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MAK-SPONSORED DRIVER JACOPO GUIDETTI ON THE PODIUM AT BURIRAM IN THE THAILAND SUPER SERIES

After his success in the opening round, the young MAK WHEELS-sponsored driver from Lombardy confirmed his leading role in the eastern series with a fourth and a third place at the wheel of the Vattana Motorsport Honda NSX GT3 Evo.

An important confirmation, which renews the ambitions of winning the title and gives further confidence in view of the continuation of the season. After the excellent results achieved in the Italian Gran Turismo Championship, Jacopo Guidetti continues to be a splendid protagonist also in the Thailand Super Series, thanks to a positive weekend at the Chang International Circuit in Buriram. The 19-year-old JAS Motorsport driver, flanked on this occasion too by Andrea Gagliardini from Rome on board the Honda NSX GT3 Evo, finished the two races held on the Thai track in fourth and third position, after also taking pole position in the first qualifying session.

For Guidetti and the Vattana Motorsport team it is an excellent result that continues the positive trend already started at the opening round of the season, when the tricolour crew had managed to get third place in race 1 and a resounding success in the second heat, held on the city track of Bangsaen. The result at Buriram keeps the duo in the running for the 2022 title, as they still have three race weekends to go before the championship final in December.

The long Thai weekend saw Guidetti grappling with a double day of free practice, during which both drivers were able to test the track in wet and dry conditions. In qualifying, which took place on the morning of Saturday 27 August, the weather was very favourable, with the Vattana Motorsport duo able to take pole position in Q1. In the second session, however, the number 11 Honda obtained ‘only’ the fifth fastest time, after the best times were cancelled due to track limits.

The first heat saw Gagliardini start from the first position and immediately engaged in a fierce duel to keep the lead. The Roman driver succeeded in his intent until a few moments before the opening of the pit window, when Guidetti got on board the Honda NSX GT3 Evo. Despite the excellent pace displayed in the early stages, Jacopo soon had to reckon with a gradual overheating of the tyres, which ended up affecting his performance considerably. Despite a fierce defence against his rivals, under the chequered flag it was impossible to go beyond the fourth place finish, which brought precious points but also the desire for redemption in view of race-2.

On Sunday 28 August it was Guidetti who took the reins of the car during the first stint of the race. Starting like a fury from fifth place, Jacopo managed to climb to third in the early stages, before launching a good attack that took him immediately behind the leader. After handing over the wheel of the car to his team-mate Gagliardini, the latter defended himself well until a few laps from the end, when a spin during a heated brawl slowed him down in his pursuit of the lead. For the Vattana Motorsport duo came in the end a well-deserved third place and other very precious points in the fight for the championship, along with the fastest lap of the race in 1:35.740.

Jacopo Guidetti: “It was a great experience here in Buriram, even though I had already made my debut last year in this category on this circuit. The whole team worked with great commitment and dedication over the weekend, and the results were visible on the track: we were consistently very fast, as evidenced also by the pole position taken in race 1. It’s a pity that not everything went smoothly in the two heats, but I think we have to look at the glass half full, thinking that we have collected many precious points for the classification. I would like to thank the Vattana Motorsport team and my team-mate for their excellent work, as well as JAS Motorsport and of course my sponsors for their support. Now we fly to Imola to face a very important challenge in the GT Sprint”.

Jacopo Guidetti will be protagonist again in a few days at the ‘Enzo and Dino Ferrari’ Autodromo di Imola, when on the weekend of 2-4 September he will tackle the fourth round of the Italian GT Sprint Championship, in which he is currently leading the standings.