KC Motorgroup Ltd. (KCMG) capped off Formula Masters’ first event by taking two podium finishes that signaled a promising season ahead. With much anticipation from Asian motorsport enthusiasts, the new entry level formula series held its inaugural event at Zhuhai International Circuit (ZIC) last weekend.
The leading Hong Kong-based motorsport team, together with Akash Nandy and Ronald Wu, were keen to conclude the series’ opening event with top results. The race weekend started with Nandy taking 2nd place while Wu finished in 10th position during Formula Masters official testing last Thursday.
The drivers continued to impress during Friday’s free practice session in the wet as Nandy took 3rd position and Wu in 5th. Unfortunately, Nandy ended up in 4th position after closing his first qualifying session in the gravel. This cost the Malaysian driver his second run in qualifying as there was only a 5 minute gap between Q1 and Q2. Meanwhile, Wu successfully finished both sessions in 9th position.
The team’s progressive weekend began with a moderate start as Race 1 paved way for an unforeseen incident which resulted in a non-finish for Nandy. The Malaysian driver spun out of a strong 4th position just after setting the fastest lap of the race to that point. Concurrently, Wu secured a satisfying 6th position in his first Formula Masters race.
This did not impede the team’s objective to challenge for championship points in the following races. Nandy made a strong comeback in Race 2 by setting the fastest lap and gained his maiden Formula Masters podium by finishing in 2nd position. Wu took 9th place but a jump start penalty dropped him to 11th in the final classification.
The final race was yet another break for the team to gain its second podium for the weekend. Race 3 provided Nandy an opportunity to take another 2nd position after a superb drive from 11th on the grid. Likewise, Wu completed his maiden Formula Masters weekend by finishing 6th in the last race.
Nandy expressed his satisfaction with the results that he delivered over the weekend. “First, I want to thank my sponsors, the team, my driver coach, my team manager and family for their full support. I am really pleased with the 2 podiums that I achieved and I dedicate it to the team for doing such a great job. We showed that we have one of the fastest cars on the grid and also we have had a good chance of winning but there was just bad luck for qualifying and Race 1. Race 2 and Race 3 went better than we expected. A DNF was not ideal for the championship but the 2 podiums brought us back to fighting hard. Next up is Shanghai and I am really looking forward to it and will try my hardest for our first win.”
Wu stressed that his first Formula Masters weekend was a good learning curve for him. Despite several hurdles, he is also happy with the outcome of his debut race in Zhuhai and is looking forward to the next event in Shanghai. “My maiden weekend was definitely challenging, was lacking some single lap pace compared to the more experienced drivers, so this will be a point to improve in Shanghai. The team set some goals, and by staying out of trouble I was able to bag some good points, so the team was pretty happy. From a driving point of view I would have to get use to the new tyres, and develop my driving style to suit the car. But overall, it was a successful debut in Formula Masters. Shanghai is the most important weekend for me as it is my home track, so between the two weekends I will be physically and mentally preparing for my home race, and hopefully improve on my first weekend. ”
KCMG Deputy Managing Director John O’Hara is also pleased with the team’s effort and overall output in Zhuhai. Although O’Hara believes that there is still a lot of work and development to be done as the team faces a long season ahead of them. “It’s been a great first event for us in Zhuhai. The team and drivers put in a lot of effort and we will continue to do so as we are still in the initial stages of the series. Akash did an amazing job despite the DNF in Race 1 and Ronald exuded such tenacity in all the races. Our boys both did a good job. The team is now looking forward to score more points and hopefully, challenge for our first win in Shanghai.”
Formula Masters’ second event will be held in Shanghai International Circuit on May 24-26. To keep track of results, team stats and schedule of events, www.formulamasterschina.com
For more information about KCMG, visit www.kcmg.com.hk. To keep track of latest updates, please like KCMG’s Facebook page or follow @KCMotorgroup on Twitter.
