|
The new Alfa Romeo
Racing Team joined BMW, SEAT, Ford and Chevrolet on track at
Monza yesterday as a new dawn in touring car racing began.
The 2005 FIA World Touring Car Championship was launched on
Tuesday morning, during a crowded press conference at the
historic Italian Grand Prix circuit. More than two hundred
journalists, photographers and TV crew members from over
twenty different countries attended the event, together with
many guests, including the manufacturer's representatives
and drivers.
The press conference to launch the series took place in the
media centre, during a break between the different sessions
of the official testing that have been started at 9.00 in
the morning.
During the press conference, Marcello Lotti, promoter of the
FIA WTCC said: “Four years
ago in Monza, we had started from scratch with the FIA
European Touring Car Championship. If by then somebody would
have told me that in four years we were here again to start
a World Championship, I would have said he was mad…”
Jacques Behar, chairman of KSO and managing director of
Eurosport, unveiled the worldwide TV distribution for the
season: “Besides Eurosport usual coverage, the FIA WTCC
will be broadcast on a number of premiere national TV
channels, like the RAI in Italy, TF1 in France, TVE in
Spain, ZDF in Germany and TV Azteca in Mexico. And other
negotiations are still ongoing.”
An unexpected special guest attended at the last
minute, Lapo Elkann, manager of Fiat Auto brand promotion.
After the press conference was over he enjoyed a ride in one
of the Alfa Romeo 156 racers driven by factory pilot Augusto
Farfus.
Farfus fastest for Alfa Romeo on track
In fact it was Alfa Romeo's young Brazilian driver Augusto Farfus
who set the fastest time around Monza during the FIA WTCC's official
first day of testing.
|
 |
|
An unexpected
special guest attended Monza at the last minute: Lapo Elkann,
manager of Fiat Auto brand promotion |
|
|
 |
|
The new Alfa Romeo
Racing Team joined BMW, SEAT, Ford and Chevrolet on track at
Monza as the WTCC was launched |
|
|
The newly
christened and re-branded 'Alfa Romeo Racing Team', with
2005 driver's Gabriele Tarquini, Fabrizio Giovanardi,
Augusto Farfus and James Thompson all on hand, where on
track joined by their factory WTCC rivals: BMW, SEAT, Ford
and Chevrolet, as well as selected competitors from this
year's CSAI-promoted Italian Touring Car Championship.
Farfus and his Alfa Romeo 156 finished the opening day of
testing fractionally faster than the leading BMW 320i race
cars of Germans, Jorg and Dirk Müller, and
Spaniard, García. However, is was former the Alfa Romeo
Autodelta factory driver Roberto Colciago who created the
biggest surprise of the day, when he set the fifth fastest
time overall at the wheel of the promising JAS Motorsport
run Honda Accord.
World Touring Car Championship newcomers Ford and Chevrolet
appear to still have a lot of work to do to close the gap to
Alfa Romeo and BMW as they languished all day at the bottom
of the timesheets, well away from the pace, while the SEAT
cars failed to confirm the strong
performances they had turned in during their recent testing in Magny-Cours
and Silverstone.
Monza Test Times - Day
1
1st Farfus Alfa
Romeo 1:59.492,
2nd J. Müller BMW 1:59.525,
3rd D. Müller BMW 1:59.723, 4th García BMW 1:59.807, 5th Colciago Honda 1:59.841,
6th Thompson Alfa Romeo 2:00.031, 7th Zanardi BMW 2:00.238,
8th Rydell SEAT 2:00.407, 9th Giovanardi Alfa 2:00.423, 10th Priaulx BMW 2:00.476,
11th De Lorenzi BMW 2:00.613, 12th Tarquini Alfa Romeo 2:00.628,
13th D’Aste BMW 2:00.999,
14th A. Larini Alfa Romeo 2:01.361, 15th Tavano Alfa Romeo 2:01.471
|
|
|
|
