> Silver class champion earns 24 Hours of Spa prize drive
> Australia’s winner to be confirmed later this month
James Yu Kuai has become the third young driver to win a seat at next year’s 24 Hours of Spa after topping the SRO GT Academy standings in GT World Challenge Asia powered by AWS.
The 25-year-old Chinese driver headed into Shanghai’s season finale with a 30-point advantage, which he extended further on Saturday following qualifying and first of the weekend’s two 60-minute races. At that stage only a points reduction for an on or off-track misdemeanour could prevent him from securing the prize drive. But after completing an impeccable stint, the chance to contest the world’s biggest GT race was officially confirmed.
The award, which recognises the fastest Silver-graded driver under the age of 30 across four continents, capped another memorable season for Yu who twice won outright en route to sixth in Asia’s overall standings. He also retained the Silver class title alongside his FAW Audi Sport Asia Team Phantom co-driver Cheng Congfu.
British GT’s equivalent, Jarrod Waberski, and Ryan Yardley – who triumphed in GT World America – are joining Yu in the fully funded entry next June, while the final quarter of Team Motopark’s Mercedes-AMG crew will be decided when Australia’s GT3 series concludes on the streets of Adelaide towards the end of November.
Seven drivers were initially eligible for Asia’s portion of the prize before Yu ultimately beat Elias Seppanen by 47 points.
Overall results, which include the contribution of each Silver’s co-driver, would potentially skew the outcome. GT Academy’s points allocation is therefore based on individual qualifying and race performances, as well as fastest and average lap times achieved during a stint.
James Yu Kuai: “Wow, what an opportunity! Winning SRO GT Academy really is the icing on the cake of another successful season with Franky in Asia. I hadn’t thought about the Academy too much before Shanghai because we were fully focused on winning the class title. I didn’t want to jeopardise that by over-analysing my own performance.
“But I’d also be lying if the thought of racing at Spa for the first time hadn’t crossed my mind. There isn’t an obvious pathway from Asia without something like SRO GT Academy so I’m very proud to be its first winner and also grateful for the opportunity to join Jarrod, Ryan and Australia’s top Silver next year.
“Driving the front-engined Mercedes-AMG GT3 represents a big change for me after several years exclusively racing for Audi Sport Asia. They deserve a lot of the credit for this achievement and for also believing in me. So a big thank you to everyone who has played a part in this.”
