Tamiya Asia Cup Finals 2010 in Manila, Philippines by Team Singapore (September 10-12, 2010)

An exciting 3-day event from September 10-12, 2010 just ended for the 2010 Tamiya Asia Cup Finals in Manila, Philippines. Team Singapore touched down in Manila on Thursday September 9, 2010 a day to rest before the practise and control practise sessions on Friday. This year's venue was held at the SM Megamall located in Ortigas City Center, just a 5-minute walk from the official accomodation at Richmonde Hotel. The organizers did a great job in organizing the event where shuttle buses were provided by the organizers between the hotel and SM Megamall. Ample pit area made the drivers much more comfortable this year and a convenient surroundings of restaurants and a few steps walk to Lil's Hobby Center to replenish spare parts. The technical and super-high traction track posed a challenge for all drivers trying very hard not to traction-roll. The crowd in the mall was fantastic the whole weekend as teams from Hong Kong, Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, and host country Phillipines put on a superb show to challenge for the ticket to Japan. Team Singapore did a fantastic job with 3 podium spots, Javier Chng winning the Junior Stock, myself (P.Y.Tang) came in 2nd for GT, and Sim Zi Kai podium 2nd for Mini. A fantastic atmosphere for everyone and Jilles Groskamp of Netherlands from Team TRF added the excitement with his exhibition run between each rounds to showcase the Tamiya TRF416X, an almost TRF417 design, and the new Tamiya FF03.

3 practise sessions and 2 control practise sessions on Friday. Team Singapore arrived at the venue at about 8am after a filling buffet breakfast at 7am. Most of us would have enough rest except for few adventurous ones enjoying the nightouts. Practise sessions started at about 10am, many would be struggling driving on the carpet track with inconsistent traction everywhere due to used carpets. The carpet traction settled down just before the control practise after many layers of traction compounds were being laid on the driving line. As traction became more consistent, tension within drivers increased and everyone was eager to get a timing in the control practise. Pressure was felt among drivers as to be able to end the day with a good standings of their respective class. A good result would certainly be a boost in confidence for the qualifying on saturday, and also a more enjoyable nightouts :) Sim Zi Kai topped the group with ease in Mini and a very confident and clean run by myself was able to topped the group in GT as well. Javier with a lap ahead of the second place also topped the group in Junior Stock. Not so lucky for Cecil Chua ended in 14th unable to improved in Control Practise 2. In the F1, Terence Ang, Daniel Chee and Irving Tan finished the day in 10th, 11th and 15th position respectively. Everyone had a long day and most of us settled dinner by room service while me and my teammates burning the midnight oil rebuilding our car to start a perfect qualifying.

Top 10 Standings (after Control Practise Round 2):

Mini:
1. Sim Zi Kai - Singapore - 23 laps 5:12.479
2. Noel Aldaba - Philippines - 22 laps 5:02.626
3. Min Hong-Sik - Korea - 22 laps 5:02.849
4. Kang In-Mo - Korea - 22 laps 5:08.115
5. Joel Mangilit - Philippines - 21 laps 5:03.552
6. Mikey Garcia - Philippines - 21 laps 5:03.944
7. Koravee S. - Thailand - 21 laps 5:04.020
8. Rosaidi Osman - Malaysia - 21 laps 5:05.170
9. Nikki Esteban - Philippines - 21 laps 5:06.609
10. Boonlert T. - Thailand - 21 laps 5:08.805

GT:
1. P.Y.Tang - Singapore - 28 laps 5:10.527
2. Joseph Salcedo - Philippines - 27 laps 5:06.752
3. Gerry Soler - Philippines - 27 laps 5:07.576
4. Anton Ramos - Philippines - 27 laps 5:08.943
5. JP Reyes - Philippines - 27 laps 5:10.612
6. Chattham P. - Thailand - 27 laps 5:10.618
7. Lee Tae-Hee - Korea - 26 laps 5:01.480
8. Jung Sung-Woon - Korea - 26 laps 5:02.031
9. Jho Sung-Hwan - Korea - 26 laps 5:04.822
10. Nopphadol S. - Thailand - 26 laps 5:05.832

