16.08.2003  SERIES DEBUTING FERRI COMPETIZIONE LEAD THE GT CLASS FERRARI 360 MODENAS AT MOSPORT

The debut of Ferri Competizione Team into the ALMS 2003 season proved to be successful with the third quickest time in the first official practice at Toronto's Grand Prix of Mosport. With an average speed of 109.315 miles per hour and a lap time of 1:20.981, the Ontario based Ferrari Modena 360 team is looking forward to an exciting weekend at their home track.

The Ferrari 360 Modena driven by Andrea Bertolini and Mauro Baldi look ready to perform at the former Formula 1, high-speed Mosport track. Mr. Ferri, the team owner felt the car worked very well at practice. "Considering we just got ready in the past ten days we are quite happy to be among the top three fastest times set at this first practice. We are going to push hard. Mosport is a track I like very much. We come here quite often. It's just great to be here at my hometown track. We have fantastic drivers. Baldi has tremendous experience and Bertolini knows the car very well and is a very fast driver."

"We finalized the program for this race very late. It was a combined effort as Risi prepared the car for the Ferri Competizione Team. The two teams worked very hard together to get this car to the track. It's a tribute to both teams that we can be competitive right out of the box given that the car was built in such a small amount of time" said Engineer Rick Mayer.

"We are using the Pirelli tires that we use in Europe and we are very happy with their performance. We lost a lot of practice time changing the battery" said Andrea Bertolini, the Italian driver. Team Manager Dave Simms added, "The battery was down on voltage which caused the engine to have a slight misfire. We replaced the battery, which cured the problem. Bertolini posted a very good lap time; especially considering it was his first time here. I am really happy about the overall performance of the team and the car."

Bertolini also said that he thought "Baldi made a fantastic lap at the end. We had some pit traffic at the last stop, but overall we found a good time and did a good job. I think all of the Ferraris will be tough competition for the Porsches."

Baldi then commented, " I only did a few laps but I think overall we are very pleased with the outcome of the first practice. I raced at this track a few years ago and it is a very nice track. The new gearbox we are using is extremely quick and precise. I will be doing Saturday morning's first practice session and Andrea will be doing the second." The team was satisfied with the balance of the car. "We have positive hopes for the race as the car is extremely consistent," said one team member.

RISI COMPETIZIONE QUALIFYING REPORT

The Risi Competizione-Calpont Ferrari 360 Modena, led the GT class into the first official practice of the day. After completing 42 laps of practice, the teams' fastest time was a 1:20.866 with an average speed of 109.470 miles per hour. Ralf Kelleners (Germany) and Anthony Lazzaro (United States) are paired up once again driving the Ferrari 360 Modena. After coming off their podium finish in the last race at Trois-Riviers in Canada, the drivers are optimistic following a successful practice today.

After the session Lazzaro said, "I wasn't able to be here early in the week when we tested on Monday and Tuesday. Ralf did the testing and did a fantastic job setting up the car. Early in this first official practice he was quickest and remained there the whole session. Really, I just got out there to get acclimated to the car and the track."

"Everything went well for us" Kelleners commented. "I think this track suits the Ferrari. Right away when we came here for testing we knew this was going to be a track where we knew we could be competitive. We're not facing any major set-up problems, and I think we made the car a little bit better."

The teams Chief Engineer, Rick Mayer, said "Our testing on Tuesday helped to make quite a difference for us in the first session. It's good there are two Ferraris in the top three. I think we have some gains to be made with some further adjustments, and we should be strong for the race."

With five Ferrari 360 Modenas in the GT class, the Porsche's will find a challenge ahead of them. Toronto's Mosport Track shows promise for the cars bearing the Prancing Horse logo.