The two Maserati MC12s shared the spoils
at Misano last Sunday and confirmed that
they are the cars to beat in the Italian Gran Turismo
championship. Miguel Ramos and Luca Cappellari claimed the
opening encounter in the Racing Box MC12, while Gianbattista
Giannoccaro and Toni Vilander made it a clean sweep for the
GT1 class Maserati by running out on top in race two.
Qualifying
The Maserati
MC12s continued the fine form shown in Saturday morning’s
two practice sessions for the Italian Gran Turismo
championship. In the first timed lap to decide the grid
positions for race 1, Miguel Ramos’ Racing Box car took pole
in a time of 1’08”824 at an average of 131,134 km/h. The
Portuguese driver completed eleven laps and only set his
fast lap at the end of the session, half a second quicker
than Andrea Montermini’s Saleen S7R. Third on the grid will
be Toni Vilander in the Playteam Sara Free MC12 (1’09”463).
Vilander’s car was weighed down with 100kg of ballast, the
maximum permitted under GT1 regulations.
In the second session to clear up the race 2 grid positions,
Luca Cappellari took his Racing Box MC12 to pole after a
tight battle with Bontempelli’s Saleen S7R. Despite the ever
worsening track conditions, Cappellari set a fantastic time
of 1’09”465 at an average of 129,924 km/h (18 laps run).
Fourth came Giannoccaro (Playteam Sara Free, 1’10”775), who
overtook Kessel’s Ferrari as the session drew to a close.
Immediately after setting his fastest time, Giannoccaro
ended up in the sand at the Merzario curve, resulting in the
red flag being shown as his MC12 was towed to the pit lane.
Miguel Ramos: I was surprised at the MC12’s speed here at
Magione. Compared to front wheel drive cars, we are good
when cornering and do not experience tiresome understeer.
Luca Cappellari: It was a tough session because of the
track conditions that were wet after an entire day of
qualifying. I often ran into traffic and this created
problems for me.
Toni Vilander: We felt immediately at home in the car and
made very few modifications after Vallelunga. We slightly
adjusted the aerodynamics and boosted the rear load. In this
race, 100kg of ballast will certainly not help us.
Gianbattista Giannoccaro: The car’s balance was a little
better than in free practice with less understeer.
Unfortunately, I found myself on a dirty stretch of track
and I finished up in the sand. This marked the end of my
session and I did not have the chance to counter Chiesa’s
attacks.
Race 1
At the rolling start, Ramos (Racing Box MC12) held off
Montermini’s Saleen while Vilander (Playteam Sara Free MC12)
conserved third. Thanks to his pace, the Portuguese driver
built a lead of over 3” after ten minutes. In third, the
extra 100kg that Vilander had on board did not prevent him
from keeping in contact with Montermini and enjoy a healthy
lead over Chiesa’s Ferrari. Over the successive laps,
Vilander closed in to only five tenths of the Saleen.
Meanwhile, the Racing Box MC12 stretched even further ahead
and was 9” up after twenty minutes of racing. After 13’,
Vilander tried to edge past Montermini on the mixed section
of the track but clipped him. The clash resulted in the Finn
spinning. He managed to continue and even held onto his
third place. At the halfway stage, Vilander pulled in for
the driver change but the Playteam Sara Free’s MC12 stop
lasted longer than expected. It turned out that the incident
with the Saleen had damaged the front right suspension and
retirement was inevitable.
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![MASERATI MC12](maserati_mc12_8.jpg)
![MASERATI MC12](maserati_mc12_5.jpg)
![MASERATI MC12](maserati_mc12_6.jpg)
![MASERATI MC12](maserati_mc12_4.jpg) |
Toni Vilander and
Gianbattista Giannoccaro won race two at Misano in
the Scuderia Playteam Maserati MC12, and maintain
their lead of the 2006 Italian GT Championship. |
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![MASERATI MC12](maserati_mc12_7.jpg)
![MASERATI MC12](maserati_mc12_2.jpg)
![MASERATI MC12](maserati_mc12_3.jpg)
![MASERATI MC12](maserati_mc12_1.jpg) |
Miguel Ramos and Luca Cappellari claimed the opening
Italian GT Championship race at Misano last Sunday,
giving the Racing Box Maserati MC12 its first series
win of the season. |
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Ramos, in the Racing Box car,
delayed making his stop as long as possible and, when he
eventually pitted, handed over to Cappellari. Fifteen
minutes from the end, the MC12 held a 12” advantage over the Saleen (with Bontempelli at the wheel). The race did not
offer any further surprises and Cappellari went on to score
the Racing Box MC12’s first win of the season.
Miguel Ramos: A perfect car that allowed us to take pole,
victory and set the quickest lap without ever dipping in
performance.
Luca Cappellari: My job was to maintain the lead that
Miguel had established in the first half of the race. When I
saw the other MC12 pull up and the Saleen much further back,
I slowed down and closed out the race without any trouble.
Toni Vilander: I clashed with Montermini in the curve
that leads into the start straight. The incident resulted in
my suspension being damaged. I completed another six laps
before it gave out after taking a battering from the kerbs
that are very prominent here.
Race 2
Luca Cappellari got off to a fine start in race 2.
Giannoccaro also held onto his position and was in fourth at
the end of lap one. On lap five, the Playteam Sara Free
driver had moved up to third after overtaking Kessel’s
Ferrari. After 20’, Cappellari’s lead over Bontempelli’s
Saleen was still a limited one; Giannoccaro was some 8”5
further back. The two MC12s both came in at around the same
time for the driver change while the Saleen stayed out one
lap more. Once all the pit stops had been made, it was
Montermini’s Saleen that held top spot. He was tracked by
Ramos’ Maserati and that driven by Vilander. On lap 25,
Vilander attacked Ramos at the curve situated by the old pit
lane and set off after Montermini. He duly swept him past in
the mixed stretch of the circuit. In just a few hundred
metres, the Finn had taken the lead, leaving a duelling
Montermini and Ramos behind him. Twenty four minutes from
the end, Ramos shook off Montermini but the gap to Vilander
was too large to bridge. The race order remained unchanged
to the end, with Vilander taking a deserved win from Miguel
Ramos.
Gianbattista Giannoccaro: The lighter ballast in race 2
was a relief. I tried to preserve the car before handing it
over. We managed to find a better set up than in race 1.
Toni Vilander: I would like to thank the team that never
stops supporting its drivers in times of difficulty. This
success is down to the group. Giannoccaro handed over a
perfect car and this meant we could carry out the plan we
had prepared, namely to attack in the second half of the
race.
Luca Cappellari: We have to analyse the times to work out
why we lost first place during the pit stops. However, the
day was a positive one.
Vilander and Giannoccaro maintain their overall lead of the
2006 Italian GT Championship with 115
points. Cappellari is sixth on 70 points while Ramos, who
missed the Vallelunga race, is seventh on 55.
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