Trident CEO Harald J Wester said during the brand's press conference in Geneva yesterday that "2011 will be a challenging, but good, solid year" which will consolidate the sharp bounce in sales that Maserati enjoyed last year. Wester sees Maserati's mature markets remaining reasonably flat this year but expects the "upward trend" in China to continue. The Trident will also expand into India "very soon", open a new dealership in St Petersburg (Russia) while its wholly owned importer in Japan started trading in January. Wester also said Maserati is now looking "beyond 2011" to an all-new Quattroporte and the new E-segment sedan that has been earmarked to be built at the former Carrozzeria Bertone factory at Grugliasco in Turin which will go ahead subject to union negotiations.

However the GranCabrio Sport was the brand's star offering yesterday. Conceived to give the GranCabrio a harder-edged model to sit alongside the GranTurismo S and the Quattroporte Sport GT S, the GranCabrio Sport uses a slightly more powerful and fuel-efficient version of Maserati's all-alloy 4.7-litre V8.

This configuration of the naturally aspirated engine now produces 450 horsepower (up from 440 hp from the standard model) and has 510 Nm (up from 490 Nm for the standard model). Maserati's Friction Reduction Program has made the GranCabrio Sport's engine more reactive to the driver's most-nuanced inputs thanks to a revision of the oil sump's fluid dynamics and the Diamond-Like Coating of the tappets and the camshaft lobes, while achieving a further 6% reduction in fuel consumption. The top speed of the GranCabrio Sport is 285 km/h and the 0-100 km/h sprint is now reduced to 5.2s.

This six-speed automatic transmission includes the super-fast MC Auto Shift software and has been developed for the GranCabrio Sport directly from the transmission in the Quattroporte Sport GT S. Like in the Quattroporte Sport GT S, the MC Auto Shift gives the driver even-greater engagement by further improving gearshift response, and introducing a digital in-dash display to indicate the ideal gear-shift timing.

The handling has received attention, too, with an upgrade and revision of the Skyhook active-suspension system to give it sportier tuning, and the adoption of grooved and drilled dual-cast brake discs. The mechanical changes also include a revised exhaust system which automatically opens its bypass valves in Sport mode to provide an even richer sound and a shorter exhaust path.

Visually, the GranCabrio Sport is characterized by a more-pronounced dynamic look. This look begins at the GranCabrio's distinctive nose with a black grille and a Trident with red accents. The headlights now have a black look with white sidemarks, while front corner splitters and the redesigned side skirts are both body coloured. The dynamic look is finished with redesigned 20'' Trident-like Astro-design wheels and a pair of black oval exhaust tips. The look is carried over inside the open-topped cabin with a new seat design and driver-focused contents such as longer Trofeo-design gear-shift paddles and drilled aluminium pedals.

The GranCabrio Sport also debuts a new body colour for Maserati: Rosso Trionfale, inspired by the red national colours used on 1950s racing Maseratis - in 1957, Juan Manuel Fangio won his fifth F1 World Title at the wheel of a red Maserati 250F. Inside the cabin, two new leather colours are available for the new M-design seats: Bianco Pregiato, a brilliant ivory shade; and Grigio Chrono, a sporty, dark tone of grey. The GranCabrio Sport will be on sale in all of Maserati's 62 markets starting from the Summer 2011.

Maserati's 2010 Financial Results

For 2010, Maserati reported €586 million in revenues, an increase of 30.8% over 2009, primarily attributable to excellent sales performance for the new GranCabrio, the GranTurismo and the Quattroporte flagship sedan. A total of 5,675 cars were delivered to the network during the year, an increase of 26.4%, with positive performance in the majority of Maserati's national markets. In the USA, Maserati's no. 1 market, volumes were up 45% over the prior year. Excellent results were also achieved in the United Kingdom (+72%) and China (+128%), which has become Maserati's 4th largest market after the USA, Italy and the United Kingdom.

For 2010, Maserati had a trading profit of €24 million (trading margin: 4.1%). The sharp increase over the €11 million trading profit for 2009 (trading margin: 2.5%) is attributable to both higher sales volumes and continued optimization of operating costs. Maserati reported €151 million in revenues for Q4 2010, up 17.1% over the same period for the prior year. Trading profit was €8 million for the quarter compared with €5 million for the fourth quarter of 2009.

During the year, the Company released the new GranTurismo MC Stradale, the fastest, lightest and most powerful model in the marque's product range: a top-of-the-line coupé that embodies Maserati's vast experience gained on the racetrack. Other models presented were the special edition Quattroporte Sport GTS Awards Edition and the GranTurismo MC Trofeo, for which Maserati has organized a single-make championship.

The 2011 Trofeo GranTurismo MC

Maserati has built on its successful return to international one-make racing in 2010 with an even-stronger, more-innovative Trofeo championship for 2011. The first of the 2011 Trofeo's eight rounds will fire off the grid at Imola in Italy on April 30, before attacking the historic Monza circuit, then visiting Morocco, Belgium, England, Spain and returning to Italy for its final two rounds.

The championship's format has evolved to include two shorter 30-minute races and, while the next five events retain the standard, 2 x 40-minute race format, the final two events will include two longer, 50-minute races. The shorter event will be worth 80 percent of full points, while the longer races, which include compulsory pit stops, will be worth 120 percent. Over the course of the season, competitors will also deduct the points from their worst race meeting.

After a successful trial in 2010, all Trofeo competitors will also have one-on-one data analysis sessions with Maserati Corse's technical staff after free practice to eke out their ultimate performance abilities. Further, Maserati Corse technicians have upgraded the engine and gearbox software on the 2011 version of the GranTurismo MC Trofeo with a power increase of +38HP - for a total power output of 488HP - and gearshift times down to 60ms. The braking system and car's aerodynamics have also been revised to improve on-track performance. Owners of GranTurismo MC with the GT4 configuration will still be able to take part in the championship and can upgrade their cars to 2011 Trofeo specs.

Maserati has a storied history in one-make racing, with its most-recent championships including a series for the GranSport from 2003 to 2006 and for the Ghibli in 1995 and 1996. Last year's Trofeo saw 27 cars on the grid for the final event at Mugello, where Pietro Zumerle won the championship in the final race of the season from the combined team of Steven Goldstein and Peter Sundberg.

The Trofeo's "package" allows drivers to compete by themselves or as part of a team, and they can enter for the whole season or individual races and they can also enter their GranTurismo-based racing cars in either Trofeo or GT4 setups. The all-inclusive cost is between €140,000 and €150,000 (according to option chosen), including managing the cars to logistics and technical assistance on the track, as well as clothing both for races and the paddock. Starting this year, Maserati will also offer the Maserati Trofeo Racing Academy, a professional program that prepares drivers for competition, resulting in the possibility to enter the Maserati Trofeo with adequate performance and safety.

2011 TROFEO CALENDAR