Toyota Motor Philippines (TMP) has finally (and officially) announced the champions of this year’s Toyota Gazoo Racing (TGR) Vios Cup, culminating what was another action-packed season. But what’s really interesting was how they kept everyone on their toes for a month before releasing the final results.
John Dizon of JD Motorsports – Ribbon Arc successfully secured the Super Sporting Class title with 2 wins at the season ender held lat November 10/11 at the Clark International Speedway (CIS). Despite suffering a DNF at the 1.5 hour Grand Prix, he earned enough points to come out on top ahead of Joaquin ‘Wakkeen’ Garrido of Toyota North EDSA – Obengers Racing in 2nd. Meanwhile, Gerald Loy of R Racing Team and Ian Rosales of Toyota Team Cebu share 3rd spots in the overall standings.
However, the real head scratcher was how Red Diwa lost the championship in such a dramatic fashion. He came into the finale on top of the standings, but was disqualified from all 3 races that weekend that sent him tumbling down the order.
18-year-old Russel Cabrera of Toyota Team Cebu successfully defended his points lead to be crowned Sporting Class Champion. He played smart and ensured he finished ahead of his title rivals Maila Alivia of JBT Racing x Toyota Isabela and Mikey Jordan of Toyota Otis – Obengers, who in turn ended up 2nd and 3rd in the championship respectively.
As for the Promotional Class, Alain Alonza of Toyota Gen San – Chooks-To-Go Racing pipped previous points leader Jarond Mesina of Toyota Team Cebu for the title. He secured 2 wins and a podium to be crowned champion 15 points ahead of 2nd placer Jarond with fellow Toyota Team Cebu x Edgesport teammate Paolo Ayo keeps his 3rd position in the final standings.
While it’s not ideal to keep teams, drivers, and followers waiting an entire month for the official results (as it dilutes the excitement), at least we can now all put the 2023 TGR Vios Cup behind us. The speculations behind the cause of delay, however, could haunt the series for a little bit longer.
The Toyota Gazoo Racing Vios Cup was organized with the support of sponsors Bridgestone and Petron. This event is also sponsored by Denso, AVT, 3M, ROTA, Tuason Racing, Kinto, and myToyota wallet.
[Photo by James Morales Jr]
