Vittoria Competizioni victorious with the Ferrari F430 in its comeback,Roda-Babini (Autorlando) take laurels for Porsche in GTS
Marco Frezza and José Manuel López are the first winners of the International GT Open2011. The Italian and the Argentine, at the wheel of the Vittoria Competizioni Ferrari F430,took a closely-fought win in today’s Race 1 in Imola, on a very slippery and treacheroustrack. Their duel with the AF Corse F430 of Luca Rangoni and Alessandro Garofano lastedthroughout the race, with a spin of Garofano five laps from the end deciding the result.Third was the JMB Racing Ferrari of Soheil Ayari and Nicolas Misslin.
Porsche dominated the GTS race, with Gianluca Roda-Fabio Babini taking the win (andfourth overall) on the Autorlando 911 R ahead of Raceteam Deboeuf car of Thomas Gruber-Marco Seefried, with Stefano Bizzarri-Andrea Rizzoli (AF Ferrari F458) in third. After therace, though, second and third positions would be inverted, as the Porsche Deboeufreceived a 30"-penalty for having checked the tire pressure during the driver change.The race started without three of the four Kessel cars as Fabio Garofano, Broniszewski andCaccia damaged their cars beyond repair in accidents in qualifying this morning. Was alsowithdrawn the Mtech Ferrari of Cameron-Griffin, the former not feeling well.
The start was given behind the safety-car on a wet track, with poleman Rugolo resisitingonly half lap to the assaults of Giammaria, and Rangoni, Ayari, Firman, Gené and Frezzabattling for third. Avoiding mistakes on the slippery track proved difficult for everybody,except Frezza who takes the lead in lap 6. In GTS, Roda leads ahead of Bizzarri (who’ll passfirst in lap 10), Gattuso, Gruber and Wiser.
Gruber opens the pit stop period (during which the Sunred retires with electrical problems),with the leaders Frezza and Giammaria in at lap 18 and Ayari at lap 20. After all driverchanges, Garofano leads (despite an off-track at the chicane) ahead of Lopez, who isclosing the gap, Ramos, Misslin, Babini (leading in GTS), Barde, Sdanewitsch, Barba, Rizzoliand Seefried, who catches up fast.
In the final laps the gap between Garofano and Lopez grows again, before Garofano spins inlap 38 leaving the door open to the Argentine who controls the situation up to thechequered flag. Babini takes the win in GTS and clinches the fourth position overall, aheadof Seefried, Rizzoli and Rees, very fast in the final laps.
