Pinoy breaks through with podium finish at Ferrari Challenge

MANILA, Philippines - Marc Soong couldn’t hide his elation—grinning widely as he announced a bit of motorsports history made last April 13 at the Sydney Motorsport Park. Filipino driver Vincent Floirendo, bannering Ferrari Philippines, placed third in the Coppa Shell category of the Ferrari Challenge APAC’s second stop.

Soong, executive director of official Ferrari importer and distributor Autostrada Motore Inc., announced that the podium finish was the very first for any Filipino driver and team in the prestigious and highly competitive series.

The seven-leg series started last February 23 at Malaysia’s famous Sepang circuit, and marked the very first time Ferrari Philippines fielded a car and driver. Floirendo finished 15th out 30 entries, although Soong explained that the race was an accident-marred one.

Speaking exclusively to the STAR, Soong said he was actually confident about Floirendo doing well. “We’ve always had high hopes because we know that Vincent is a very, very good driver,” he shared. “We’re underdogs, so it’s nice to see Vincent getting respect from the other teams. That’s a big achievement.”

Soong revealed that Autostrada had been previously invited to field an entry to the racing series. This year, management decided to accept the invitation as they felt they were ready—a firm declaration of support to what he termed ”a collaboration between Vincent and us.”

Autostrada reported in a release that the Ferrari Challenge “(is) one of the most successful one-make racing series in the world. Over 2,400 drivers of 48 nationalities in 1,600 Ferrari Challenge cars have competed in these races since 1993. This year, the Ferrari Challenge Trofeo Pirelli will run across three series in Europe, North America and Asia Pacific.  For the Asia Pacific region, other contenders are from Singapore, Taiwan, Japan, China, Hong Kong, Australia, Malaysia, Indonesia and South Korea.” The drivers race on Ferrari 458 Challenge EVOs, chockfull of “aerodynamic improvements plus a Manettino dial, CCM2 brakes, dual-clutch gearbox, and more.” All of the cars are made in Italy and flown directly to the various racetracks. Ferrari also provides technical and engineering support throughout the race period.

The Ferrari Challenge “is dedicated to non-professional drivers in different classifications:  the Trofeo Pirelli, Trofeo Pirelli Pro, Coppa Shell and for the first time this year, the Gentlemen Cup for drivers over 50 years old.”

Floirendo is a 46-year old Davaoeño businessman who is no stranger to the track—notching back-to-back Driver of the Year honors at the Yokohama Philippine GT Championship Series in 2011 and 2012. He also has a long resume in karting, circuit, and Formula 3 competitions.

Moving forward, Soong averred he looks forward to increased participation by Autostrada in years to come. “I personally would like to race myself,” he admitted to the STAR. “Every chance we have, we’ll take the opportunity.”

And surprise the competition, that’s for sure.