From August 28th to September 1st Thailand’s motorsport fanatics all headed to Bangsaen for the Bangsaen Grand Prix 2019. Every year this beach town, less than an hour drive from Pattaya, sees several hundred thousand Thais and foreigners alike converge for several days of world class motor sports running thru the city. The course has plenty of tight corners and twists around the coast roads before straightening out and heading towards the beach.
The four day spectacle is actually a combination of many race classes and events all packed into one. This year the beach area was turned into the “Car Show Festival Field” which was a popular draw with plenty of Instagram-able photos shared.
Toyota Motor Thailand Co. Ltd. arranged a showcase of Hulux Revo’s which were all specially modified into many different styles by famous car shops in the Kingdom. Toyota also hosted an e-project with several competitions consisting of e-sports, testing your virtual driving skills and E-Kart, (E-GoKart Racing) competing with electric Go Karts on a specially built track.
This year’s Grand Prix drew more than 300 racers from 29 countries, all here to race on the largest smooth track in Thailand. The racing classes included Thailand Super Eco, Thailand Super Production, Thailand Super Compact, Thailand Super Pickup, Thailand Touring Car, TA2, Thailand Supercar GTC, Thailand Supercar GTM & Thailand Supercar GT3.
AAS Motorsport and the Morseng Racing Team dominated the GTC class of the Thailand Super Series, simultaneously topping the Porsche Sprint Trophy Thailand GT4 category contributing to a pair of 1-2 finishes for the first-generation Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport. Meanwhile, Mongkol Motorsports took a GTM victory in the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (Type 991), also winning the Porsche Sprint Trophy Thailand’s GTC class.
Starting from the front row of the grid, the #46 AAS Motorsport car of Pasu Liptapanlop took the lead immediately, followed by his team-mate TCR Thailand Touring Car Championship racer Nattachak Hanjitkasem in the #66 machine from the second row.
The Thai pair eased away from the chasing pack to not only score a 1-2 for the team but cross the finish a full minute ahead of their nearest rival on the 3.7 kilometre seaside street circuit.
Liptapanlop almost did the double on Sunday but an off gave the #14 Morseng Racing Team car of Chayapon Yotha the lead. He went on to take the victory, backing up a strong fourth-place finish in race one, ahead of Hanjitkasem for another Porsche 1-2.
Of all the racing taking place, one that drew some of the most excitement was the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia which held rounds nine and ten of the 2019 season at the Bangsaen Street Circuit. Martin Ragginger and Will Bamber shared the victories with Bao Jinlong and Francis Tjia taking the Pro-Am spoils.
The Bangsaen Grand Prix is a yearly event and one not to be missed if a day at the races is your kind of fun.