Risi Competizione, the private team which notched up four victories on the way to winning the GT2 Championship in the 2006 American Le Mans Series, is pleased to announce that it will campaign a pair of Ferrari F430GTs during the upcoming 2007 season, which gets underway with the Sebring 12 Hours this coming weekend. Risi Competizione is further pleased to announce that Krohn Racing will be participating with the team in 2007.

Last year, the Houston, Texas-based team started the racing season with one F430GT, adding a second car at the mid-way point of the season. Risi Competizione was also honored with two entries to the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2007 as a result of its championship season in ALMS in 2006 and will run two Ferrari F430GTs at that prestigious event.

“Running two cars is a definite advantage in terms of ALMS points.” said Team Managing Director Giuseppe Risi. “We campaigned in 2003, and 2004 running only one Ferrari 360GT and, as the lone Ferrari in the GT2 field, we were simply outnumbered by the teams running multiple Porsche or Panoz entries, even though we had some very good successes, winning the IMSA Cup in 2003.

“Last year, we raced for approximately half of the season with just one F430GT; then, Giacomo Mattioli (Ferrari of Silicon Valley) and Remo Ferri (Ferrari of Ontario) teamed with us to give us a second entry for the remaining races. That extra entry was crucial, in that it enabled us to gather enough points to win the Team Championship. This year, we will start at Sebring with two Ferrari 430GTs and continue throughout the season with two cars. We have every intention of defending our GT2 title and repeating the as champions in 2007. Of course, everyone we race against has as their goal, taking the championship away from us, so it should be a great year on the track.”

Logistically, the addition of another car for the season does not present any new hurdles for the team. “We’re totally comfortable with the logistics and staffing requirements. We take no shortcuts,” said Team Manager Dave Sims. “Risi Competizione has regularly run multiple racing programs simultaneously in series managed by different sanctioning bodies. Nothing changes. Our standards are always very high. We expect the best of our team, drivers, and crew at all time. Last year, we welcomed a second F430GT into our program without missing a beat. Actually, the second car set the pole its first time out in an ALMS race. We cut no corners and do things the way Risi has always done things: to the highest possible standard.”
 

The two cars Risi Competizione will campaign in 2007 are familiar to ALMS race fans, the No. 62 and No. 61 Ferrari F430GTs. In 2006 the Number 62 F430GT was driven by a variety of different drivers, with Mika Salo and Jaime Melo being the principal pilots for the team while the Number 61 F430GT was driven last year by a variety of top drivers, including Toni Vilander, Maurizio Mediani, and Marino Franchitti, among others.

For 2007, Mika Salo and Jaime Melo will drive the No. 62 car for the entire season, a driving schedule that was not possible last year due to prior contractual commitments on the part of both drivers. Salo and Melo will be joined at Sebring and Le Mans by British driver Johnny Mowlem, who has a long association with the team. In announcing the two car program for 2007, Risi Competizione also announced that the team had entered into a relationship with Krohn Racing, and its principal, Tracy Krohn, in which the Number 61 Car will compete at Sebring, Houston, Petit Le Mans, Le Mans, and Laguna Seca with a driving team composed of Tracy Krohn, Nic Jönsson, and Colin Braun. Braun most recently gave notice that he is a young driver to watch by taking the pole at the Mexico City Grand American series race.

“We are delighted to have Tracy and his team race with us in 2007,” said Giuseppe Risi recently. “This is a wonderful opportunity for all of us.  Anyone who knows Tracy knows he’s a good driver and operates in a first class manner at every level. We are delighted to campaign a Ferrari F430GT with him.”

The pairing of the two teams is a first and 2007 will mark Krohn Racing’s first year of competition with a Ferrari. “I am obviously looking forward to the challenge of driving a Ferrari, particularly in the ALMS and I have two very talented drivers with me,” said Tracy Krohn. “Giuseppe Risi runs a first-class program, which is one of reasons we decided to go with them. “I am definitely looking forward to the Houston event in front of my hometown,” added Krohn. “I’m also looking forward to Le Mans. At the first race at Sebring, it will be interesting to see how the car drives compared to all the Porsches I’ve driven." For more information, please visit www.risicompetizione.com