REID SHOWS POSITIVE FORM IN PORSCHE CUP DEBUT

International Motorsport driver Jonny Reid gave his team bosses a sign of what’s to come on the weekend with a 2nd place in Race 3 and fourth overall for the opening round of the 2009/10 Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge at Pukekohe Park Raceway.

Despite to being new to Porsche racing and this weekend being the first competitive outing at Pukekohe since 2003 for Reid, he still managed to set third fastest time in qualifying, awarding him with a P3 start position for Race 1.

With a change in the championship format for 2009/10, Race 1 featured a 36 lap mini-endurance race with a compulsory pit stop and tyre change, attracting a double-points score. Reid showed excellent form as he settled into his new seat for the season, bringing the Fisher & Paykel sponsored GT3 home in 4th place and opening his championship bank account with a healthy 108 points.

Sunday morning’s 12-lap Race 2 was action packed from the start with a time penalty awarded to team mate Matt Halliday for performing practice starts in the warm-up lap. Reid continued to improve as the race progressed however his efforts were hampered with a fuel-pressure problem, causing the car to slow, however he maintained pace to finish 5th.

When asked of the issue, Reid was optimistic “Pukekohe is a horsepower track so it’s a bit disappointing having this issue however we’ve been working on the car set up all weekend and we’re improving all the time. The remainder of the rounds are on tracks that require finesse, I drive well on the tight tracks so we just have to keep looking ahead”

Grid positions for Race 3 are determined on order of speed in Race 2 with the top six cars reversed, putting Reid on Pole. Getting off to an excellent start, Reid was passed by Halliday, determined to make up for his penalty in Race 2. Current Champion Craig Baird moved into third place and put pressure on Reid although the former A1GP driver showed his true form holding off the attacks, including a safety car restart, and was rewarded with a 2nd place finish to boost his points tally to 224.

Overall Jonny was very positive about the weekend “ I learnt alot about the car this weekend, We still have some car set up to work on to be on the podium for the next round, but I’m pretty happy with the way things have gone and I’m stoked with my 2nd place result”.

Round 2 of the championship on 27-29 November 2009 takes Reid to Ruapuna Park Raceway in Christchurch.