It was the only first race of the season, but tensions were already running high when the SEAOIL Radical Challenge Philippines powered by BPI got underway over the weekend. With a mixed grid of Radical SR1s and SR3s, there was action happening up and down the field in all 3 races at the Batangas Racing Circuit (BRC) and produced 4 different class winners.
Fueled by race-engineered SEAOIL Extreme-97 fuel, Mikey Jordan drew first blood by setting the fastest lap in Qualifying. His blistering time in the SEAOIL-livered SR3 came as a surprise as he only arrived at the track on Friday and had the least amount of experience in a Radical. Also, an eye-opener was Rainy Medina who ended the session in P2 despite running a slower SR1, which was a preview of things to come in the races.
Race 1 got underway under gloomy skies with Jordan leading the way. But hot on his heels was Medina in the green-livered Autoholic Garage SR1 who eventually found a way past Jordan after a few laps. Behind them was Portuguese driver Andre Rodrigues in another Radical SR3 who was quickly catching up to Jordan. The pair fought for the class lead in the closing stages of the race with Rodrigues making a clean overtake with 2 laps to go. After 12 laps of racing, Medina would cross the finish line 1st on the road and claimed a commanding SR1 Challenge Cup win. Sydney Sarmiento, on the other hand, trailed by over 50 secs behind to claim 2nd in class.
As for the SR3 Challenge Cup runners, Rodrigues was victorious on his race debut with Jordan following close behind in 2nd.
Sydney Sarmiento lined up on pole position for Race 2 and maintained the lead as the field made its way through the first turn. Medina saw an opening and immediately grabbed P2, followed by Rodrigues and Jordan. It then became a battle of the SR1s at the front with Medina desperately trying to take the P1 spot away from Sarmiento. But in his haste, the pair collided and dropped both of them to dead last. Now with a clear road ahead, Rodrigues and Jordan were nose-to-tail in the fight for P1 which lasted for almost half the race distance. Unfortunately, a technical issue forced Jordan to slow down and settle for 2nd in class, gifting another win to Rodriguez.
Matthew Edmunds took the chequered flag in 1st in the SR1 Challenge Cup with Medina in 2nd and Sarmiento a lap down in 3rd.
Everyone went gung-ho at the start of Race 3 with Rodrigues coming out of Turn 1 in the lead. A lighting quick start from Medina again saw him move up to P2 and split the 2 Radical SR3s. But it only took a couple of laps for a much faster Jordan to overtake Medina and setup another Radical SR3 rematch with Rodrigues. This time, the pressure got to Rodrigues who made an error and went off track, allowing Jordan to take the lead and secure 1st place in the SR3 Challenge Cup.
It was another strong performance for Medina who won the SR1 Challenge Cup, followed by Sarmiento in 2nd, and finally Edmunds in 3rd to wrap up an exciting curtain raiser.
After a successful first event in the 2024 SEAOIL Radical Challenge Philippines powered by BPI, the series moves to the Clark International Speedway on the 11th to 13th of October for Round 2.
