Nael snatches Macau GP victory from Boya in Pinnacle Motorsport 1-2

Photo: Macau GP Organising Committee

Theophile Nael snatched victory from KCMG Pinnacle Motorsport team-mate Mari Boya in the 72nd running of the Macau Grand Prix.

Nael led less than a lap of racing before the fourth safety car period of the race began, and since it ran to the end that secured him the FIA Formula Regional World Cup.

Prema’s Freddie Slater started the 15-lap race from pole, and jinked to the right off the line before surging to the left to try to cover off Boya coming up on his inside. But Boya took the lead into turn one, then Slater was forced to hold off Nael.

That defending compromised Nael and allowed R-ace GP’s Enzo Deligny to pass him, with ART Grand Prix’s Taito Kato alongside too before Lisboa. Kato carried too much speed into the corner, checked up and lost out to PHM Racing’s Mattia Colnaghi, then at the next corner a five-car pile-up behind led to the first safety car interruption.

Before it was called out, Slater had tried passing Boya around the outside of turn eight, and when racing resumed on lap four he was on the attack again. Boya weaved his way down the first straights, Slater looked to his outside after Mandarin and as soon as he was fully ahead he cut to the inside to prevent Boya from braking late at Lisboa.

Slater pulled three seconds clear before the safety car returned on lap nine after Evans GP’s Oscar Wurz drove into Lisboa’s barriers.

On the lap 11 restart, the roles were reversed. Slater weaved, Boya attacked on the outside after Mandarin then cut straight to the inside once fully ahead. As he pushed to stay with Boya, Slater slid wide at the final corner, clouted the wall and picked up race-ending damage. It triggered another safety car period on lap 12.

Nael had been pressuring Deligny after the first restart, nosing ahead approaching Lisboa twice but backing out of passing attempts due to being on the outside, then on his third attempt backing off early so he could switch to Deligny’s inside but then having to slam on the brakes.

The pair had been gapped by the top two during the green flag action, but on the penultimate lap restart they both kept with a weaving Boya who after looking in his mirrors chose to cover off Deligny after Mandarin. He could then do nothing as Nael swept past both into lead.

Behind them, Prema’s Rashid Al Dhaheri crashed out of ninth by striking the barriers through turn two, an incident which then caught TOM’S driver Tokiya Suzuki and meant his race ended down the Lisboa escape road.

R-ace’s Jin Nakamura and Prema’s Charles Leong collided after Lisboa, and the safety car was called later in the lap.

Before racing was neutralised, Kato had gone around the outside of team-mate Evan Giltaire for fifth through Lisboa after Giltaire had passed him there two laps prior, and Boya had got onto Nael’s gearbox at two corners but then had to check up twice which allowed his team-mate to lead unchallenged through the mountain section.

Colnaghi kept out of trouble in fourth, while Trident’s Noah Stromsted and R-ace’s Matteo De Palo gained two spots from the crashes to finish seventh and eighth but had entered the top 10 when Stromsted overtook Sainteloc Racing’s James Egozi up Moorish Hill and De Palo followed through around the outside at Dona Maria I.

Race results (15 laps)