapore leg of the PCCA saw an incident free opening lap, with all cars clearing Turn One without incident. Ragginger in the #86 car led from the start, holding off the challenge from Manzel in car #99. However, behind the leading pack, the race was a colourful and eventful one.
Jeffrey Chiang locked up and ran sideways on lap two, leading to many gasps from the crowd. On lap five, Michael S. misjudged his exit from Turn 14, resulting in a big spin. This caused several tense moments as the cars coming out of the blind corner behind him having to avoid the stationary vehicle. The final lap was also an incredibly hectic affair. Bo Yuan had a massive shunt as he locked up his rear tyres going under the Bay Grandstand, which caused several near misses from the car's trailing him.
After 12 laps, Ragginger took the chequered flag after a faultless drive. However, the same cannot be said for the rest of the field behind the frontrunners, which featured a series of spins and crashes leading to multiple yellow flags. Meanwhile, Singaporean Andrew Tang, the first-ever Porsche China Junior, finished the race in fifth place.
With just two race stops left and one of the tightest late-season point spreads ever witnessed in the PCCA, the next stop in Malaysia starting on September 30th will be a truly defining moment for the 2016 season.
2016 Porsche Carrera Cup Asia - Overall points after Round Nine (Top Five)
| Pos | Points | Driver | Team | |||||||||||
| 1 | 155 | Maxime Jousse | Kamlung Racing | |||||||||||
| 2 | 148 | Nico Menzel | PICC Team Starchase | |||||||||||
| 3 | 147 | Mitchell Gilbert | Absolute Racing | |||||||||||
| 4 | 144 | Andrew Tang | Porsche China Junior Team | |||||||||||
| 5 | 121 | Zhang Da Sheng | Fun88 Team Sunfonda |
Class B points after Round Nine (Top Five)
| Pos | Points | Driver | Team | |||||||||||
| 1 | 188 | Yuan Bo | Absolute Racing | |||||||||||
| 2 | 184 | Vutthikorn Inthraphuvasak | est Cola Thailand | |||||||||||
| 3 | 131 | Yuey Tan | Team Jebsen | |||||||||||
| 4 | 131 | Wayne Shen | Modena Motorsports | |||||||||||
| 5 | 115 | Francis Tjia | Openroad Racing |
