Chico Longo and Daniel Serra driving a Trofeo Light entered by Maserati Competições, the racing department of Maserati's official Brazilian importer, finished a stunning second place overall in the prestigious 500 km of Interlagos at the weekend.

The 500 km of Interlagos is Brazil’s most famous endurance race, and this year was the twenty-fifth time the event had taken place. The José Carlos Pace circuit as usual was the setting, providing a tough test for all the cars taking part. The Maserati brand has a strong record in this race having triumphed on five previous occasions: 1957, 1959, 1961, 1962 and 1963.

The Trofeo Light was entered by Maserati Competições, the the racing department of Maserati’s official importer to Brazil. It comprised a crew made up of Francisco ‘Chico’ Longo and Daniel Serra for the race. The latter a twenty-two year old who competes in the Brazilian Stock Car V8 Light championship.

The 500 km of Interlagos was the Maserati Trofeo Light’s second major appearance in South American competition, coming as it did after the Mille Miglia which was held at Interlagos in January (where it was driven by Serra and Longo) and the vehicle had been entered for the 500 km race in the national IB category which catered for FIA GT and NGT specification cars. Hopes were high as the Trofeo Light had performed well during pre-race recent tests organised by the team. Technical Director, Hilton Lellis, had declared that he had been very satisfied at the outcome of the test sessions: "The car handled rather well and our drivers were able to set somewhat faster times than those recorded in the Mille Miglia". Francisco Longo also has high hopes for the 500 km: “We are quite optimistic after the Mille Miglia. We will be trying to claim a good qualifying place this weekend”.
 

Thus the team were hopeful of a strong showing as the first free practice sessions got underway last Friday (28th July) prior to final qualifying session which was scheduled for Saturday.

Sierra, the young Brazilian with good experience in the stock car championship, got off to an excellent start when the lights went green to start the 25th running of the 500 km of Interlagos on Sunday. At the off he even overtook the prototype Mitsubishi Lancer (category IA) and was up into second place by the end of lap one. Not content with this, he set off after the Ferrari 550 GT driven by Lucas Molo and Nelson Silva Jr, and swept past it at the Junção curve. The more powerful V12 Ferrari engine, however, allowed the Maranello-built car to regain the race lead. During the next hour and a half though, Serra was able to maintain second place with a constant gap of 8 seconds from the leader before he handed over to Francisco Longo on lap 39. Longo, the organiser of the Maserati Trofeo Brasile, held onto second place in the IB category, hovering between third and fifth place overall.

Daniel Serra replaced Longo 80 laps later. He came back onto the track in sixth position in the general standings though he was soon back into a virtual podium place and defending second in his class. The young Brazilian was setting a high tempo and gained five seconds on the leading Ferrari 550 GT. However, surprises in such a difficult race are always around the corner and, one lap from the end as the 1700 local time finish came into view, a technical problem on the Mitsubishi allowed the Trofeo Light to inherit second overall after 117 laps of the circuit. "This second place is worth a win", declared a happy Francisco Longo. "The F550 GT has a much more powerful engine than the Trofeo Light, a difference of around 120 bhp. This is why we are celebrating."

The Trofeo Light also won the GT3 class in the Italian GT Championship race last weekend. This was another important result and it gives Maserati a further reason to celebrate after the MC12's victory in the 24 Hour of Spa courtesy of Michael Bartels, Andrea Bertolini and Eric Van de Poele.