11. Chee Lip Keong - Singapore - 26 laps 5:11.213
16. Jonathan Chia - Singapore - 24 laps 5:08.135

F1:
1. Wu Chak Ming - Hong Kong - 25 laps 5:08.590
2. Ron Convento - Philippines - 24 laps 5:10.851
3. Anurson S. - Thailand - 24 laps 5:16.742
4. Arnold Dalusong - Indonesia - 23 laps 5:00.185
5. Yuichiro Takaya - Philippines - 23 laps 5:01.913
6. Raymond Aguilar - Philippines - 23 laps 5:03.332
7. Liao-Fong Tai - Taiwan - 23 laps 5:05.814
8. Dax Dacayan - Philippines - 22 laps 5:02.988
9. Park Young-Hun - Korea - 22 laps 5:03.314
10. Terence Ang - Singapore - 22 laps 5:05.299

11. Daniel Chee - Singapore - 22 laps 5:11.811
15. Irving Tan - Singapore - 10 laps 3:12.998

Junior Stock:
1. Javier Chng - Singapore - 22 laps 5:08.428
2. Stephen Corpuz - Philippines - 21 laps 5:07.231
3. Luis Gono - Philippines - 20 laps 5:08.790
4. Duke Laigo - Philippines - 19 laps 5:12.981
5. Kimboy Colico - Philippines - 18 laps 4:55.905
6. Bahjaree N. - Thailand - 18 laps 5:05.294
7. Timothy Angtuaco - Philippines - 16 laps 5:10.032

Super Stock:
1. Thomas Teo - Malaysia - 24 laps 5:08.353
2. Ken Li - Hong Kong - 24 laps 5:11.428
3. Takahisa Hirano - Korea - 23 laps 5:02.818
4. Kim Nam-Hong - Korea - 23 laps 5:03.164
5. Robert Handrawan - Indonesia - 23 laps 5:05.694
6. Ronchie Garcia - Philippines - 23 laps 5:11.006
7. Jomil Dela Cruz - Philippines - 23 laps 5:11.199
8. Edward Angtuaco - Philippines - 22 laps 5:04.523
9. James Lee - Hong Kong - 22 laps 5:04.749
10. Kittipong R. - Thailand - 22 laps 5:14.074

14. Cecil Chua - Singapore - 19 laps 4:39.505

A fresh start on Saturday qualifying rounds. Control practise standings to be deleted with 5 rounds of qualifying to be contested to get the best timing of the day. TQ honours would be what everyone was targeting for and a pole position would be a higher chance to get the ticket to Japan. As usual, Saturday qualifying rounds are a little more tiring after a long day on Friday. Focus and concentration would be the key to get a good timing. Group photo session and beauty contest started off the raceday with speeches by organizer Shakespere Chan and Tamiya representatives. Junior Stock started out with little to no pressure for 9-year old Javier Chng as he controlled the race topping all 5 rounds with his newly-built TT01. Sim Zi Kai dropped a place in Mini as Korean Min Hong-Sik had a huge advantage in speed. For myself, I held TQ in GT until Round 4 when JP Reyes did a clean run taking the TQ by about 0.9second. Cecil Chua improved his time in Super Stock but was unable to positioned himself higher in the group. Terence Ang dropped down in F1 after suffering from too much traction-rolling, Daniel Chee improved himself placing him in the main show, while Irving Tan failed to improve. Everyone's pace went up at the end of the day as traction increased and more drivers from other teams found their setups. One last qualifying tomorrow before the finals will be very crucial for Team Singapore to position ourselves as high as possible. So back to the drawing board.

Top 10 Standings (after Qualifying Round 5)

Mini:
1. Min Hong-Sik - Korea - 24 laps 5:10.407
2. Sim Zi Kai - Singapore - 23 laps 5:05.131
3. Noel Aldaba - Philippines - 23 laps 5:07.366
4. Joel Mangilit - Philippines - 23 laps 5:07.807
5. Koravee S. - Thailand - 23 laps 5:07.930
6. Nikki Esteban - Philippines - 23 laps 5:08.830
7. Pachara S. - Thailand - 22 laps 5:00.054
8. Kang In-Mo - Korea - 22 laps 5:00.612
9. Rosaidi Osman - Malaysia - 22 laps 5:00.907
10. Boonlert T. - Thailand - 22 laps 5:01.044

GT:
1. JP Reyes - Philippines - 28 laps 5:01.887
2. P.Y.Tang - Singapore - 28 laps 5:02.939
3. Joseph Salcedo - Philippines - 28 laps 5:08.381
4. Jho Sung-Hwan - Philippines - 28 laps 5:08.885
5. Anton Ramos - Phlippines - 28 laps 5:10.984
6. Tanes M. - Thailand - 27 laps 5:00.269
7. Nopphadol S. - Thailand - 27 laps 5:00.669
8. Chattam P. - Thailand - 27 laps 5:01.377
9. Lee Tae-Hee - Korea - 27 laps 5:02.047
10. Jung Sung-Woon - Korea - 27 laps 5:02.545

