MANILA, Philippines – Toyota Motor Philippines (TMP) has concluded the National Finals of its premier e-motorsports tournament, the TOYOTA GAZOO Racing GT Cup Philippines (TGR GT Cup PH) on Sunday, August 18, in a thrilling live event at the SM Mall of Asia.
The TGR GT Cup Finals was held over two days at the SM Mall of Asia in Pasay City
Held for the first time live in a public venue, the TGR GT Cup PH Finals drew large crowds as top sim racers in the country put the pedal to the metal of their racing rigs for a chance to bring home cash prizes, exclusive TGR merchandise, Autocross Challenge seats, and the honor of representing the Philippines at the Asia Finals.
Luis Moreno crosses the finish line of the Quarterfinals track, Trial Mountain
The Finals began with the Quarterfinals on August 17 where the Top 40 fastest e-racers from the qualifiers battled it out on Trial Mountain in the Toyota GR Yaris RZ “High Performance” ‘20. The participants were seeded into four batches of 10 players each, and each batch went head-to-head for three race heats. The first race held a qualifying time trial to set the grid, while the second race put winners of the first race at the back of the grid in an exciting reverse grid. The third race once again had the racers put in their fastest lap for a chance to start higher on the grid.
Luis Moreno, who was the TGR GT Cup Champion in 2021, has been sim racing for more than 10 years
Past TGR GT Cup PH Sporting Class champion Luis Moreno and defending champion Russel Reyes solidified their places as top contenders, winning all three races of their respective batches. Past Junior Class champion Enzo Ison also dominated his batch.
Former Promotional Class champion Stanley Golez went on to win two out of the three races for his batch, the other being won by newcomer Adrian Unisa.
Following the Quarterfinals was the Semifinals, which pitted the Top 20 against each other on the Suzuka Circuit in the Toyota GR Supra RZ ’20. Similar to the Quarterfinals, the Semifinals held three race heats for two batches of 10 players each. Qualifying time trials were done for the first and third races, while the second race reversed the grid, putting the top placers of race one at the back. Weather conditions, which were chosen at random, were thrown into the races to further test the skill of the drivers. The first race was met with drizzle, the second race with dry weather, and the third race with full-on rain.
Race one of the first batch of the Semifinals saw Luis Moreno crossing the finish line with an eight-second lead from the rest of the pack, with Jether Miole in second after a close fight with Enzo Ison, who finished third. Ison then went on to win the second race, with Moreno and Miole close behind. The third race was dominated by Moreno with Ison and Miole rounding up the second and third spots.
Russel Reyes clinches first place during his Semifinals race
Russel Reyes drove strong and steady to maintain his lead after starting from pole position in the first race of the second batch, which he won. Matthew Ang and Stanley Golez followed right behind in second and third. The second race saw similar results to that of batch one, with Ang taking the win, and Reyes and Golez in second and third, respectively. The same three e-racers dominated the rainy third race, with Russel Reyes in first place, Matthew Ang in second, and Stanley Golez in third.
The top 10 finalists of the TGR GT Cup. (L-R) Vito Manas, Adrian Unisa, Stanley Golez, Enzo Ison, Russel Reyes, Luis Moreno, Matthew Ang, Jether Miole, Kryz Aranzanso and Corwin Mercado with host Apple David.
For the National Finals, three different tracks with three different cars were introduced for the three race heats. E-racers sped through the Deep Forest in the Toyota GR Yaris RZ “High Performance” 20 for the first race, the Brands Hatch Grand Prix Circuit in the Toyota GR 86 RZ ‘21 for the second race, and finally, the Fuji International Speedway in the Toyota GR Supra Racing Concept ’18.
With 10 of the best players remaining, tension was high with the races seeing more wheel-to-wheel action as the top e-racers pushed their limits on the virtual racetracks. Players who were put in different batches in the earlier races faced each other for the first time in the National Finals. This was met with enthusiasm from the audience as cheers echoed in the SM Mall of Asia for their favorite racers.
Enzo Ison fights his way to the front of the pack in the second race of the National Finals
Russel Reyes took pole position in the first race but was overtaken by Luis Moreno who went on to win the race after undercutting Reyes in a clever pit strategy. The second race was a reverse grid, which put Moreno at the back with Reyes and Ison in front of him. Race two ended with Moreno on top after making his way to the front of the pack, followed by Ison in second, and Reyes in third. For the third race, positions were reversed once again based on the results of race two, and dynamic weather conditions were enabled. Moreno delivered a masterclass with his pit strategy, which put him ahead of Ison and Reyes, but behind Jether Miole, the race leader. A mistake would cost Miole the lead, and Moreno was quick to take advantage of the opportunity.
The final lap of the last race was met with adrenaline-filled action as Moreno made contact with another driver, putting Ang in the lead. Race three ended with Ang in first place, Moreno in second, and Ison in third.
Official results were announced, revealing Luis Moreno as the TGR GT Cup PH 2024 Champion with 75 points, Enzo Ison in 2nd Place with 48 points, and Russel Reyes in 3rd Place with 45 points. Special awards were also given to Ison for Driver of the Day and Matthew Ang for Fastest Lap.
“This has been a fun event. Thank you so much for giving us sim racers the opportunity to have another shot at the [TGR GT Cup]. Hopefully there’s more to come,” shared Russel Reyes.
“Thank you to my family and friends for supporting and helping me. And to my team, Legion of Racers, thank you for the practices,” shared Enzo Ison.
“I would like to thank Toyota Motor Philippines for a phenomenal event. It’s the first time we had a live event head-to-head, and it’s good to see more of these events coming out. This year, I had a different approach in terms of training. I wanted to be more open, more dynamic, and I’m happy that it paid off,” shared Luis Moreno.
Moreno, Ison and Reyes will represent Team Philippines at the Asia Finals in Malaysia on October 13.
The TOYOTA GAZOO Racing GT Cup Philippines is brought to you by Petron and GT Radial, and in cooperation with Seiko. This event is also supported by Toyota Financial Services Philippines, myTOYOTA Wallet, Denso, AVT, 3M, ROTA, Tuason Racing, OMP, and Kinto One.
For more thrilling action, catch the second race weekend of the TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Philippine Cup on September 28 at the Clark International Speedway in Pampanga. Admission is free!
Those interested in joining the TGR GT Cup Philippines next season can stay tuned to TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Philippines on Facebook, Instagram and X for the latest announcements.