Oben: Dealer pride at stake in Vios Cup

From left: Gono, Escalante, Choachuy, lawyer Rey Oben and Cosco Oben

Pressure and excitement mount as the various teams and their drivers representing the major Toyota dealer outlets from all over the country plunge into final preparations to prove their credibility, racing excellence and drive to win the 2014 Vios Cup One Make Race set May 24 at the Clark International Speedway.

And perhaps, a prime candidate for the championship belt is the father-and-son tandem of lawyer Rey and Cosco Oben, whose four Toyota dealerships in North Edsa, Balintawak, Otis and Marilao are all represented.

The elder Oben is no stranger to racing, having supported past Toyota races like the Toyota Cup, Formula Toyota and the Asian Formula 3 in the past. The Obens made sure that their involvement goes beyond funding as they’re also on top of the preparation of their teams.

“It’s been quite some time since Toyota last ventured in a major racing event. Actually, we have been persistently requesting the Toyota higher-ups to come up with a new project that will again highlight the performance efficiency and technological advantage of Toyota cars, the Vios specifically,” Oben said.

“We’re happy that Toyota Motor Philippines president Michinobu Sugata whipped up the idea of staging the Vios Cup patterned after the highly successful Vios Cup in Thailand that featured the first-generation Vios cars,” he said.

“Moreover, Mr. Sugata-san gave his all-out support to this event that puts the Vios credibility on the spotlight as Toyota’s flagship model here,” Oben further commented.

For his part, preparations have been tedious from the recruitment of drivers to complete his teams, the technical aspects, to preparation of race cars even to the point of calling a series of meetings to motivate the teams and focus on their primary goal, that is, to win the title.

Luis Gono, son of veteran racer Carlos Gono, will be his lead driver for Toyota North Edsa and expressed his serious intentions for the plum as he even told Oben, “I have a name to protect.”

Jason Choachuy and Juan Nolasco will spearhead the bid for Toyota Balintawak, former karting champion sensation Basti Escalante will carry the colors for Toyota Otis, while Paul Ang, son of San Miguel top honcho Ramon Ang, will be the top gun for Toyota Marilao.

“It was a tough task selecting the drivers for the teams who we got through referrals and recommendations from longtime racing friends. I’m satisfied with our selection, as we also learned that most of them went out of their way to train on their own.  That shows their innate dedication to the event, and dedication is one of the best qualities of a true champion,” Oben said.

Supervising the team are racing veterans Marius Miguel and Jun Santos.

“I’m quite confident with the team. I believe we have enough experience as far as racing is concerned. We will go there as one solid group, one big team, one powerful machine. We will give our all-out support because I want the championship,” Oben declared.

“We want to win, and we’re here to win. We’ll see what happens in the first race and from there we’ll map out our surefire strategy to achieve this goal. I want people in our dealership family to get excited and share the same passion to win the crown.

“We’re doing something different here. Much like team spirit, we want to inculcate dealership pride. That means we’re more than just dealers, as the championship would instill that credibility and passion in selling Toyota cars,” Oben further added.

This is just the vision from one team owner, and we’re sure other teams are brewing their own preparations for the event.

A total of 30 racers will battle it out for podium finishes as they immerse themselves in true Waku Doki-style racing, driving the dashing race-ready Toyota Vios.