Gianni Morbidelli declares title fight over after Singapore

WestCoast Racing driver Gianni Morbidelli took a podium in Singapore, where the Honda Civics were supposed to be the cars to beat due to the long straights.

The Italian went no further than third and fourth on the weekend instead, despite starting from the front row on Saturday night’s race.

While on the first heat the Italian almost fainted due to his health conditions, a combination of jet lag and a heavy cold, the situation did not improve as much as he would have liked on Sunday, leaving the Honda driver out of contention for the podium.

“I was quite sick on Sunday as well, I still had a fever but it was much tougher on Sunday,” admitted the Honda driver. “I would say the second race was quite mediocre: starting from the fifth row due to the reversed grid I managed to overtake three cars in the first three laps, but then got stuck behind (Liqui Moly Team Engstler’s) Lorenzo Veglia and that was it, the podium was out of reach.”

With two races to go and 110 points at stake, Morbidelli feels the 47-points gap separating him from championship leader Stefano Comini is way too big and called it a day for this year’s title bid: “Any chances of winning the championship are gone. In Thailand and Macau I will try to add to my three wins from this year, that’s as much as I will be able to do. It’s a shame, but that’s racing.”

Although still in with a mathematical chance to win the championship, just like fellow Honda driver Kevin Gleason, the Italian therefore waves the white flag and will focus on race wins.