For the second consecutive year the Finali Mondiali Ferrari is not being staged in Italy but instead at the Ricardo Tormo Circuit in Valencia, Spain. The event has brought the Prancing Horse’s racing season to an end for the past eighteen years. The parade was supported by the Valencian authorities and was hosted by the Paseo de la Alameda. Taking part in the parade were a cross-section of cars including an F60, the sixtieth car built by Ferrari to take part in the Formula 1 World Championship and a California, driven by Luca Badoer, Scuderia Ferrari’s test driver. Also taking part in this parade was an F430 GT2, which in the hands of the AF Corse team won the International GT Open series and a 458 Italia, driven by local hero Alvaro Barba, while it fell to Maurizio Mediani, the Maranello marque’s test driver to show off a 599XX and a 599HGTE.

The busy four day programme sees competitors battle it out in the final rounds of the Italian, European and North American Ferrari Challenge Trofeo Pirelli series, before fighting for the world title. Also on the card, the first ever Ferrari Historic Race –Trofeo Shell, a race open to all Ferrari collectors and former participants in the Shell Ferrari Historic Challenge, the series for historic cars which ended last year after a fourteen year run. Adding to the spectacle will be non-competitive runs from Formula 1 cars from the past and cars entered in the exclusive FXX and 599XX programmes. Sunday, the final day features demonstrations from the GT cars before a parade by the Scuderia Ferrari Formula 1 team.

Competitors in the European and North American series yesterday had their first qualifying session, to decide the grid for Race 1, which takes place today. Of the European Trofeo Pirelli runners, the first pole of the day went to Max Blancardi (Motor/Malucelli) ahead of Philipp Baron (Baron Service) and Bjorn Grossmann (Autohaus Gohm). For the North American series, the quickest lap was posted by the champion Enzo Potolicchio (The Collection), followed by Scott Tucker (Boardwalk Ferrari) and by Francesco Piovanetti (The Collection). Best lap time amongst the Coppa Shell runners came from Aleksandr Skryabin (Ferrari Moscow), followed by Tibor Valint (Warm Up) and Johnny Laursen (F. Automobile).

The starting grid for the first race in the Italian Ferrari Challenge Trofeo Pirelli features Giorgio Sernagiotto (Motor Piacenza) in the number one slot, followed by Stefano Gai (Rossocorsa) and Lorenzo Case (Motor/Piacenza.) Coming out on top in the first session for the gentleman drivers in the Coppa Shell was Andrea Rizzoli (Motor/Piacenza) who beat Flavio Pierleoni (Motor/Malucelli) and Giuseppe Fascicolo (Rossocorsa/Pellin). Today sees the second qualifying session and the first races for the two groups, Italy, then Europe and North America.