11. Chee Lip Keong - Singapore - 27 laps 5:02.780
17 Jonathan Chia - Singapore - 26 laps 5:10.612

F1:
1. Yuchiro Takaya - Philippines - 26 laps 5:00.989
2. Park Young-Hun - Korea - 26 laps 5:01.449
3. Wu Chak Ming - Hong Kong - 26 laps 5:11.652
4. Hong Ki-Yong - Korea - 25 laps 5:01.026
5. Anurson S. - Thailand - 25 laps 5:01.119
6. Daniel Chee - Singapore - 25 laps 5:02.574
7. Suwardi Suliandy - Indonesia - 25 laps 5:06.439
8. Raymond Aguilar - Philippines - 25 laps 5:07.011
9. Ron Convento - Philippines - 25 laps 5:11.344
10. Liao-Fong Tai - Taiwan - 25 laps 5:12.244

12. Terence Ang - Singapore - 24 laps 5:06.604
16. Irwing Tan - Singapore - 21 laps 5:02.391

Junior Stock:
1. Javier Chng - Singapore - 22 laps 5:06.231
2. Luis Gono - Philippines - 22 laps 5:11.180
3. Stephen Corpuz - Philippines - 21 laps 5:09.926
4. Timothy Angtuaco - Philippines - 21 laps 5:11.358
5. Kimboy Colico - Philippines - 20 laps 5:01.075
6. Bahjaree N. - Thailand - 20 laps 5:05.904
7. Duke Laigo - Philippines - 19 laps 5:05.150

Super Stock:
1. Kim Nam-Hong - Korea - 25 laps 5:06.89799
2. Takahisa Hirano - Korea - 24 laps 5:02.211
3. Robert Handrawan - Indonesia - 24 laps 5:02.830
4. Ken Li - Hong Kong - 24 laps 5:06.379
5. Thomas Teo - Malaysia - 24 laps 5:06.488
6. James Lee - Hong Kong - 24 laps 5:09.910
7. Jomil Dela Cruz - Philippines - 24 laps 5:11.062
8. Vasin I. - Thailand - 24 laps 5:11.587
9. Ronchie Garcia - Philippines - 24 laps 5:11.896
10. Edward Angtuaco - Philippines - 23 laps 5:03.6

12. Cecil Chua - Singapore - 23 laps 5:06.907

Sunday with 1 more qualifying round. Some drivers already secured in the A-Main but for some would be aiming for a spot in the top ten. With traction much higher now, a good setup that is just enough to gain cornering speed but not traction-rolling would get you into the main show. Intensity level was high on Sunday morning with most drivers already prepared their cars for the final qualifying run that will propel their results up into the standings. Team Singapore Javier Chng seem to be quite comfortable with his current pace, while Sim Zi Kai for Mini and myself (P.Y.Tang) for GT are still hoping to get a consistent and fast run to start from pole position in the finals. Jonathan Chia from GT also set a clear target to get close into the A-Main. Daniel Chee would continue to climb in the F1 A-Main while Terence Ang and irwing Tan from F1 and Cecil Chua from Super Stock was trying to improve their timings. I had a calm feeling and intense focus going into the qualifying round 6 of GT, my TA05V2 was working very well leading the pace up to 2:30mark when I went in too tight at a corner and traction-rolled while countersteering to correct the line, result would be starting 2nd in the finals.

Top 10 Standings (after Qualifying Round 6)

Mini:
1. Min Hong-Sik - Korea - 24 laps 5:10.407
2. Sim Zi Kai - Singapore - 23 laps 5:05.131
3. Noel Aldaba - Philippines - 23 laps 5:07.336
4. Joel Mangilit - Philippines - 23 laps 5:07.807
5. Koravee S. - Thailand - 23 laps 5:07.930
6. Nikki Esteban - Philippines - 23 laps 5:08.830
7. Pachara S. - Thailand - 23 laps 5:12.161
8. Rosaidi Osman - Malaysia - 23 laps 5:12.782
9. Kang In-Mo - Korea - 22 laps 5:00.612
10. Boonlert T. - Thailand - 22 laps 5:01.044

