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It was
another great day for Maserati yesterday at the Nogaro,
where Miguel Ramos and Alexandre Negraõ notched up their
second victory for the Maserati Vitaphone Racing Team in
the FIA GT Championship this year, consolidating the
leadership of the Vitaphone Racing Team in the Team’s
Championship. The Bertolini/Bartels duo came home in an
excellent sixth place, climbing from tenth position at
the starting line—despite a questionable attempt by
Gollin’s Corvette to overtake in the final moments, with
ensuing contact, which destroyed Maserati no. 1’s left
rear tire, forcing it to make a pit stop—confirming
their leadership in the driver’s classification, when
there are only two rounds left until the end of the
season.
The start
was smooth, with the cars moving according to their
place at the starting line. At the twenty-third lap
Bertolini overtook Gollin and moved up to sixth place.
Then during the fortieth lap his partner Bartels left
Sharp and Peter’s Aston Martin behind and at the 47th
lap he also overtook Maassen’s Corvette, coming within
podium range. Meanwhile, car no. 2, driven by Ramos,
re-entered the track in second place for the final stint
after a brilliant pit stop strategy directed by Maurizio
Leschiutta. Here at the 70th lap, Negraõ completed the
plan of action by overtaking Fassler and winning, while
from third place, Bertolini was getting ready to
overtake the Swiss driver who was in trouble and to
close the race with a double victory, but Gollin’s
entrance at curve 9 caused the cut in the left rear tire
and a forced stop at the pit for a tire change, with a
consequent loss of three positions.
The new classification ranks Bertolini/Bartels still at
the top with an advantage of six points over Hezemans/Gollin
and 6.6 over team-mates Ramos/Negraõ. The Vitaphone
Racing Team Maserati wholly dominates the Team’s
Championship with a margin of 21.5 points over Phoenix
Carsport Racing Corvette. The next round is scheduled
for 19 October in Zolder, Belgium.
Alexandre
Negrao: “I think the foundations for victory were laid
during yesterday’s qualifying practices. I knew the car
was fast, but I was expecting a race in low temperature.
Instead, it became quite warm, which helped the tires to
adhere better to the track. I am very happy about this
first victory for me at the FIA GT during my debut
season, and I thank my partner Ramos for his outstanding
work. ”
Miguel Ramos: “It’s the second victory in my career in
the FIA GT and it arrives magically. During my turn at
the wheel I pushed the car as far as it would go to
recoup the greatest amount of seconds possible. I
entered the pit stop area just seconds after the
Corvettes, then the lightning-like change in the pit
lane and teamwork enabled us to get back in the track in
mere seconds, thus going on to win the race. Everything
went perfectly.”
Andrea Bertolini: “It is a real pity because today we
were advancing well too, with an effort that was about
to recompense us with a place at the podium. Gollin’s
intentional move towards my car snatched away the second
place I was about to secure by taking advantage of
Fassler’s tire trouble. By then Fassler had already been
overtaken by Negraõ. Only thanks to Gollin’s calculated
manoeuvre against us did he manage to get the second
place he does not deserve. It is an sordid episode I
want to dismiss from my mind so I can concentrate on the
race in Zolder in two weeks.”
Michael Bartels: “After yesterday’s qualifying practice
results which set us back quite a bit, car no. 2’s
victory and our position confirm the Vitaphone team’s
strength this season. Our cars have been the fastest
ones in the track and have been consistently on top.
Corvette no. 5’s dubious maneuver prevented us from
getting the double victory we deserved. We won the round
and enlarged our advantage in the Team’s Championship,
but we are more interested in the overall result.”
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