The Swiss driver wins Race 2, fighting back to claim his second victory of the season in China
Another great win at Ningbo for Alex Fontana in the China GT Championship
Alex Fontana has secured another fantastic win in the China GT Championship, the Asian nation’s principal GT series. In the second round of the championship at the Ningbo circuit, the Swiss driver won Race 2 in the GT4 class, partnering Chris Chia at the wheel of the Mercedes AMG GT4 entered by the Phantom Pro Racing team with official support from the German manufacturer.
Fontana took the wheel for the second stint with 34 minutes left on the clock before the chequered flag, taking over from his teammate who had started from 8th place on the grid. The strategy of anticipating the pit stop paid off and from that moment the Fontana showed all his speed and experience in closing the gap and homing in on the podium places. A spin by one of his rivals then put Alex into a provisional 2nd place, allowing him to chase down the leader (around 5” ahead) with 20 or so minutes to go. The decisive attack came after a thrilling duel, under braking on the inside of corner 1, after which he allowed no room for a comeback.
Victory in the Saturday race deservedly made up for the bad luck suffered in Race 1 when Alex (who had started well from the front row and was leading the group) was forced to make an unscheduled pit stop with a puncture. Recovering a good deal of time, the Mercedes #5 drivers in the end conquered a good 5th place which brought useful points for the 2019 title challenge.
The next round of the China GT Championship is scheduled for 28-30 June at the Shanghai International Circuit, the track that will be hosting the F1 Chinese Grand Prix.
Alex Fontana
“The great satisfaction this weekend came in confirming our status among the leading players in the China GT Championship GT4 class, showing at Ningbo too all the potential we expressed at Sepang. The victory in Race 2 was fantastic and reward for all our hard work: I’d like to thank the Phantom Pro racing team and congratulate my teammate Chris Chia, together we’ve constructed a great partnership. We were able to put the disappointment of missing out on a win Race 1 behind us and can now look forward optimistically to the next race in Shanghai. Ningbo is a circuit where I had already won with Kia in the CTCC and I’m very proud to have doubled up my trophies with the GT cars.”