Sunrise to sunset dominance for Team Raceform Garage

Team Raceform Garage’s Mazda Antonio Brias, Don Pastor, Enrique Hormillo and Jason Chuachuy.

FROM start to finish, Team Raceform Garage proved  way ahead of the rest in the 2019 Petron Kalayaan Cup 12-hour endurance recently at Clark International Speedway in Pampanga.

Antonio Brias, Don Pastor, Enrique Hormillo and Jason Chuachuy masterfully alternated at the wheel of a Mazda MX5 to power Team Raceform Garage to reign supreme in the annual Independence Day competition that was flagged off before sunrise and ended at sunset.

With the souped up 2016-model Global Cup machine completed 274 laps around the 4.2-kilometer to win the Open and Class 1 divisions. So dominant was Team Raceform Garage’s Mazda that it outraced the second-placed BMW E46 M3 of Autoperformance Motorsports by nine laps, or the equivalent of around 36 km.

The troika of Stefan Ramirez, Jeff Borja and Milo Rivera kept the BMW at the thick of the fight until before mid-morning. But Mazda’s drivers gradually pulled away with their  better car preparation and impressive share-driving tecniques.

Team BRE, with Benjamin Go, Denzel Cham, John Diego, Bubi Camus and Kevin Sugdan driving a Toyota Yaris, finished 259 laps and third overall, while ruling Class 3 in both the 12-hour and 4-hour races of the annual competition sponsored by Petron, Monster Energy Drink, Aisin, Elektro Werk, Toptul, 2020 Convenience Stores, Sparko and Pegasus Halogen Bulbs.

The winning team with their supporters

Tora-Tora Petron, with Chad Parian, Walter Rillorta, Francis delos Reyes and Paolo Yaptinchay alternating in a Honda Civic EG Hatchback, nailed second in Class 1, ahead of another Autoperformance crew in a BMW E36 M3, which pitted in the sixth lap to change engines and drew cheers when it returned to the track nine hours later to eventually complete 76 laps.

Petron Blaze’s Mon Dimapilis, Danby Yaptinchay, Ditrie Villacorta and Allen Escoto topped Class 2 in a Honda EK on 220 laps.

Other winners: Manufacturers’ Class—GAC Motor 2019 GA4 1.5 li (248 laps); 4-hour races: Class 1—Optima FS, Toyota Corolla; Class 2—Team Jackpot, 2000 Honda Civic.