It was another one-two victory this afternoon for Maserati, following on from their success at he 24 Hours of Spa. This weekend witnessed the FIA GT series move on to Oschersleben in Germany. Only mathematics are now keeping the Trident marque from claiming the Constructors' Cup.

At the end of an exciting race the Vitaphone Team car of Fabio Babini and Thomas Biagi secured their first win of the season. They edged out Andrea Bertolini and Karl Wendlinger, who have now extended their lead in the drivers' championship. Three Italians were on the podium, and so the Vitaphone Racing Team maintains its lead in the teams' championship ahead of the JMB Racing team.

Behind the two MC12s came the Chevrolet Corvette C5-R driven by Mike Hezemans, Bert Longin and Anthony Kumpen. They came in just in front of the Saleen C7-R with Jean-Marc Gounon and Walter Lechner in the driving seat. It was a good fifth spot for the Philipp Peter, Arjan van der Zwaan and Marcello Zani piloted JMB Racing Maserati MC12. They preceded the GPC Sport Ferrari 575 GTC, the Labre Ferrari 550 Maranello and the Reiter Engineering Lamborghini Murcielago R-GT. Zani was making his debut in the MC12.

The Maserati MC12 "home team" formed of Michael Bartels and Timo Scheider, were unlucky after having led for most of the race. They were forced to retire following with a problem with the starter. This after they were called to the pits by race officials.

At the start the GLPK Racing Corvette split the two Vitaphone MC12s on the front row. Bartels took the lead early on. Hezemans then took top spot, and then Babini, after a tight duel when the pit stops began. In the meantime, Peter had moved up to fourth place after two great overtaking moves on Gounon and Piccini. Bertolini and Wendlinger started from eighth but made a superb comeback that saw them finish second on the very last lap. At the second round of pit stops, after two hours, Bartels and Scheider left the scene. Babini took the place of Biagi, who had re-taken the Corvette. He maintained top spot until the chequered flag.
 

The Italian pairing took the win at the end. They were very quick and lucky here but have been unlucky in the previous races. Bertolini and Wendlinger's consistent form was rewarded despite the 100kg of ballast on board.

Fabio Babini: "It was important after Spa to win points and keep in touch with the leaders. We managed to claim the first win of the season. I would like to thank the team, Pirelli and Maserati as they did their all to obtain this result".

Thomas Biagi: "It was the second win on this circuit after having won in 2003. We had a great duel with the Corvette. It was a shame that Bartels/Scheider retired. We wanted to score a Vitaphone one-two here in  Germany for our sponsors and the fans".

Andrea Bertolini: "Owing to the 100kg ballast and the problems in finding the right set up, we are very pleased. We were very consistent and have increased our lead overall. I would also like to thank Pirelli".

Karl Wendlinger: "It was difficult to overtake on this track. It didn't think I would get such a good result after qualifying. When I saw the Corvette ahead of me a few laps from the end, I pushed as much as possible and managed to overtake it".

After the 24 Hours of Spa success, and Bertolini and Wendlinger's victory at Magny Cours, it is the third win of the season for the Maserati-Pirelli combination. The MC12s race in the FIA GT Championship on Pirelli tyres, as they also do in the North American ALMS series. This collaboration is further confirmation of the success of the relationship between Maserati and Pirelli. The proof of this are the wins in the Italian GT championship and the Trofeo Maserati Vodafone Europa.