Grand Prix races are considered the pinnacle of motor racing in the world. The term was first used in France as early as 1894. Now, the term or connotation “Grand Prix” is used for races such as Formula One, alongside other popular races in the world, such as the 24 Hour of Le Mans and the Indianapolis 500.
For Toyota Motor Philippines’ last leg of the Toyota Gazoo Racing (TGR) Vios Cup to be held at the Clark International Speedway in Pampanga this coming weekend, the term “Grand Prix” will likewise be used. This signifies how profound this final showdown of the season of this one-make race will be.
As the 2023 season draws to a close, the stakes are higher and the energy is ought to be at the zenith.
The TGR Vios Cup Grand Prix will be the culminating race for this season. This will be part of the Circuit Championship of the racing event. Races 7 to 8 will be sprint races. While Race 9 will be the “Grand Prix.” Here, each driver will be able to race around the track for 1.5 hours. There will be no substitutions and the racer with the most laps completed will win the race. There will also be mandatory refueling and tire change for the whole duration of the race. Double points will be awarded to the top finishers of the Grand Prix.
A total of 30 racers across the three classes—Super Sporting, Sporting and Promotional—are expected to duel it out.
“We want this last and final leg of the season to be the most exciting,” TMP vice president, Elvin Luciano, said.
“This last leg is even more special. We want to replicate the level of excitement of the recent GR Fest here in the Vios Cup that’s why we’re bringing in a lot of activities,” he added.
More exciting lineup of racers and exhibitions
The Super Sporting class will include drivers, such as: Racing stars Red Diwa, Lord Seno, Joaquin Garrido, Gerard Loy, Troy Montero, John Dizon, Bryan Co, Royce Sarmiento, Ian Rosales and season newcomer Jacob Ang.
A mix of both pro and newbie racers will, meanwhile, join the Sporting class, namely: Alan Palacios, Russel Cabrera, Michael Keilani Jordan, Jay Lai, Bern Corpino, Marky Young and Maila Alivia. Father and son Darrell Garbes and Jiro Garbes and Golden Wheel Awards Foundation Driver of the Year Miguel Quiñones will likewise see action.
For the Promotional class: Jarond Mesina, Alain Alzona, Bong Garbes, Paolo Ayo, Chris Gleeson, Rich Lim, Julia delos Angeles and Paul Ang will battle it out head-to-head. While celebrities Enzo Pineda and Ryan Agoncillo will also join in the fray.
Meanwhile, for the Autocross Challenge action, crowd favorites Macoy Dubs, Megan Young and Benedict Cua are all prepped up. They will be joined by Ezra Domingo, Genesis Redido, Apple David, Arianne Bautista, Reph Bangsil, Migy Romulo, Bianca Yao, Carla Lizardo and Lexi Mendiola.
To add more thrill, a drifting exhibition will also be performed, featuring TGR Team’s Ryan Agoncillo, together with local drift kings, Luis Gono and Alex Perez. While a battle of champions in the media class of the Autocross Challenge will also be held with past champions Jamil Lacuna of Autoindustriya and Pablo Salapantan of YugaAuto, as well as Jose Altoveros jousting each other. They will be using the Toyota Altis Hybrid vehicle for this exciting match-up.
“Aside from the added excitement, these exhibitions will serve as trial runs to further improve our races in the future,” Luciano continued.
Also, as a sideshow, the GR-S lineup featuring the Toyota Fortuner GR-S and Rush GRS, will be displayed in the TGR Vios Cup 2023 activity area.