Macau GP: Freddie Slater blasts to dominant win in qualifyin...

Freddie Slater stormed to a dominant victory in the qualifying race for the Macau Grand Prix, but faces an investigation into possible pitlane speeding prior to the start.

The recently crowned Formula Regional European champion made a better getaway than polesitter Theo Nael and powered ahead into the Reservoir Bend left-hander that began the lap.

He was untroubled from there, blasting into an impressive 1.6-second lead on the opening tour and then extending that advantage to over 5s by mid-distance.

The Briton eventually crossed the line 5.171s clear after a race that featured surprisingly little incidents, considering the chaotic qualifying sessions earlier in the event, but the result remains provisional while Slater's pre-race antics are investigated.

The Prema Racing driver was aided by Formula Regional Middle East title winner Evan Giltaire and Aston Martin Academy member Mari Boya also jumping Nael on the first lap, Boya jumping up from sixth on the grid.

Giltaire was unable to match the pace of Slater and proved something of a cork in the bottle with Pinnacle Motorsport duo Boya and Nael struggling to find a way through.

Mari Boya

Photo by: Macau Grand Prix Organizing Committee

Eventually Giltaire's defences were breached on lap five of 10 when Boya blasted ahead on the straight approaching Lisboa.

Nael then produced a near-identical move on Giltaire on the following tour, but Slater's lead was too huge for the Pinnacle pair to make any serious inroads.

However, both Boya and Nael traded fastest laps with Slater in the closing stages and demonstrated their potential when running in clear air.

Giltaire had to settle for fourth, while his ART GP team-mate Taito Kato was fifth and Enzo Deligny was sixth, although the R-ace GP driver is another who faces an investigation into possible pre-race speeding in the pitlane.

The only major incident of the race came on the first lap as the field bunched into the Melco Hairpin and Oscar Wurz collided with Charles Leong, but Wurz was able to guide his damaged car into the escape road to avoid the need for a caution.