Miguel Cristóvão and Francisco Abreu (Veloso Motorsport – Mercedes AMG) scored the win in a breathtaking final overtaking in the last lap in the GT4 South European Series Round 5 at the Circuit de Barcelona – Catalunya, Spain. Marmaduke Hall and Edward Moore won the GTC class as Gabriela Correia and Francisco Carvalho repeated yesterday’s win in the Am Cup.
Matthew George (Generation AMR Superracing - Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT4) started from pole-position and never lost the top spot, except for his only pit stop in the 50-minute race. Francisco Abreu saw himself under pressure of Edward Moore that kept the #15 Tockwith Motorsport Ginetta G50 GT4 close to the Portuguese Mercedes-AMG entry.
Despite yesterday’s technical problems that prevented the #23 ABM Grand Prix Ginetta G55 GT4 to hit the asphalt. Lining up from sixth on the grid, César Machado moved quickly to fourth overall.
The positions didn't change until the pit-stop window opened with the four first-placed cars running close.
Marmaduke Hall (Tockwith Motorsport - Ginetta G50 GT4) came up in first after the pit-stops, followed by James Holder (Generation AMR SuperRacing - Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT4), Miguel Cristóvão (Veloso Motorsport - Mercedes-AMG GT4) and Mariano Pires (ABM Grand Prix - Ginetta G55 GT4), with all the cars covered by three seconds. Both the Mercedes-AMG and the Ginetta G55 GT4 overtook the Aston Martin, but Pires’ car had no pace to match the two front-runners.
The difference between the first and the second was close to two seconds but Cristóvão managed to reduce the gap, making an aggressive move in the very last lap. This second Pro-Am Cup win helped the Veloso Motorsport pair to distance themselves in the top spot of the standings.
In the Pro-Am Cup Mariano Pires / César Machado finished second as James Holder and Matthew George crossed the finish line in third.
Marmaduke Hall / Edward Moore took the honors in the GTC Cup.
Am Cup: Battles and surprises
An eventful race saw the Am Cup class with Gabriela Correia (#6 Veloso Motorsport - KTM X-Bow) and Carlos Moreira da Silva (Porsche Cayman GT4 Clubsport) swapping the second position numerous times in the first half of the race.
Diogo Ferrão (Team Virage - Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT4) took advantage from the fight right behind him to built a comfortable gap ahead.
Francisco Carvalho, who took over from Gabriela Correia in the Portuguese-entered KTM X-Bow GT4 in second place, put in a strong pace even if the Austrian-made car’s gearbox was not working perfectly. The Guarda native stoically stayed on track to benefit from Ferrão’s technical troubles to win the Betano Portugal sponsored series Am Cup class for the second time this week.
Carlos Barbot (#16 Veloso Motorsport - Porsche Cayman GT4 Clubsport) completed the race in third in the Am Cup class.
After Round 6 of the inaugural GT4 South European Series, Francisco Abreu and Miguel Cristóvão are leading the Pro-Am Cup class as Marmaduke Hall / Edward Moore is now lying in first in the GTC. In Am Cup, there are three teams sharing the top spot of the classification with 50 points each: Gabriela Correia / Francisco Carvalho, Axel Van Straaten / Remi Van Straaten and A. Martín / Jorge Cabezas.
The next event of GT4 South European Series will take place at Autódromo Internacional do Algarve from October 25 to 27.
Miguel Cristóvão (Pro-Am winner): “It was a very difficult race. Francisco made a good start as he tried keep Aston Martin’s pace at the beginning. Unfortunately we lost loads of time during our pit stop. So, I rejoined behind the Aston Martin and the Tockwith Ginetta. I moved past the James Holder’s Aston Martin as he made a mistake and I pushed to catch Marmaduke Hall despite I was struggling with tire wear. I finally took the lead on the very last lap! Nice racing!”
Francisco Abreu (Pro-Am winner): “At the start I kept both Ginetta cars at bay and our sights were focused on the Aston as we knew how strong its pace was. It was a closely-fought race with a perfect last stint delivered by Miguel, who still managed to pass Hall for the lead in the closing moments. We will continue working like that to secure the title.”
Marmaduke Hall (GTC winner): “Our team made a stunning pit stop. We just lost the lead at the end and despite we couldn’t win this weekend was still awesome. We enjoyed racing here in Barcelona. We are happy with how it has gone. Close racing and clean. Great!”
Edward Moore (GTC winner): “To be hones it was a very good first stint. The team did an amazing job in the pit stop. It was uneasy because the competition is strong we are satisfied and looking forward to our next races. Thanks to dad, family and sponsors.”
Francisco Carvalho (Am winner): “It was a very demanding stint because we had some issues with the gearbox at the end but we still claimed another class win. It was a nice surprise to step onto the top of the podium once again.”
Gabriela Correia (Am winner): “I loved the close fight with the Porsche car because it was exciting. It was my first GT event so it was such a nice experience to win twice in Barcelona”
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