The name may have changed, but the ‘Vios Racing Festival’ is still the same one-make-series that has given us action-packed races since its inception in 2014. And now that they’ve reached the end of their 2019 season, Toyota Motor Philippines (TMP) is again ready to laud a fresh set of Sporting, Promotional, Celebrity, and Team champions.
Bridgestone Sporting Class | Red Diwa of Growl-Thule Racing x JBT Racing x Toyota Isabela
After last year’s near miss, Red Diwa has redeemed himself by securing the Sporting Class title by just 6 points. Though he only managed to land a single race victory, his consistent results and 5 podium finishes were key in becoming the 2019 champion.
His closest rival just so happened to be his teammate, Eggy Ong, in the sister JBT Racing x Toyota San Fernando entry. Only 6 points separated the 2 drivers leading into the season ender where Eggy wrapped up his Vios OMR debut season 3rd overall in the standings. Meanwhile, John Dizon of Toyota Marilao – Obengers made a valiant attempt to score back-to-back titles, but a DNF and DNS severely hurt his chances at a repeat in 2019 to land 2nd overall.
Promotional Class | Francis ‘Quattro’ Adriano of Toyota San Jose Del Monte – Obengers
Series newcomer and sim-racer-turned-race-car-driver Quattro Adriano simply blew the competition away in the Promotional Class. He would deliver 4 wins and 3 podium finishes out of 8 starts to be crowned champion despite a DNF in the final race of 2019.
His teammates at Obengers Racing, on the other hand, locked out the remaining Top 3 spots in the championship standings. Julian Tang and Elysse Menorca shared the podium with Quattro at almost all occasions with Julian concluding the year 2nd and Elysse in 3rd overall.
Celebrity Class | Troy Montero
Daniel Matsunaga lead the points standings heading into the season ender and was on course to claim the title. But as luck would have it, mechanical woes dropped him way down the order and allowed a dominant Troy Montero to secure the Celebrity Class championship. Troy would win it by 49 points, with 7 race victories to his name. His wife Aubrey Miles concluded the year 2nd overall, while fellow lady driver Gretchen Ho was 3rd.
Team Champion | Toyota Balintawak-Obengers
John Dizon and Elysse Menorca may have lost out in their respective class honors, but their combined efforts throughout the season did not leave them empty handed. Together, they would win the Team Championship for Toyota Balintawak-Obengers, followed by the Toyota North EDSA – Obengers pairing of Marc Soong and Quattro Adriano. Eggy Ong and Darrel Garbes then rounded up the Top 3 for JBT Racing x Toyota San Fernando.
“Toyota appreciates your heartfelt support over the course of the Vios Racing Festival. Together, we all contribute to the growth of motorsports in the Philippines, and we’ll continue to do so for more years to come,” said TMP President Satoru Suzuki.
The Toyota Vios Racing Festival is supported by partners and sponsors Bridgestone, Motul, Rota, Brembo, Denso, AVT, 3M, OMP, and Tuason Racing.
