2014 Vios Cup Round 1: Choachuy, Uy split honors

THE KICK-off leg of the 2014 Vios Cup gave us a glimpse of the magnitude of how big, how spectacular and how exciting the competition is, and the scenario is expected to get more intense in the next two legs as the various teams beef up their preparations to bounce back and improve their chances for the much-coveted plum.

Amidst the jam-packed crowd who cheered all  out for their respective bets, Jason Choachuy of Toyota Balintawak and Allan Uy of Toyota Quezon Avenue glittered as they split honors in separate races at the Clark International Speedway to emerge the early favorites of this momentous 2014 Vios Cup, a brainchild of Toyota Motor Philippines president Michinobu Sugata involving all the Toyota dealer outlets in a full-blast Waku Doki Festival aimed at rekindling the Filipinos love for Toyota and bringing back the fun and excitement of driving a Toyota through generations via its new champion flagship vehicle, the Vios.

Choachuy, living up to his promise, warded off big pressures from runner-up Luis Gono of Toyota North EDSA and third placer Allan Uy for a hard-fought victory in Race 1 that saw him crossing the finish line without his rear bumper.

Uy emerged champion in Race 2, flaunting top form as he decided to pull ahead to avert complications of any end-race mix-up as he claimed the chequered flag five seconds ahead of runner-up Choachuy and third placer Gono.

In both races, Gono loomed as another “driver to watch,” and his excellent skills and determination makes him an equally strong contender for the 2014 Vios Cup plum.

Big pressures, high expectations

Excitement and pressure filled the atmosphere before the race. All the Toyota Teams had undergone rigid preparations, with each hoping to see their efforts yielding inspiring positive results in the two races, considering the 2014 Vios Cup is the first major Toyota event in years with a big grid of 30 cars, the largest yet in Philippine motorsports history.

Drivers also had their own expectations. And even as they exchanged pleasant greetings and thoughts about the race with fellow drivers, at the back of their minds, they were just trying to get additional info on their rivals to get a clearer picture of what their chances were for the crown.

Luis Gono, hoping to carry on the legacy of his father, former racing icon Carlos Gono, created quite an impression when he posted the fastest laptime in the Qualifying Time Trials. A former karter, he clocked two minutes and 27.511 seconds to claim the pole position, just 0.0702 seconds faster than Choachuy who registered 2:28.213.

Another former karting champion, Basti Escalante, of Toyota Otis was third with a close 2:28.291, with Carlos Loinaz of TBT in fourth with 2:28.783, and Carlos Castaneda of Toyota Alabang in fifth with 2:29.275.

Andres Calma, a former karter and son of PBA great, Hector Calma, was tapped as a last-minute recruit of Toyota Alabang. He came in sixth with 2:29:696, while teammate Inaki Araneta was seventh with 2:29.945.

Uy was only eighth in the grid with 2:29.980 followed by Charlie Cojuangco of Toyota Dagupan with 2:30.044 and Pauland Dumlao of Toyota San Fernando with 2:30.304.

Jason Choachuy rules Race 1

The Time Trials gave the jam-packed crowd a glimpse of the early favorites, but in the actual race, talent, experience and strategy always played big in winning.

Indeed, Race 1 turned out to be a tight duel between top favorite Gono and Choachuy, but the experienced Allan Uy managed to squeeze his way up from seventh and turn the race into a three-way logjam.

Gono grabbed early lead with Choachuy lurking close behind waiting for the right moment to wrest the front seat.

Choachuy later pressured Gono as he stuck too close for comfort. His strategy worked well as the young 15-year-old Gono opened up as Choachuy quickly exploited the open door to take over the top spot.

Gono tried to regain his position but his move resulted in a contact with Choachuy’s rear bumper. The marshalls eased down the black-orange flag warning to take off the debris that posed danger to other drivers. With the damaged rear bumper later removed from the car’s rear, Choachuy maintained control all the way to the finish line, wrapping up the 12-lap race in 30:40.946 or 1.260 seconds ahead of Gono.

Uy checked in third 2.916 seconds behind with Basti Escalante and Inaki Araneta in fourth and fifth respectively.

Chris Kho topped the Media class over Anjo Perez and Ira Panganiban, while Phoemela Barranda ruled the Celebrity race over Jinno Rufino and Fabio Ide.

Allan Uy captures Race 2

Sizing up his rivals in Race 1, Allan Uy banked on experience and strategy to emerge champion in Race 2 and deliver the victory to Toyota Quezon Avenue, the pioneer Toyota dealer in the country taking pride in its 25 years of experience in the industry.

Uy immediately pulled ahead, dictating the tempo from start to finish as he completed 12 laps of racing, clocking 30 minutes, 27.898 seconds or a far 5.192 seconds ahead of runner-up Choachuy.

Gono settled for third, after checking in 8.415 seconds behind Uy while Araneta and actor Dominic Ochoa ended fourth and fifth respectively.

Barranda completed a sweep of the Celebrity Race after winning Race 2 over Fabio Ide and Jinno Rufino, and so with Kho who topped Race 2 anew over Anjo Perez and Ardie Lopez.

The 2nd and 3rd legs of the 2014 Vios Cup are slated in July 25-26 and Oct. 17-18, respectively, at Clark International Speedway.

For more updates and information, visit www.toyota.com.ph or Toyota’s official Facebook page at ToyotaMotorPhilippines; or call the Customer Assistance Hotline (CAC) at 819-2912.

(Photos by Raffy David)