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Maserati - racing news
Maserati takes historic win in 9th
round of FIA GT Championship
Oschersleben - Maserati raced to its first international race victory
since 1967 when Mika Salo and Andrea Bertolini won the ninth round of
the FIA GT Championship at Oschersleben at the weekend. The pair overcame
difficult conditions to take the victory in their Maserati MC-12 by more
than a lap. However the marque was denied a 1-2 finish by a freak tyre
problem that caused Fabrizio de Simone to have an extra pit stop.
The cars qualified in fourth and sixth positions, and ran strongly in
the opening, wet stages of the race. The pairing of Johnny Herbert and
Fabrizio de Simone quickly took the lead after the interruption of the
safety car several times. In the other MC-12, Mika Salo passed the RML
Saleen for fifth, and the championship-leading Ferrari for fourth in the
space of three laps. He then moved to second ahead of the Freisinger Motorsport
Porsches which had yet to stop, but behind his team-mate Herbert.
After the final scheduled pitstop for the Herbert and de Simone car, Salo
was left with a comfortable 23 second lead, which he steadily extended.
As de Simone re-entered the race, he had to return after a problem with
the rear-left tyre. This put the second pairing finished the race in a
credible 8th position. It was a fairy tale victory for the famous Trident
marque that was also celebrating it's 90th Anniversary in Rome along with
200 historic and decorated modern Maseratis.
Claudio Berro: "It is a fantastic day. With this victory we celebrated
Maserati's 90th Anniversary in the best of ways. Also, we won in Germany,
our second biggest market. We knew we could do well as we had two well-balanced
cars and we had a carefully prepared race strategy that could be adapted
according to the weather. We then changed the approach after the safety
car came on and for a number of laps we had the two MC12 in the top two
places. The drivers, staff, technician, AF Corse and our partners like
Pirelli, really gave their all. I'd like to thank everybody involved".
Andrea Bertolini: "I am very happy. It was an important win for Maserati
obtained with Mika on a circuit where I had already won in the N-GT last
year. All of the team was going for the win right from qualifying. I worked
very well with Mika on regulating the set up of the car and we benefited
from this in qualifying. It wasn't easy with the intermediate tyres at
the beginning but we climbed to second position. Following the pit stops
and the entry of the safety car, we slipped a few places but came back
well to take the lead before the driver changes. Mika increased our lead
and held out until the end".
Mika Salo: "I am very pleased with this win as I have never raced
on the circuit before. Having a good set up was much more important than
at Imola. Andrea and I concentrated on the set up in qualifying. Everything
went well in the race. After the first stop we took on a lot of fuel but
we stayed focused and consistent, determined to win despite the handicap
weight of 95kg . We only had a few problems with the radio. Fifteen laps
from the finish I eased up a touch and controlled the race".
Johnny Herbert: "It could have gone better; we didn't have any luck.
We were going well despite the entry of the safety car on two occasions,
a factor that forced us to change our strategy. We took the lead after
a third of the race and we could have challenged for the win along with
our team mates. Unfortunately we had to pit immediately after the change
of driver, losing a lot of places. We will make up for it in Dubai".
Fabrizio De Simone: "We were going well. We settled on a good set
up in qualifying and we were consistent. Johnny managed to take the lead.
Unfortunately, I had to come back into the pits straight after with a
problem with the left rear wheel. I was able to climb up to fifth but
I had to stop again to refuel and so ended the race in eighth. It will
go better next time"
Maserati at Imola
Maserati's return to international endurance racing was a superb success
in the eyes of the Italian manufacturer, with two cars making the podium
at Imola at the weekend. The cars, resplendent in corporate blue and performing
in front of Maserati president Luca di Montezemolo and Maserati C.E.O.
Martin Leach, ran faultlessly throughout the race, despite a new team
and two new drivers in the shape of Johnny Herbert and Fabrizio de Simone
who only had their first drive in the car the week preceding the event.
It was the first time that a Maserati had been seen in the FIA GT Championship
and the MC12 is the culmination of more than nine months of work with
test driver Andrea Bertolini who, with Mika Salo, proudly stood on the
podium after Sunday's hard race in very hot conditions. Mid-race pace
was excellent, with Mika Salo closing more than 40 seconds on the leader
in the middle hour, but eventually the Saleen, with years of development
behind it and well driven by Uwe Alzen and Michael Bartels, proved to
be faster than the Maserati over the final hour. The MC12 proved to be
reliable and fast during the whole weekend - a great result for the new
supercar.
A$45 million of Maserati MC-12s delivered to FIA
Modena August 31 2004 - Maserati has presented to the FIA (Federation
Internationale Automobile) the 25 x MC12 road versions, ready to be delivered
to customers, alongside three racing models: the one unveiled at the Geneva
Show and the 2 x actual cars racing their debuts this weekend at Imola
for AF Corse.
Maserati is making a very welcome return to racing and, in the process,
to its very earliest roots. In fact, it was Maserati's enormous success
in races, courtesy of some legendary drivers and an insatiable thirst
for innovation, that helped created the legend of the Trident marque.
A F1 World title in 1957 was delivered by Juan Manuel Fangio at the wheel
of the magnificent 250 F. The same model that helped the Argentinian to
win another title in 1954. The last victory its last came long after Maserati
official retirement from racing at the end of '57, courtesy of Cooper
in 1967 (F1 South African GP, driver Pedro Rodriguez, 12-cylinder Cooper-Maserati).
The Trident's most glittering triumphs in the sports prototype category,
however, have to be its Targa Florio, Buenos Aires 1000 Km and Nürburgring
victories. Wilbur Shaw's two wins in the Indy 500 (1939-1940) at the wheel
of the 8CTF, also have a very special place in the Trident story.
Martin Leach (Maserati C.E.O) has declared: "The history of Maserati
is one of sporting success, splendid and fascinating automobiles and exclusive
clients. We have completed the series of 25 MC12 roadcars and they are
ready for delivery to the clients and the track cars in which we will
make our racing return to an international championship are being prepared.
For us then, it is an important historic moment".
The same concept has been underlined by Claudio Berro (Director Maserati
Corse): "It is an exciting moment as it marks the return of a great
automobile manufacturer to competition after a gap of thirty years. All
the cars have been completed and selected and so all that remains is for
the track to give its verdict. We believe that we have worked well over
the past two years".
From the technical point of view, Giorgio Ascanelli (Technical Director
Maserati Corse) explains: "The race version is derived from the road
version of the MC12, with a close eye kept on performance and costs. We
would like our future clients to possess an easily manageable car with
great performance and good reliability".
The drivers are very confident: "The road going car and the race
spec car are very similar" says Andrea Bertolini. "The MC12
is a very easy vehicle to drive and one in which it is easy to find the
limit. We work well with Mika Salo. We completed the last three tests
together and, most significantly, we give the technicians similar feedback
on the car".
The Finnish driver agrees: "It's quite exciting. It's has been a
very busy testing and I think we should be ready for the race. It's a
very confortable car to drive, very good balanced, very comfortable especially
for the long run".
The other duo is formed by Johnny Herbert and Fabrizio De Simone. "I
am more than satisfied" says Herbert, "because we signed the
agreement a few days ago and the first test at Mugello went extremely
well. The MC12 is a pleasant car to drive. Comfort is very important in
races of this type. A car has to be set up in two specific ways for two
different drivers and I think that the perfect combination has been found".
The same impression of Fabrizio de Simone: "The first sensation is
that the MC12 is an extremely precise and reliable car to drive. What
I found was that it was easy to establish the right feeling with this
car. The car is an exceptional one to drive".
22/09/04
