Yuey Tan: Zhuhai pivotal for 2014 campaign
Dorr Havelock Racing driver, Yuey Tan believes that Zhuhai will be a significant part of the 2014 Porsche Carrera Cup season as they head to the hard braking circuit next weekend.
At current Class B championship standings, Tan sits 3rd in the championship one point behind 2nd place Francis Tjia and a further 13 points behind category leader, Alif Hamdan. “Zhuhai has been a destination of mixed results for me in the past,” said Tan. “Last season, it was a DNF result in one of the two races and we hope not to repeat last season’s last corner loss.”
One major factor that all teams will be looking at this weekend is braking. With long straights and many 2nd gear corners, the Zhuhai Circuit will be often tackled best with good braking balance and capability from the drivers.
“Zhuhai is hard on the brakes!” continued the #5 driver. “With this new car, we are still coming to grips with the brakes, how to apply them and how to make them work best for us. For sure Zhuhai will be a fantastic test bed for that, being the circuit hardest on brakes pretty much all season. Perhaps apart from Singapore!”
In 2013, Tan retired one corner from the end in spectacular fashion after hitting fellow driver Li Chao, resulting in a damaged radiator and retirement while he was in view of the chequered flag. While battling hard throughout the entire race from the first lap till last, it is certain that the Singaporean will do all he can to avoid a repeat of the 2013 race.
“It was one of the worst moments in my race career,” continued Tan. “To be able to see the chequered flag, I even thought about getting out to push the car to the line. Lesson learned!”
Tan’s competitors will be different to that of the previous round, with some new faces to the 2014 season including one of Singapore’s pioneer in the motor racing world, Ian Mao Tan behind the wheel of the Clearwater Racing 991 GT3 Cup and British driver, Nigel Farmer also in the mix.
“It’s always interesting to drive against new drivers. We are not quite sure how they go and sometimes, it makes for some interesting racing with some other drivers in the mix that we don’t normally compete with. Mao is someone I’ve known a long time and he’s one cool dude to go racing with. A good chap, and one of the original inspirations for me to drive the Carrera Cup Asia.”
Believing it is a pivotal point in the 2014 race season, Tan will be ready to collect maximum points throughout the weekend. Though it is much easier said than done with the likes of the two men above him in the championship in Hamdan and Tjia, with Wayne Shen always a threat with his quick pace throughout the season.
“We need to get more runs on the board,” said Tan. “If we gain more, we can start to make a healthy advantage in the top three in the championship and perhaps race each with a bit of comfort just in case we get a DNF later in the season.”
Follow Yuey Tan and the Porsche Carrera Cup as they head to the Zhuhai International Circuit this weekend from May 9th to 11th for rounds 4 & 5.
