Andrea Bertolini
and Andrea Piccini performed brilliantly in the third round
of the FIA GT championship. The race was held in rainy
conditions on the city circuit of Bucharest. It was fine
result, one topped off by the third place taken by
Ramos/Montanari and Biagi/Gollin in sixth. This allowed
Maserati to move to the top of the Constructors' standings.
Sunday saw the Scuderia Playteam Sarafree score its first
win in the FIA GT. Victory came courtesy of a strategy
assured by the efficiency and consistency of the Pirelli
tyres. Their performance meant that the Italian duo did not
have to change tyres during the entire two hour race.
Driving rain fell throughout the race, one in which the MC12
was always in the action. At the start, Alessandro Pier
Guidi set the fastest lap (127784 on lap eight) before
handing over to Giambattista Giannoccaro. He, unfortunately,
was to come off worse in a clash with a GT2 car and forced
to retire.
At the halfway stage, Piccini claimed first place from
Wendlinger and held it until it was time for the driver
changes. Bertolini still held a big enough lead coming out
of the pits to hold off the pack until the end. He crossed
the line 39713 Lamborghini ahead of Bouchut/Mucke and
104609 of Ramos/Montanari. The crew in the number 2 MC12
demonstrated that they could compete during the weekend.
They ended the race in third place despite making two stops
and a drive through. It was the first podium in the FIA GT
for both Montanari and Ramos. Biagi/Gollin took sixth place
overall. At the halfway stage their strategy had taken them
to second. The pairing managed to fulfil their pre-race
ambition to get the car to the finish and win podium points.
The 40kg ballast and a few errors prevented them from
bettering sixth. In the Citation Cup, second and third went
to the two MC12s fielded by JMB Racing Team. In the cars
were Macari/Aucott and Kutemann/Waaijenberg.
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Sunday saw the Scuderia Playteam Sarafree score its
first win in the FIA GT. Victory came courtesy of a
strategy assured by the efficiency and consistency
of the Pirelli tyres. |
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Andrea Bertolini and Andrea Piccini performed
brilliantly in the third round of the FIA GT
championship. The race was held in rainy conditions
on the city circuit of Bucharest. |
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Maserati moves to the top of the Constructors' series with
this result (42 points). Next come Chevrolet Corvette (37)
and Aston Martin (20). The Vitaphone Racing Team increased
its advantage in the team standings (27 points compared to
the 18 earned by All-Inkl.com Racing).
Andrea
Bertolini: It was a team victory. In conditions like
today's a great strategy is important and it is crucial not
to make mistakes. From this point of view, both Andrea and I
drove perfectly. The team was also excellent. Today's result
was also down to Pirelli as we managed to get through the
race without changing tyres. Despite this, we were easily
able to hold off the others, even at the end. This is a
significant result in terms of the championship that, as I
stated after qualifying, we want to win again."
Andrea Piccini: I think that Bertolini and I raced
well as the conditions were really tough. The Pirelli tyres
were exceptional and the car was spot on. After a difficult
start to the season, this win is what was needed. I hope to
repeat the feat at Monza in our home race, even though we
know that it will be difficult due to the balast we will
have on our MC12."
Christian Montanari: "It was a deserved podium as we
were quick and consistent over the whole weekend. The drive
through meant that we could not improve our placing. Having
said this, I am very happy. A city circuit is tough enough
in the dry and so it was not easy with so much water on the
surface; we are extremely satisfied."
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