The Maserati MC12, driven by Andrea Bertolini and Fabio Babini, finished 4th in the GT1 class and 6th overall in the ALMS New England Grand Prix, held at Lime Rock Park yesterday.

A large crowd attended the fourth round of the American Le Mans Series, on what was a hot and sunny Independence Day. The MC12, battling against its close rivals - the two GT1 class Corvettes and the Saleen, ran as high as second and looked to be on for a favorable result. However, mid-way through the race the car encountered a technical issue, losing coolant on lap 87. The team was quickly able to diagnose the issue and find a solution.

On lap 115 a Full Course Yellow emerged and the MC12 pitted and had pressurized coolant shot into the cooling system while also getting fuel and tyres. The team's strategy was successful, enabling the car to finish the race, and to compete for a podium position, although this took an extra fifteen seconds in the pit. The car came out running fourth on the same lap as the ACEMCO Saleen and made a charge to regain a top position. The safety car re-emerged and stayed out until near the end of the race. Fabio Babini was able to catch the Saleen, but did not have the time to set up a pass, as the race ended.

Giorgio Ascanelli - Technical Director, Maserati Corse: “The team fought hard through the weekend to find the best set up for the car."
 

We felt very good coming into today, and thought we would have a place on the podium. If not for the coolant issue, we are confident that is where we would have finished. We regret the length of the Yellow at the end which did not enable us enough time to catch the Saleen. We would like to thank the Corvette team for allowing us through, however, in that final section, they are very good sportsmen.”

Andrea Bertolini: “The car ran very well, the Pirelli tyres were exceptional all day, but the result was not what we wanted. The MC 12 continues to get more competitive, and we are able to quickly find our speed at all of the new courses we compete at. We feel confident that we will soon find success. I would like to commend both the Maserati and Risi team for the exceptional work keeping us in the race despite the coolant issue.”

Fabio Babini: “The car really felt great and showed how strong it could be. The brakes and the tires just felt fantastic all day. I nearly had the Saleen at the end, but just did not have enough time to set them up correctly for a pass. They are very strong competitors and should be commended.”