Marciello dominates GT World Cup in Macao

Mercedes' Rafaele Marciello emerged victorious in the FIA GT World Cup at Macao's Guia Circuit on Sunday (Nov. 19).

Starting from pole position after having won yesterday's qualifying race, the Swiss driver fended off the challenge from Maro Engel at the start to hold a lead he would keep to the flag.

Marciello's progress might have been troubled when the Safety Car was deployed on Lap 6 to clear Chen Weian's Ferrari after the Chinese driver had clouted the barriers at the Lisboa Bend.

Conversely, however, the Safety Car period aided Marciello, as second-placed Engel suddenly slowed with an apparent mechanical issue as the field returned to racing speed on Lap 7, allowing Marciello to build a lead of around three seconds over the chasing pack, now headed by Edoardo Mortara in his Audi.

"It feels amazing," said Marciello afterward.

"We knew that the key was to have a good start. Maro was quite quick at the beginning, and after the Safety Car, he had an issue, and thanks to this I gained a few seconds, and then it was just a matter of controlling until the end," he said.

"In Macao, it's never easy, because a mistake is always around the corner, but it was a great race," he added.

After Marciello, Mortara finished in second position, while Augusto Farfas of BMW, who started from sixth on the grid, completed the top three.