IT WILL be the young versus the old at the Changi Airport Race next month.
On one side of the start line, driving a Porsche Carrera GT3 race car will be 27-year-old Yuey Tan Yu Hian.
His competitor? Captain Peter Leo Chin Fang, 64, who will be piloting a Boeing 747 aircraft.
The two will race over a distance of 1.7km on 5 Sep, as part of the festivities for the Singapore Grand Prix.
The 37-year age gap was apparent yesterday when the press got a chance to interview them at Changi Airport.
Decked out in a casual button-down shirt and bermudas, Mr Tan looked every part the youngster, while Captain Leo was dressed smartly in his pilot's uniform.
Joking about the disparity in dressing, Captain Leo pointed at Mr Tan and said: "This is the present, I am the past."
To which Mr Tan said: "You're like Sean Connery!"
The young and outspoken driver began racing only last October, and has driven the Porsche Carrera GT3 in two races.
Mr Tan, who always wanted to be a racer when he was young, worked in a software engineering company previously to "pay the bills".
Captain Leo, on the other hand, has 46 years of aviation experience and was the youngest captain in the world to be in command of a B747 while in Singapore Airlines. He was then 29.
Experience
Aware of his opponent's background, Mr Tan said: "I think nothing substitutes experience. Hopefully, I'll be faster than that experience come race day."
But to the Jett8 Airlines pilot, the Changi Airport Race is just a regular training flight.
"We're not calling it a race, on our part we'll just be taking it as a training flight," said Captain Leo.
Adding to his comments, Mr Louis Tan, CEO of Jett8 Airlines, said: "The aircraft can go up to 955km/h in the air, so we really have nothing to prove.
"It's all about creating a buzz for the GP season more than anything else, really."
But for the competitive young racer, a race is still a race.
"I'm definitely going to try to beat him. I'll be very focused at the start and I'm sure Peter will be too," said Mr Tan.
How has he prepared for the race?
"One of the most important things is to make sure the car is mechanically in its best shape.
"And I've competed in the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia, so I've had regular seat-time in the car to make me feel accustomed to it."
The experienced Captain Leo also shared with The New Paper what it would be like in the aircraft on race day.
He said: "We'll calculate the speed according to air speeds and weather conditions. When we reach the required speed, we'll take off."
As the interview came to a close, Mr Tan shook hands with Captain Leo and said: "Good luck and may the best man win."
To which Captain Leo replied: "May the better man win."
