The  2011 Porsche Carrera Cup Asia champion will be decided at the Shanghai International Circuit from October 21-23, as the three-way title chase comes down to the wire in what promises to be truly spectacular season finale.

Leading the charge going into the final rounds is LKM Racing Team’s Keita Sawa, who has a one-point advantage over Team Jebsen’s Rodolfo Avila. Sawa, who was runner up in 2007, took the championship lead last month after earning maximum points on Singapore’s Marina Bay street circuit.

Avila, meanwhile, has shown impressive consistency in this his third season, with eight podium finishes, including a victory in Malaysia, in ten races.

Alexandre Imperatori of Team StarChase, who notched up six victories in eight races, missed the Singapore rounds due to racing commitments in Japan. Substitute driver in Singapore, reigning Porsche Carrera Cup Asia champion Christian Menzel of Germany took both wins, maintaining the team’s winning season, but was ineligible to score points. However, despite missing two races, Imperatori only trails Sawa by 21 points, putting him within striking distance of the title.

Standing in for two-time Porsche Carrera Cup Asia champion Darryl O’Young, who will be in Japan on FIA World Touring Car duty, will be 2007 champion Tim Sugden. The Briton, who is a Le Mans and Daytona 24 Hour regular, will be tasked with bolstering the title chances of LKM Racing team mate Sawa.

In addition to overall honours, the Class B championship will also be decided in Shanghai, with series newcomer Wang Jian Wei of China topping the category leaderboard with Team BetterLife. Wang, who has impressed in his first season of Porsche competition and lies fifth overall, has a 30-point advantage over second-placed Ringo Chong of rival China Porsche dealer team Kangshun.

Third in the Class B championship for non-professional racers is Francis Tjia. The OpenRoad Racing driver has a mathematical outside chance of taking the title, but has nevertheless enjoyed a strong second year with the series amongst arguably the strongest field seen in its nine seasons.

While the six drivers in contention for the two championships will have their eyes firmly on the points, the rest of the field will be looking to Shanghai to end their seasons on a high note. Series newcomer Brian Wong of the USA will be eyeing another podium finish after his success in Shanghai in April, while Team Pauian Archiland Absolute Racing’s Jeffrey Lee will be on winning form having taken two superb Class B victories in Singapore. 

Back for the final is Class B racer Davide Rizzo of Italy. Rizzo is making his competitive debut this season and, after a rollercoaster debut in Zhuhai in May which saw him take pole position and then fail to finish either race, went on to dominate, winning his next four races and taking two pole positions for good measure. Sharing driving duties with Anthony Liu this season, Rizzo has contested six races this year and is therefore not in championship contention, but will be eager to snatch points from the title front-runners.

Making his debut with the series for the final two rounds is Australian Daniel Bilski. Entered in Class B, Bilski has competed extensively across Asia Pacific in both sports and classic cars.

It is fitting that the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia should make a triumphant return to Shanghai to bring the curtain down on its first season under the leadership of Porsche China. Based in the city, Porsche China opened the 2011 Porsche Carrera Cup Asia season in support of China’s Formula 1 Grand Prix in April. Since then, the record field of 26 drivers, all competing in identical Porsche 911 GT3 Cup racing cars, has brought the battle for honours to the Southern Chinese city of Zhuhai, the Inner Mongolian circuit of Ordos for the first time, Malaysia’s F1 track at Sepang, and Singapore’s Marina Bay Circuit in support of the 2011 FORMULA 1 SINGTEL SINGAPORE GRAND PRIX, before returning to China for the championship-deciding double-header.

Prepared by Porsche Carrera Cup Asia

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