Malucelli-Barba (Villois Racing) wins and keeps title battle alive, as Bruni-Leo (AF Ferrari), today 4th, maintain leadership and Tandy- Holzer (Manthey Porsche) lose ground after mechanical failureWinning debut in GTS for GPRs Vantage of Belgian young guns Martin- Baguette
RACE 1Montmel, 3 November 2012Matteo Malucelli and lvaro Barba, with the Villois Racing Aston Martin, took theirfourth win of the season in todays Race 1 in Barcelona, keeping the title battle alive,as championship leaders Gimmi Bruni-Federico Leo (AF Corse Ferrari) finished fifth.Ahead of tomorrows decisive round, the Italian pair keeps the same advantage (7points) they had this morning, but on a different rival, the Aston Martin, whichtomorrow will have a heavier handicap because of todays results.
Nick Tandy-Marco Holzer were the big losers today, following a gearbox failure intheir Manthey Racing Porsche in the opening laps. They now lie third in the standings,but they remain in the titles race, 15 points behind the leaders, with 22 points stillto be awarded.
The aabar Villorba Ferrari of Montermini-Lpez took an excellent second place ,ahead of the V8 Racing Corvette of Giammaria-Ramos.
In GTS, the Aston Martin of Belgian squad GPR, with Maxime Martin and BertrandBaguette at the wheel, took a clear victory in their debut, beating the AlmrasPorsche of Anthony Beltoise-Nicolas Armindo and the Kessel Ferrari of Gattuso-Zanuttini. Daniel Zampieri-Michael Dalle Stelle, 4th, are only one point away from themathematical certitude of the GTS title.
Kessel Racing has virtually secured the GTS Teams title, with Ferrari clinching theManufacturers crown in both SGT and GTS classes.
At the start, Malucelli hesitates and loses the advantage of the pole, being passed by Bruni,Montermini and Tandy while Hamilton spins in lap 1, remaining stuck on a kerb, whichprompts the safety-car out. Ramos is fifth ahead of Martin, Peter, Estre, Beltoise, Zampieri,Campanio.
In lap 5, Malucelli passes Tandy and one lap later Montermini, but there is a slight contactbetween the two Italians, while Peter passes Martin on the straight. In lap 12, Tandy slowsdown and stops with a fatal gearbox problem.
After the pit stop, Leo is still leading but will get passed by Lopez, Barba, Giammaria andBroniszewski while Baguette leads comfortably in GTS ahead Eskelinen, Samon, Dermont. Ontop of the race, Lpez has a 2-second advantage over Barba and will keep the Spaniardbehind for many laps, but the Argentine will have to give out the lead on lap 30.
Leo, who went up to 4th after passing Broniszewski, is catched and eventually passed by Pilet,while Baguette wins the duel with the Pole, who later punctures a tire, and takes 6th overallon top of the GTS win.
Championship Standings after Race 15 of 16Scratch: 1. Bruni-Leo, 185; 2.Malucelli-Barba, 177; 3. Tandy-Holzer, 170; 4. Montermini-Lopez, 153; 5. Giammaria-Ramos,143; 6. Pilet-Narac, 134GTS: 1. Zampieri-Dalle Stelle, 84; 2. Bizzarri, 75; 3. Hamilton-Mapelli, 70; 4. Rizzoli, 57; 5. Puglisi-Beretta, 43Teams SGT: 1. AF Corse, 78; 2. Villois Racing, 76; 3. Manthey Racing, 74; 4. aabar Villorba Corse, 65; 5. V8 Racing, 67; 6.IMSA Performance, 55Team GTS: 1. Kessel Racing, 130; 2. Autorlando Sport, 113; 3. AF Corse, 85; 4. Lapidus Racing, 27; 5. Seyffarth Motorsport, 26Manufacturers SGT: 1. Ferrari, 181; 2. Porsche, 126; 3. Aston Martin, 76; 4. Chevrolet, 63Manufacturers GTS: 1. Ferrari, 205; 2. Porsche, 126; 3. Mercedes, 38; 4. McLaren, 24; 5. Lamborghini, 18; 6. BMW, 6.
