Three Audi R8 LMS GT3s to compete in 2025 GT World Challenge Asia presented by AWS

UNO Racing will join the previously announced FAW Audi and Audi Sport Asia Phantom Teams to compete in the 2025 AWS presented by GT World Challenge Asia Cup. Long-time Audi racing driver and former Young Driver Development Program member Tang Weifeng will team up with young talented driver Rio to form the UNO Racing team's strong lineup and will launch an impact on the annual championship of the Silver category. At the same time, the previously announced three official drivers of Audi Sport Asia in the 2025 season will also compete in this leading multi-brand GT3 series in the region to compete for the championship title. The first race will kick off at the 5.54-kilometer Sepang International Circuit in Malaysia from April 11 to 13.

FAW Audi Phantom Racing will send GT3 Silver defending champion Cheng Congfu to partner with potential rising star Yu Kuai, while international star driver Markus Winkelhock will partner with Chinese driver Bao Jinlong to represent Audi Sport Asia Phantom Racing in the Pro-Am category.

"We have teamed up with customer drivers and teams to form three strong driver lineups that will compete for victory and the annual championship title throughout the GT World Challenge Asia Cup season." Alexander Bo, Head of Audi Sport Customer Racing Asia "The competition will be as fierce as ever, and to stay competitive in the fight for the title, you need to score points in almost every race. Our customer drivers and teams are highly focused and ready for the challenge," said David Blackie, CEO of the Audi Sport Asia Customer Racing Team.

In the UNO Racing team, 29-year-old Weifeng Tang has ten years of experience driving Audi racing cars. He joined the Audi Sport Asia customer racing department young driver development program in 2015 and participated in many events such as the Nürburgring 24 Hours, the Asian GT Endurance Series and the Audi Sport R8 LMS Cup. As an all-round driver, Weifeng Tang has achieved impressive results in single-seaters, prototypes, touring cars and GT events. His teammate Rio will usher in his first full GT World Challenge Asia Cup season after making a name for himself in the Chinese domestic arena.

Cheng Congfu is not a new face in the GT World Challenge Asia Cup. In the 2025 season, he will join hands with his new partner Yu Kuai to start the journey of defending the GT3 Silver category driver championship in Sepang. The 24-year-old rising star Yu Kuai is a graduate of the Audi Sport Asia Young Driver Development Program. After the careful training of the program in the past two years, he will officially participate in the competition as an official driver of Audi Sport Asia this season.

Meanwhile, Winkelhock, a long-time official Audi Sport driver, will be paired with China’s top-speed Am driver Bao Jinlong. As a talented Chinese driver, Bao was selected for the Racing Star Training Program early in his youth single-seater career. After gaining some experience in single-seater formula racing, he gradually turned to single-brand supercar events.

Bao Jinlong is no stranger to the Audi R8 LMS GT3. He participated in the Audi Sport R8 LMS Cup in 2018 and won the invitational championship that season. In the 2023 season, in addition to the Asian single-brand series championship, he also won the runner-up in the Asian Le Mans Series and climbed the podium in the group at the Bathurst 12 Hours.

The two racing cars of FAW Audi Phantom Team and Audi Sport Asia Phantom Team will adopt a new custom paint inspired by Chinese folklore in the new season. Both racing car paints were created by Audi China Design Team, cleverly incorporating the dual elements of "wind" and "fire", with contrasting colors and unique characteristics.

UNO Racing's second-generation Audi R8 LMS GT3 evo II will also be the focus of attention with its gorgeous pink paint.

The 2025 GT World Challenge Asia Cup will feature six rounds of 12 races. The opening race will begin at noon on Friday, April 11, with a one-hour free practice session followed by a 30-minute practice session for FIA-certified Bronze drivers. Pre-qualifying will begin at 15:00.

The first of the two 15-minute qualifying sessions will start at 10:25 on Saturday, the first 60-minute race will start at 14:15, and the second race will be held at 11:30 on Sunday (all times are UTC+08:00).