Winkelhock to make final dash for glory in Guia Race
JO WINKELHOCK will be driven by a special desire when he slips behind the wheel of his BMW Motorsport Team Schnitzer 320i this afternoon to contest the United Colours of Benetton Guia Race for touring cars.
It will be the last time the famous 320i marque will race anywhere in the world with full factory backing.
BMW is pulling out of the two-litre Super Touring class worldwide, even though the make will continue to be campaigned by privateers.
Winkelhock, a full-time driver for BMW and veteran of 10 previous visits to Macau, would like nothing better than to end the BMW Motorsport Team Schnitzer association with the Guia Race on a winning note.
He took a giant stride in that direction on Friday when he put his 320i in pole position with a stunning lap of two minutes and 29.341 seconds.
That upstaged German compatriot Frank Biela in a Audi Sport Australia A4 Quattro, who, coincidently, will also be driving that marque of car competitively for the last time today.
Two-litre, Super Touring Car regulations bar four-wheel-drive A4s from major competitions in Europe and England.
The cars campaigned in Australia this year but may also be banned there next year in the 4WD format.
Biela was sitting pretty in pole with a time of 2:30.152 and looked to have the opposition well covered.
But experienced campaigner Winkelhock was not intimidated by Biela's effort. He slipped into the pits for a new set of soft-compound tyres and one final tilt at the pole position.
'It was nearly the perfect lap but I didn't expect to be nearly a second faster than [Biela]. I expected to be a little quicker in practice, but it will be much harder in the race,' Winkelhock said.
Biela admitted he had gone as fast as he could go. 'The car felt good, second on the grid is not too bad,' he said.
Third on the grid in Asia's premier touring car race is affable Italian Max Angelelli, who is trying his hand at the tin tops after years running in the Formula Three machines.
Driving a Racing Project Bandoh Toyota Exivs, Angelleli posted a time of 2:31.324, nearly two seconds off the pace.
But he remained upbeat about his chances today when he said: 'I believe I have a big chance to catch the first two cars, or at least put my car between them.' Biela's Australian teammate, Brad Jones, rounds out the top four, who look odds-on to fill the podium, barring mishap.
Jones had problems with his car's suspension setup during qualifying but said he would find an extra second on race day.
'The key will be getting away to a good start and the Audis are quick off the mark. We finished one-two here [in 1996] and we will be aiming to do it again this time,' Jones added.
Not only will this race signal the end of factory-backed support for the two-litre BMWs, it could well end Winkelhock's unbroken sequence of racing here every year through the '90s. He made his debut in 1987.
'After the Guia Race, I technically have no job,' Winkelhock revealed. 'I'm still under contract to drive for BMW and there is talk of racing in GT cars and doing the Le Mans 24-hour race, but really I don't know for sure,' he added.
Schnitzer team manager Charly Lamm said he would not totally rule out returning to Macau again next year.
'We won't have a factory car but it is possible to race in Macau without a factory programme. Let's see what happens. But one thing is for sure, if we race and win in Le Mans we will definitely be back in Macau next year.' The 24-lap, two-leg Guia Race begins at 12.40 pm.
