David Russell believes there is more to come from the HubAuto Corsa team following a podium at the Blancpain GT World Challenge Asia opener in Malaysia.

Joining the squad for the 2019 season, Russell drove with Yuya Sakamoto to record a third place finish in the opening 60-minute race of the weekend.

That followed victory for the HubAuto Corsa team at the California 8 Hours the weekend before, a result which prevented Russell and co from taking part in joining the bulk of the Blancpain field in a private practice day at Sepang last Thursday.

Surviving tricky changeable conditions during Saturday’s race, Russell took over the car from Sakamoto at half distance to run second, holding on to record a podium on debut with the team.

“It is so great to be back racing on the international GT stage as I have really missed this type of intense competition,” Russell admitted.

“The Ferrari is a great car to drive, it is very different to all of the other GT cars I’ve driven and I feel I haven’t quite got it 100 percent yet after the limited running over the race weekend.

“It is fantastic to have a podium in my first ever round with the team especially as the Blancpain GT World Challenge Asia level of competition this year has definitely stepped up.

“The team has done a great job with their car preparation and pit stops, so it was rewarding to give them another podium after their success in the US recently.

“Yuya and I form a strong GT pairing and we worked very well together. We are definitely going to come on a lot stronger as we both learn the car and the competition.”

Russell and Sakamoto then raced to sixth in Sunday’s race, leaving the pair fourth in the drivers’ standings with 23 points.

The second round of the Blancpain GT World Challenge Asia season heads to Buriram International Circuit in Thailand on May 11-12.