Perez bags third win in Petron GT championship

ROSARIO, Batangas – Felix Perez of Alps Racing unveiled another big sweep that fortified his hold of solo leadership recently in the third leg of the 2008 Petron Grand Touring (GT) Championship at the Batangas Racing Circuit here.

Perez, also one of the country’s top drag racers, made the feat at the expense of former Asian Formula 3 champion Renan Morales in both the Sprint Race and the Main Enduro of this event sanctioned by the Automobile Association Philippines and sponsored by Petron, San Mig Coffee, San Miguel Corporation, Denso, Yokohama, Fujitsu Ten Corporation of the Philippines, and PagCor Sports.

In the Sprint Race, Morales quickly grabbed the lead in the second lap and controlled the tempo until the sixth lap when Perez slipped past the former and held on to the top spot to the finish line.

He clocked 18 minutes and 45.036 in the 10-lap race for his third straight win in the GT 200 class, or a far 51.953 seconds ahead of Morales who still managed to secure second place despite experiencing engine problems.

Nico Fernandez checked in third overall as he ruled the GT 125 division with a time of 20 minutes and 44.356 seconds to prevail over runner-up Pocholo Paragas.

Danes Sarmiento also won in the GT 300 class after turning back Romeo Manuel.

The Main Enduro was even more colorful. Morales again was in control until the ninth lap when he went into the pits for some repairs.

Perez’ co-driver Mato Tan took over and a quick driver change kept Felix on top when he took over on the 13th lap. Morales worked hard to catch up on Perez but a damaged front fender put him into trouble.

Perez eventually won as he completed the 24-lap race in less than an hour, posting a fastest laptime of 1:54.093 seconds to finish the race in 48 minutes and 5.222 seconds

Nico Fernandez checked in second to capture the title in the GT 125 division over Pocholo Paragas who came in third overall. 

Reymond Conti finished fourth to claim the runner-up honors in the GT 200 division while Danes Sarmiento took fifth place overall to rule the GT 300 class over Romeo Manuel.