Sportcar Racing Team Claims Podium at the RAF Cup and the AKHMAT RACE Chechen Republic Cup
The capital of Chechnya hosted a big racing weekend at the "Fortress Grozny" circuit. Over three days, Sportcar Racing Team took part in two series at once — SMP GT4 Russia and SMP RCRS Endurance — and the highlight of the stage was the team's long-awaited podium in the four-hour Akhmat Race marathon.
On Friday and Saturday, races of the next SMP GT4 Russia stage were held. In qualifying, the crew of Vitaly Larionov and Ivan Shcherbakov in a Mercedes-AMG GT4 showed good pace and secured sixth place on the grid for the first race and fifth for the second.
The Friday race was a tight battle. Throughout the distance, our crew kept up with the rivals' pace and continued fighting right to the finish, ending the race in sixth position.
The Saturday race, unfortunately, unfolded differently. At the end of the first lap, there was contact with a rival's car, whose driver made an overly optimistic overtaking attempt, as a result of which the Mercedes-AMG GT4 sustained damage that prevented it from continuing the race.
Later on Saturday afternoon, the team switched to a completely different format — the four-hour SMP RCRS Endurance marathon. Several practice sessions were held on Saturday, and on Sunday the crew of Vitaly Larionov and Ivan Shcherbakov in a Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS started from fourth position in the GT4 class.
Throughout all four hours, the drivers steadily covered the distance and tried to maintain their pace in 30-degree heat. The coordinated work of the team on track and in the pits allowed them to climb to third position in the GT4 class by the finish and take sixth place in the overall standings.
"This podium was a long-awaited result for the team, one we've been steadily working toward throughout the season together with our partners. With the support of the ROLF motor oil brand and technical backing from Moscow Polytech, we continue to develop our racing program, refine the car, and move forward from stage to stage. Success in racing is made up of many details — car preparation, the work of engineers and mechanics, strategy, the drivers' consistency, and the support of those around the team. We thank Moscow Polytech and ROLF for their contribution to our work, and we're glad to share this result with you. But we don't intend to rest on our laurels — the decisive part of the racing season lies ahead, with final stages in four series at once," the team representatives said.
On September 26, the GT Sport Cup final will take place; on October 3, the final stage of REC; and on October 9–11, the season will wrap up with the final weekend of SMP RCRS Sprint and Endurance.
