Huge crowd animated by racers at Zhuhai Int'l Circuit

Nearly 100,000 spectators cheered on some of the world's best drivers despite scorching heat during the R5 and R6 of the 2017 China GT Championship at Zhuhai International Circuit in Tangjiawan Town on July 29-30. Drivers in GT3, GTC, and GT4 classes fought it out for victory over a series of races.

There was a lively atmosphere at the opening ceremony as fans got up close and personal with stars of the track. The ceremony was held on the starting line and featured a drive-by of all the competitors, reported chinagt.net.

As the top sports car racing series in Asia, the China GT Championship is in its second season after merging with the GT Asia Series in 2016.

Last weekend saw entries from Bentley Continental, Lamborghini Hurcan, Maclaren Automotive, Audi R8, Porsche 911, Aston Matin Vantage, KTM X-box, Nissan GT-R, and Radical RXC.

GT sports cars

This is the first year that rounds of the championship have been held in Zhuhai, and drivers braving the heat thrilled more than 200,000 spectators on the challenging 4.3 km circuit over the two weekends -- R3 and R4 being hosted at the circuit on July 8-9.

Eric Lo and Melvin Moh from Hong Kong, driving the Audi R8 LMS, came first in GT3, with Roelof Bruins and David McIntyre taking top spot in GT4 on July 29.

Wang Liang and Martin Rump's explosive performance in the last leg of the race overtook several cars to claim first place for Kings. Bao Jinlong and Martin Ragginger of FAW T2M and Li Chao and Chris van der Drift for JRM JiaRui-Tengda respectively finished in second and third, according to chinagt.net.

China GT Championship is ratified by CAMF (China Autosport & Motorsport Federation), and authorized by the General Administration of Sports of China.

Animated atmosphere [Photos by Li Jianshu / Zhuhai Daily]

The organizers of the event called it a complete success with a vast range of fun activities for the whole family, including professional training from BMW GT Academy, a chance to meet drivers and teams, and even be driven around the circuit at full speed.