Aston Martin gets FIA-backed Gran Turismo Manufacturer Series title
Aston Martin clinched the FIA-certified Gran Turismo Championships Manufacturer Series win in Paris after finishing first in the final race of four
The unexpected title came after it had qualified 10th of the 12 teams on Friday, but Aston Martin managed to claw its way to the top by virtue of Yoshiharu Imai's climb to seventh in the opener.
His team-mate Thomas Compton-Mcpherson blazed his way through to second in the following race before a second successive podium gave Aston Martin the platform to take Nissan on in the final, trailing by just four points in the standings.
In the final race of four, a double points encounter, Marcell seized the lead from Nissan's Igor Fraga at Barcelona's Turn 1 to take the lead on the first lap of 17.
The Mitsubishi team led by Shogo Yoshida took over the race lead on lap three, running the soft compound compared to the medium tyres of Aston Martin.
But second place would still be enough for Aston to seal the title, and it was bolstered by Nissan falling down to 10th early on after an incident with Chevrolet.
BMW - who were third overall entering the final race - started last out of the 12 teams in a further boost to Aston's title hopes.
While Mitsubishi had created a gap of over 10 seconds to second-placed Aston Martin during the second stint having run a faster compound, the gap was slashed to five seconds after the final pit stops.
With Aston Martin on the soft compound and Mitsubishi on the hard tyres, it was not long until Aston Martin took over the lead of the race with two laps remaining, going on to secure the Manufacturer Series victory overall.
The chance of victory looked slim for the Aston Martin team, having qualified down in 10th out of the 12 teams on Friday.
The FIA GT Championships returns on Sunday at 1pm UK time for the Nations Cup event. You can watch live and find out more information here.
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