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The
Maserati Quattroporte made its racing debut last
weekend in the fast growing Superstars
series in Italy where it made a steady debut in
the hands of Andrea Chiesa with Swiss Team,
which has developed the car, regarding the two races at Adria as an
extended test session for the brand new car.
With just a brief shakedown prior to Adria the
team was pleased that the Quattroporte completed
both races, giving the Lugano, Switzerland-based
team plenty of data to build upon for the
following races.
The
arrival of the Maserati Quattroporte forms a
highly prestigious new entry to the
Superstars series and the car - which is the work of the
private Swiss Team headed by experienced Guido Bonfiglio
- joins contestants for 2009 that includes race
prepared versions of the BMW
M5, Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG, Audi RS4, Jaguar S-Type R and
Chrysler 300C STR8. Chief mechanic is Giovanni Albertin, who
has a long history on both the race and rally
tracks, while Andrea Chiesa, who has built up plenty of
experience in sports car racing following a brief F1 career
is tackling the touring car arena for the first
time bar a few one-off outings.
To
comply with the Superstars regulations
the Quattroporte runs in its usual rear drive
format with the front mounted 4.2-litre V8
engine able to develop about 450 bhp in
the racing version built by Swiss Team. The weight, without the handicap due the
use of a sequential gearbox (a Sadev fitted at the rear) is
1,430 kg. Control tyres are supplied Pirelli, according to
regulations, while the bodywork mirrors almost totally that of the road version with just a
few small aerodynamic changes featuring alongside a massive
new rear wing.
The
team skipped the first round of Superstars
series
at Imola
on April 19 as it was working flat out to get its first
Quattroporte completed. Last week, prior to
making its debut the
second round of the series at Adria, Chiesa gave
the car, which is finished in Maserati's
traditional blue-and-silver colours, a brief shakedown at the Franciacorta
test track.
With
just that shakedown, at a track that doesn't
provide any pointers towards the demands of Adria behind them, Chiesa qualified the
Quattroporte in a solid 15th place with a best lap of 1:25.792. Pole
position went to Stefano Gabellini in the CAAL
Racing BMW 550i with a best lap of 1:21.153,
just half-a-tenth ahead of the ROAL Motorsport
BMW M3 E90 of former N.Technology Alfa Romeo factory touring
car driver Gianni Morbidelli. Sixteen cars took
part in the Superstars qualifying session.
Two solid races
at Adria on Sunday, without any problems
arising, netted Chiesa and the
brand new Quattroporte racer two tenth place
finishes, ensuring the team collected two
championship points on the Trident car's race debut. The team was satisfied with
what was described as being a "second test", that the
car ran reliably and notched up almost 40 laps of track
time from the two 20 laps races, and - most
importantly - they feel that the ingredients are
there to turn Maserati's flagship luxury sedan
into a competitive racer. "Considering the size
of the task and the short time in which it has
been carried out the results are for sure
encouraging," said Chiesa. "The car has turned
out to be balanced well; at Franciacorta we did not have
of the very precise parameters of reference so
for the contest of Adria it is in a sense a
second test," added the former F1 driver. Team owner Guido Bonfiglio was
pleased with how the last week has gone for the
team, noting that "the
test at Franciacorta gave us all confidence" and
that the races at Adria were the first time the team has
been able to size up the car against the
opposition it will face if it is to bid for
honours.
The
next and third round of the 2009 Superstars
championship will take place at the Magione
circuit on June 7. That double header event will
be followed by similar format races at Mugello
(June 21), Portimao-Portogallo (August 2),
Vallelunga (September 20), a second appointment
at Mugello a week later (September 27) and at
Monza (October 18) before the season finale sees
the competitors travelling cross continent to
the famous Kyalami circuit in South Africa
(November 29). The Swiss Team are also building
a second Quattroporte to run alongside Chiesa's
#46 car which will be piloted by an as-yet
undisclosed driver.
Superstars, Rd 2 Adria: Race 1 Results:
1. Gabellini (BMW 550i), 20 laps in
27’46.786, average speed of 116,718 km/h; 2.
Papini (BMW M5) +3.528; 3. Martini
(Chrysler 300C SRT8) +8.228; 4. Cesari (BMW M5)
+8.704; 5. Pigoli
(Mercedes C63 AMG) +21.457; 6. Ascani (BMW 550i)
+24.671; 7. Bernasconi (BMW 550i) +34.515; 8. Benvenuti (Jaguar S-Type R)
+42.848; 9. Sigala (BMW M3 Coupé) +52.261; 10. Chiesa
(Maserati Quattroporte) +1’06.843;
11. Del Castello (BMW M5) +1 lap.
Fastest lap: Gabellini in
1’21.7109, average speed 119,045 km/h.
Superstars, Rd 2 Adria: Race 2 Results:
1. Martini (Chrysler 300C SRT8), 20
laps in 27’51.199, average speed of 116,410
km/h; 2. Cesari (BMW M5) +12.858;
3. Gabellini (BMW 550i) +14.624; 4. Morbidelli (BMW M3)
+18.760; 5. Ghedina (BMW 550i) +19.158; 6. Papini (BMW M5)
+25.355; 7. Pigoli
(Mercedes C63 AMG) +28.976; 8. Ascani (BMW 550i)
+31.013; 9. Bernasconi (BMW 550i) +32.624; 10. Chiesa
(Maserati Quattroporte) +2 laps. Fastest lap: Gabellini in 1’22.194,
average speed 118,344
km/h.
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