Augusto Farfus has every reason to be over the moon: the driver from Curitiba enjoyed the perfect weekend at the FIA GT World Cup on the legendary “Guia Circuit” in Macau. After his success in Saturday’s qualifying race, Farfus also celebrated victory in the #42 BMW Team Schnitzer BMW M6 GT3 in Sunday’s main race. As such, Farfus and BMW are the 2018 FIA GT World Cup winners.
Starting from pole position, Farfus, in the BMW Team Schnitzer BMW M6 GT3, led the race for all of the 18 laps. As the lights went off, Farfus asserted himself at the front of the field and in the following laps went on to extend his lead. His rivals managed to close the gap in the final stages of the race, but Farfus kept a cool head in the narrow urban canyons, didn’t make any mistakes and brought the BMW M6 GT3 home in first place.
“Congratulations to Augusto, Charly Lamm and BMW Team Schnitzer on this fantastic success”, said BMW Motorsport Director Jens Marquardt. “That was a more than impressive performance on one of the most difficult street circuits in the world. The team provided Augusto with a perfect car, and Augusto showcased all of his skill. It is not every day that someone is so dominant on both days in Macau.”
Team principal Charly Lamm also was full of praise: “Even though there were no overtaking manoeuvres during the race, you could feel the intense suspense throughout. Augusto couldn’t afford to make even the smallest mistake, otherwise his rivals would have pounced. He drove a perfect race.”
It was an emotional weekend for Farfus, BMW and BMW Team Schnitzer – a motorsport era came to an end. Macau was Charly Lamm’s last event as team principal. Farfus and Lamm have a long and successful history together, also at Macao. They celebrated victory together on the 6.120-kilometre street circuit in 2009, in the FIA World Touring Car Championship (WTCC). Last year Farfus finished second in the Saturday race in the BMW M6 GT3 Cao Fei Art Car fielded by the Freilassing team. The double success in the qualifying race and the main race saw Farfus and BMW Team Schnitzer enjoy the perfect weekend this year.
“I don’t really know what to say. BMW put their trust in me, we sat down together and came up with a plan, and implemented it perfectly”, an overwhelmed Farfus said after his triumph. “That doesn’t always work out. The race today wasn’t easy. The track had less grip than yesterday. I knew that I couldn’t afford to make even the smallest mistake because the guys behind me were fast. I think that the battle at the top between the various brands was unusually close for this track. I’m delighted that I brought home the win. BMW Motorsport, Charly and BMW Team Schnitzer gave it their all here. It means a great deal to me. A few years ago, Charly and I lost a championship here, now we have won the World Cup. It’s also really special to Charly – I’m very grateful to him.”
Sunday’s victory at Macau is something very special for Farfus for another, very personal reason: “Today actually it’s exactly 29 years since I started racing back in 1990. On 18th November, my dad gave me a motorcycle, and I had my first race in Brazil without knowing exactly where my career would lead. Now 29 years later I won a world cup. This is very special and emotional. I just have to thank every one who has been together with me on this long journey.”
The journey will continue in 2019, when Farfus will focus on GT racing with BMW, in the FIA World Endurance Championship and at other major GT races.
