The Porsche Carrera Cup Asia opened a new chapter in its impressive 12-season history today with its debut in the region’s most sophisticated motorsport nation. At the iconic Fuji International Speedway, an intense qualifying session to determine the starting order for this weekend’s Rounds 6 and 7 saw defending champion Earl Bamber of LKM Racing set the overall fastest time of 1:54.635, the only driver to lap in less than one minute 55 seconds, and also secure pole position for Round 7 with the second-best lap.

Lining up alongside Bamber for the start of both 15-lap races will be Team Porsche Holding’s Martin Ragginger, championship leader as the 2014 season reaches the mid-way point.  PICC Team StarChase driver Alexandre Imperatori, quickest in free practice, will start both races from the second row, with Team Jebsen’s Rodolfo Avila alongside as the lights go out for Round 6, and Zheng Tong Auto’s Zhang Da Sheng, a member of the new China Driver Junior Development Programme, starting from fourth for Round 7.

Talented young Malaysian Alif Hamdan of Nexus Racing continued his extraordinary form by taking pole position in Class B, his best lap a thoroughly impressive fifth fastest overall.  Second fastest in the category for non-professional drivers was Hiroshi Hamaguchi, flying the flag for Japan at the wheel of Mok Weng Sun’s Clearwater Racing Porsche, with Dorr Havelock Racing’s Yuey Tan of Singapore third quickest.

Bamber, who crashed heavily during testing on Friday, was full of gratitude for his hard-working LKM Racing team: “It definitely wasn’t easy with the conditions today, and it didn’t help the team yesterday when we had a big crash. This pole position goes to them. They worked incredibly hard all night. Everything was off the car and they worked until 3am and have been working all day, so this result is a real credit to them. Visibility wasn’t too bad as I found a good clear bit of space, but the track’s really slick right now so we were sliding around, a bit like drifting but incredible fun. These cars are brilliant in the wet and I can’t wait for the race tomorrow!”

Ragginger meanwhile was philosophical about his qualifying results, and is prepared for whatever the elements may bring on race day: “Actually on the first set of tyres I made a mistake on first lap, and on the second set I had traffic, so I was a bit unlucky there. We know we have a fast car for the race, and even if qualifying didn’t go so well, we’re second on the grid for both races which isn’t so bad.  In terms of weather, we’ve had everything this year so it’s just important to stay on the track and whatever comes tomorrow, we’re ready.”

Imperatori was another driver who had less-than-perfect luck: “We went straight out to try to put the lap in but the conditions were very tricky. At the beginning of the session we were in the mix, and I came in first to try a little [set-up] change then again for a new set of tyres, but the red flag came out. The set-up change didn’t quite work out, so that wasn’t ideal. Hopefully we can fix it for tomorrow. I’m sure we can do it and fight back.”

Despite another strong performance by Hamdan, the Nexus Racing talent is taking nothing for granted: “Everyone is beatable, it just depends on how hard you’re prepared to work. I let the team make the choice on set-up, and I just kept it tidy and tried not to spin the wheels. My driving coach Earl Bamber and I are working very hard together with me in both the dry and wet, and I hope I can maintain this form to the end of the season. One of the biggest new elements is Toddy [Todd Bickerton] our new engineer this year. We just hit it off straight away over the winter when we met, and it shows we’re working really well together.”

As the 28 pristine Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (Type 991) cars thundered onto the 4.56km circuit, located in the foothills of Mount Fuji, it was Imperatori who led the pack he was the first to take provisional pole position, hotly pursued Ragginger of Austria and reigning Class B champion Egidio Perfetti of Mentos Racing.

After just ten minutes though, defending overall champion Bamber of LKM Racing stormed to the top of the time sheets, slicing almost one and a half tenths of Imperatori’s best time. Bamber lies third in the championship standings, despite missing Round 4 in Zhuhai last month while on Porsche Mobil1 Supercup duties in Europe, and his domination of the qualifying session indicated he is back with a vengeance to defend his Porsche Carrera Cup Asia crown.

Ragginger was the next to better his time, climbing to second in the order, five tenths off Bamber’s best lap. That demoted Imperatori to the second row, while a brilliant effort by Avila saw him go fourth.

With grip in short supply, several drivers took trips onto the grass, with a stranded car bringing the red flag out with seven minutes left on the clock.

In the thrilling final dash before the flag though, Bamber remained untouchable, securing a valuable championship point for the overall fastest lap and reducing his gap to the top of the leaderboard to just 15.  Bamber’s younger brother, William, made an impressive Porsche Carrera Cup Asia debut, 12^th fastest overall amongst the strong field.

Despite the rain, the stunning location of the Fuji International Speedway set amongst the splendor of the mountains of Japan, the technical and challenging track, and the warm hospitality of the Japanese motorsport fraternity saw the Porsche Carrera Cup experience mark a new milestone in its rich and storied history.  With two races to ahead, the international field is looking forward to introducing the championship’s signature brand of true sportsmanship at its finest to the most discerning motor racing fans on the planet.

Porsche Carrera Cup Asia – Rounds 6 & 7

Qualifying Round 6

*Non series registered

Qualifying Round 7

*Non series registered