Team Shell Helix Ultra-Big Chill Racing reigned supreme in the third round of the 2018 Yokohama Philippine Grant Touring Championships behind the leading father-and-son tandem of Paul and Paolo Ivan Santos.
The spectators of the rain-soaked Clark International Speedway witnessed a near dominant performance from the two right from the get-go as the young Paolo ended up dominating the 10-lap first race, crossing the finish line with a total time of 23:29.010, a good 2.614 seconds ahead of Paul, who made it a 1-2 finish for Team Shell Helix Ultra onboard their respective TS Tuning-Dax Santiano tuned Honda FD Race Cars.
“This was actually the first time we finished 1-2 ever and we are very happy with the accomplishment. We credit this victory to the people behind us—Ding, Chong, Dax, and the rest of the guys for keeping our cars quick, and most of all, reliable,”said lead driver Paul Santos.
Things were supposed to be deja vu in the second race. However, a slight mechanical miscalculation on the very last lap meant that Paolo had to back out from the lead, handing the win to Edwin Rodriguez, with Paul finishing second. Paolo had to settled for third place.
The older Paul later added that his Race 2 finish was probably one of his hardest race challenges by far since he found it very difficult to consistently maneuver around the really wet race track.
With three out of the six legs done and dusted for the 2018 season, Paolo sees an extension in his championship lead as he aims to become the 2018 National GT 200 Champion and Circuit Driver of the Year.
“We still have half of the season to go, and anything can still happen. We like how things are for us right now, but we have to keep on preparing and fighting hard to maintain the lead, and eventually, seal the 2018 title,” said Paolo.
In addition, Team Shell Helix Ultra is preparing this early to defend their 4-Hour Endurance Race Overall triumph two months ago as they do battle once again in the year-ending 8 Oras ng Lilipinas this coming December, also to be held at the Clark International Speedway.