GT:
1. JP Reyes - Philippines - 28 laps 5:01.849
2. P.Y.Tang - Singapore - 28 laps 5:02.939
3. Joseph Salcedo - Philippines - 28 laps 5:07.120
4. Jho Sung-Hwan - Korea - 28 laps 5:07.527
5. Tanes M. - Thailand - 28 laps 5:08.928
6. Chattham P. - Thailand - 28 laps 5:09.240
7. Lee Tae-Hee - Korea - 28 laps 5:09.363
8. Anton Ramos - Philippines - 28 laps 5:09.752
9. Nopphadol S. - Thailand - 28 laps 5:10.039
10. Jung Sung-Woon - Korea - 27 laps 5:02.545

12. Chee Lip Keong - Singapore - 27 laps 5:04.259
18. Jonathan Chia - Singapore - 26 laps 5:09.472

F1:

1. Yuichiro Takaya - Philippines - 26 laps 5:00.989
2. Park Young-Hun - Korea - 26 laps 5:01.449
3. Wu Chak Ming - Hong Kong - 26 laps 5:11.652
4. Hong Ki-Yong - Korea - 25 laps 5:01.026
5. Anurson S. - Thailand - 25 laps 5:01.119
6. Daniel Chee - Singapore - 25 laps 5:02.574
7. Suwardi Suliandy - Indonesia - 25 laps 5:06.439
8. Raymond Aguilar - Philippines - 25 laps 5:07.011
9. Ron Convento - Philippines - 25 laps 5:11.344
10. Liao-Fong Tai - Taiwan - 23 laps 5:05.814

12. Terence Ang - Singapore - 22 laps 5:05.299
16. Irwing Tan - Singapore - 21 laps 5:02.391

Junior Stock:
1. Javier Chng - Singapore - 22 laps 5:05.105
2. Luis Gono - Philippines - 22 laps 5:11.180
3. Stephen Corpuz - Philippines - 21 laps 5:09.926
4. Bahjaree N. - Thailand - 21 laps 5:10.162
5. Timothy Angtuaco - Philippines - 21 laps 5:11.358
6. Kimboy Colico - Philippines - 20 laps 5:00.541
7. Duke Laigo - Philippines - 19 laps 5:05.150

Super Stock:
1. Kim Nam-Hong - Korea - 25 laps 5:08.896
2. Takahisa Hirano - Korea - 24 laps 5:01.968
3. Robert Handrawan - Indonesia - 24 laps 5:10.267
4. Kittipong R. - Thailand - 24 laps 5:06.133
5. Ken Li - Hong Kong - 24 laps 5:06.379
6. Thomas Teo - Malaysia - 24 laps 5:08.836
7. Vasin I. - Thailand - 24 laps 5:07.915
8. Jomil Dela Cruz - Philippines - 24 laps 5:11.062
9. Ronchie Garcia - Philippines - 24 laps 5:11.896
10. Edward Angtuaco - Philippines - 23 laps 5:03.699

11. Cecil Chua - Singapore - 23 laps 5:06.907

The final was a tight competition. Many drivers have picked up their pace with most qualifying seperated by 100th of a second. Mini class final results stayed pretty much the same with Korean Min Hong-Sik dominated all 3 finals in Mini where Team Singapore Sim Zi Kai pushed hard with consistent runs but was still not able to gain position sufferring from a slower motor. Myself (P.Y.Tang) could not challenge for the win as JP Reyes also took 2 easy win in the finals, whereby insufficient rest for the battery caused the power of my car to be off-paced. Chee Lip Keong did a great job winning the B-Finals while Jonathan Chia also improved to finished 4th in B-Main. Daniel Chee in F1 finished 6th in the A-Main as podium finish drivers seemed to be too strong in the class. Terence Ang and Irwing Tan finished a respectable 2nd and 6th respectively in the B-Main. Cecil Chua unable to bring back the win in B-Main after suffering multiple traction rolls. But for the first time in history, Javier Chng would claimed as Asia Cup Champion for Junior Stock.

Overall results for Team Singapore is pretty decent and with the valuable knowledge and experience gathered this year, TAC 2011 will be another year for us to fight for the glory of Tamiya Asia Cup Champion.

Final Top 3 Standings:

Mini:

1. Min Hong-Sik - Korea
2. Sim Zi Kai - Singapore
3. Koravee S. - Thailand

GT:

1. JP Reyes - Philippines
2. P.Y.Tang - Singapore
3. Tanes M. - Thailand

11. Chee Lip Keong - Singapore
14. Jonathan Chia - Singapore

F1:

Junior Stock:

1. Javier Chng - Singapore

Super Stock:

As usual for Tamiya Asia Cup, all drivers would enjoyed the driver's party after the trophy presentation. Good food and a more relax environment ended this year's Tamiya Asia Cup 2010 and see you all again next year and good luck to Team Singapore!