Everything Ready for a Great Events • Record entry of 50 cars in Estoril • Spanish GT competitors join GT Open ranks • RTP adds up to TV live coverage
Estoril - A record entry of 50 cars and a full programme of races in one of the most beautiful tracks in Europe, the Autodrómo Fernanda Pires da Silva in Estoril, in the eponymous magnificent coast a few miles off Lisbon: the Portugal GT Open will certainly be an important mark in the growth of the International GT Open, the new series for GT lovers launched by GT Sport. No less than 50 cars have been entered in this third event of the season. New cars are coming to the International GT Open and participants to the Spanish GT Championship are joining the party as well, the Portugal GT Open being a valid round for both series. Over 150 million fans will potentially watch the action on TV, as the Portuguese national broadcasting company RTP will join Eurosport, Televisión Española (TVE) and Sportitalia in providing live TV coverage. The high number of entries has led the organizers to split the field in two in both the Saturday and Sunday races: the GTA and GTS categories will race together, and so will do the GTB and GTC categories. Entrants had to communicate whether they intend to compete in either one or the other series, or both. Points will be awarded accordingly, and as well as handicaps (the highest of the two handicaps will be applied to competitors entered in both series). With regard to the International GT Open, 27 cars will be present in Estoril.
Most notable additions are three new Ferrari 430 GT2 in the GTA category: Edil Cris Racing enters one for its star pair Ruberti-Cressoni, while the 360 Modena used so far will be driven by Matteo Bobbi and Sergio Rota, a second one is brought by Escudería Roger Racing for Santiago Puig-Javier Díaz, and the third, prepared by ASM Team Racing for Portugal, marks the arrival of a new squad and will be driven by Fernando Espíritu Santo and Ricardo Bravo. These three units of the new car from Maranello add up to the two already present in the series, the one entered by Playteam SaraFree for Bartyan-Pier Guidi (currently leading the overall standings) and the one under RSV Motorsport colours with Sundberg-Romero at the wheel. Playteam SaraFree is adding a third car, a Ferrari 360 Modena, which will be driven for the rest of the season by local heroes Manuel Gião and Ni Amorim (so far seen on the Sun Red’s Seat Cupras). As usual, the Moslers MT 900R of Escudería Bengala and Motor Competición, the Marcos LM600 of Euser-Cristovão, the Porsches 911 GT3 RSR of Autorlando, Estudio 2000 and the Seat Cupras GT of RSV Motorsport and Sun Red will be contending the victory in the GTA category.
Tough competition is to be expected from the top shots of the Spanish GT Championship, which include the Ferrari 430s of GPC Sport (with Marco Lambertini and reigning FIA GT Champion Gabriele Gardel) and of Automobil Club d’Andorra (with Manuel Cerqueda and former F.1 driver Luis Pérez-Sala), the Sun Red Seat Cupra GT of Valero-Saldaña and the three Porsches 911 GT3 of Spaniards De Castro-Burgueño (Drivex team) and of two well-known Portuguese pairs: Manuel and Pedro Mello Bryner (Team Galp CTT Express) and Miguel Amaral-Pedro Couceiro (ASM Team Racing for Portugal). In GTS, we can expect another battle between the two Aston Martin DBRS9 of BMS Scuderia Italia and the three Viper GT3 of Racing Box. The Viper camp counts now a new unit, as the Médard-Pla team has as well to one of the American coupés. In GTB, it will be again a battle between the Ferraris 360 Challenge of Scuderia Giudici and newcomer Maurizio Ardigò on one side and the Ferris 430 Challenge of Escudería Roger Racing and Fernando González Camino. Along the Portugal GT Open, the event programme also includes races of six other categories: the Spanish F.3 Championship, the Honda BPI Cup, the Master Junior Formula, the Copa SEAT León, the Copa Hyundai Getz, the Copa Hyundai Coupé. * * * Key Portugal GT Open Times
Thursday, 22 June 2006 10:40 – 11:25 Free Practice GTB + GTC (45’) 11:35 – 12:20 Free Practice GTA + GTS (45’) 15:40 – 16:25 Free Practice GTB + GTC (45’) 16:35 – 17:20 Free Practice GTA + GTS (45’)
Friday 23 June 2006 10:50 – 11:10 Free Practice GTB + GTC (20’) 11:15 – 11:35 Free Practice GTA (20’) 11:40 – 12:00 Free Practice GTS (20’) 14:00 – 14:20 Qualifying 1 GTB + GTC (20’) 14:30 – 14:50 Qualifying 1 GTA (20’) 14:50 – 15:10 Qualifying 1 GTS (20’) 17:30 – 17:50 Qualifying 2 GTB + GTC (20’) 18:00 - 18:20 Qualifying 2 GTA (20’) 18:20 – 18:40 Qualifying 2 GTS (20’))
Saturday 24 June 2006 13:40 – 14:40 Race 1 GTB + GTC (26 laps) 15:55 – 16:55 Race 1 GTA + GTS (26 laps) Sunday 25 June 2006 13:10 – 14:10 Race 2 GTB + GTC (26 laps) 15:25 – 16:25 Race 2 GTA + GTS (26 laps)
