Hong Kong driver Jonathan Hui victorious upon return as Sky Tempesta Racing edge 1000km endurance in France
- Hui, Chris Froggatt and Eddie Cheever III come back from penalties and pit stops to pip opponents in final minutes
- ‘You couldn’t have written a better script for how everything unfolded,’ says Hui as team set sights on Belgium
Hong Kong driver Jonathan Hui showed no signs of track rust as his Sky Tempesta Racing team edged to victory in the Circuit Paul Ricard 1000km pro-am six-hour endurance in Le Castellet, France, on Tuesday.
Despite being out of action for half a year due to the coronavirus pandemic and only flying out last week, the 42-year-old Hui set the fastest lap time in the bronze test, before helping teammates Chris Froggatt and Eddie Cheever III qualify second and ultimately seal the race’s top spot.
The win did not come easy. Their Ferrari 488 GT3 was slapped with a drive-through penalty early in the race before wasting 20 valuable seconds having overshot the pit stop box, pushing them down a position despite Hong Kong-born Hui originally extending their lead.
The trio were left with a tough four-hour comeback but Cheever III – son of former Formula 1 driver Eddie Cheever – managed to grab first place in the closing minutes.
A five-second penalty to the leading Lamborghini allowed for a strategic final blitz to close the gap, handing the team their first pro-am win since their debut in Monza in 2019.
“I made a costly mistake during the pit stops … and that’s a result of a lack of seat time in the car. Both Chris and Eddie did a superb job to close the gap in the closing hours – that sealed the victory. Needless to say, I’m over the moon and hope to continue this momentum,” Hui said.
“On a personal level, this was an important race after being away from racing for more than six months. I felt at home working with the team again and the pace was solid throughout.”
Next for Sky Tempesta is the gruelling Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps 24-hour endurance race in Belgium in late July. The team sit six points behind the table leaders.
