The Hong Kong based GR Asia team will take part in the 2004 FIA European Touring Car Championship.The programme to run a pair of JAS-built Honda Civic Type-R cars in the Independents Trophy was unveiled today by team manager Paul Ridgway. In the latest seasons GR Asia gained a lot of experience in Touring Car racing, taking part in the British and the Asian championships.
They were particularly impressive in the 2003 Macau Guia Race, with Simon Harrison’s Honda Integra fighting against the BMW and Alfa Romeo works cars. (Actually Harrison was in the running for a win before a controversial collision with BMW's Jorg Müller.)

And Harrison himself is the first driver signed for the FIA ETCC campaign; 34-year-old from Cambridge, Harrison is also very experienced in Touring Cars. A race winner in the BTCC, he was works driver for Peugeot Sport in 1995, and claimed the Production title in 2001 at the wheel of a Peugeot 306; he also won twice the British National Saloon Championship in 1994 and 1999, with a Honda Civic and a Honda Integra respectively. “To be racing in Europe is a fantastic opportunity, one that I have been working towards for many years,” commented Harrison. “´We proved in Macau that the team has the expertise to take on the best Europe has to offer, and we plan to build on that throughout the year.
We will not be content to simply go for the Independents Championship, I want to get in amongst the factory cars as often as possible."

The team, which is currently in discussions with a second driver, will start the season with an interim specification car, prior to introducing a series of technical developments. As in Macau, the team will be sponsored by Noble Group, Asia´s largest diversified commodities trading company. Team owner Tim Huxley commented: “We very much hope that our involvement will help stimulate interest in the series before it comes to China in 2005. The ETCC provides a great platform for Asian based companies to gain recognition in Europe, and with the expanded Far Eastern involvement, it is sure to become even more attractive to potential European sponsors”.

(Picture: Simon Harrison and the GR Asia Honda Integra during the 2003 Macau Guia Race).

Last edited by JeffX on February 09, 2004 16:15