Two pole positions for Proton Competition at thrilling season opener in Sepang

Sepang – The Asian Le Mans Series kicked off the 2024/2025 season with two four-hour races at the Sepang International Circuit. For Proton Competition, Giorgio Roda made the first statement at the exciting season-opening weekend in Malaysia, defined by sunshine and heavy rain. The Italian driver, who shares the Oreca 07-Gibson with Vladislav Lomko and Tom Dillmann (FRA), secured pole position for both races with a terrific qualifying performance.

The best race performance of the trio in the number 22 car came on Sunday. Tom Dillmann’s final stint was particularly impressive. He stayed on the track with slicks despite the increasingly heavy rain. With a mighty performance, he even took the overall lead. After being left with no choice but to pit and switch to wet tyres, he dropped back to fourth place. Shortly afterwards, he had the misfortune of the race being red-flagged due to the adverse weather; a restart was not on the cards. This cost Proton Competition the podium they had hoped for.

The second Oreca 07-Gibson fielded by Christian and Michael Ried’s team had its chances thwarted after just 20 minutes. The number 11 car helmed by Alexander Matschull (GER), Jonas Ried (GER) and Mathias Beche (SUI) was hit by a GT car while lapping it, forcing a trip to the pits. The repair cost them two laps, alongside their hopes of a top position. The trio started from the second row in both races. Mathias Beche missed Sunday’s race due to health problems.

The best results for Proton Competition’s Porsche 911 GT3s were two seventh-place finishes for Claudio Schiavone (SUI), Matteo Cressoni (ITA) and Alessio Picariello (BEL) in car number 60 on Saturday and for Celia Martin (FRA), Sarah Bovy (BEL) and Michelle Gatting (DEN) on Sunday. Their number 85 Porsche 911 GT3 is fielded by Proton Competition for Team Iron Dames.

Complete results and standings are available at asianlemansseries.com

Comments after the race
Michael Ried, Team Principal and CTO Proton Competition: “After all our efforts and good preparation, this was not the start to the season that we had hoped for in the Asian Le Mans Series. Now, the team has some time before Dubai to recharge its batteries after a busy year. I hope that we can make good use of that time.”

Christian Ried, Team Principal Proton Competition: “Our expectations for Sepang were high. And when you start from pole position in both races with one car and from the second row in the other, more should actually be possible. It’s a shame that we couldn’t realise that. That’s something for us to work on. Congratulations to Giorgio for his exceptional qualifying performance.”

Alexander Matschull (Oreca 07-Gibson #11): “My first race with Proton Competition was a great experience. We delivered two convincing qualifying sessions. It’s a shame that we couldn’t make more of our strong starting position. Our speed was good enough for a podium finish all weekend. However, our strongest driver Mathias was not fit enough to compete in both races due to health reasons, so Jonas and I were on our own more or less.”

Jonas Ried (Oreca 07-Gibson #11): “I was off to a hot start in the second race. Everything actually went according to plan until a GT car got in my way after a few laps. That foiled my hopes of a good position.”

Matteo Cressoni (Porsche 911 GT3 #60): “Overall, this was a very positive weekend for us. Our seventh place in the first race was a good result. The second race didn’t quite go as well, but a top-10 finish would’ve been possible there, too.”

Sarah Bovy (Porsche 911 GT3 #85): “We’re taking a lot of positives from our first race weekend with Proton Competition. Sunday’s race was very challenging because of the weather. Nevertheless, we managed to work our way up the field. We started from P20 and finished seventh. Everyone in the team gave us excellent support. Things are looking good for the rest of the championship.”

Up next
The next race for Proton Competition in the Asian Le Mans Series is Dubai/UAE with two four-hour races on 8 and 9 February 2025.