Finishing up a strong season in the TUDOR United Sportscar Championship, the no. 63 Scuderia Corsa Ferrari 458 Italia took the checkered flag at Saturday’s Petit Le Mans in ninth position in the GT-Daytona class.
The top-ten finish capped what was a challenging season for the team, who secured two wins during the TUDOR Championship – one at Detroit, on the temporary circuit on Belle Isle Park, and the second at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. At Petit Le Mans, held at Road Atlanta in Braselton, Georgia, the Ferrari was driven by Alessandro Balzan, Brandon Davis, Kyle Marcelli and Jeff Westphal.
The no. 63 Ferrari 458 Italia was an early mover in the race with Balzan – who started the car – moving up steadily through the field in the opening hour. However, four separate incidents of contact would slow the car. A strong stint by Davis was derailed when a Prototype Challenge car forced him into the grass and he had to pit to allow the Scuderia Corsa crew to clean the radiators. Marcelli was hit twice, once by another Prototype Challenge car and once by a GT-LM car, which forced a second unscheduled stop. A fourth incident spun the Ferrari with Balzan at the wheel. In all, the team was able to regain one of its lost laps but would finish a lap down to the GT-D leader, in ninth position.
Scuderia Corsa’s regular drivers, Alessandro Balzan and Jeff Westphal discussed not only the challenges of Petit Le Mans, but shared their thoughts on their season with the team.
“I think our top-10 was a positive result considering the up-and-down nature of the race,” said Westphal, who drove with Balzan to Scuderia Corsa’s two victories this season. “Considering our BoP and how heavy the car is, we made the best of what we had. The Ferrari was a pleasure to drive at Road Atlanta and the team worked really hard to make the most out of what was a long race that had a lot of yellow flags. I think we have much to be proud of from this season, and I’m really thankful to have taken part in the first TUDOR Championship with Scuderia Corsa.”
“We got everything that we could out of the Ferrari this weekend,” said Balzan, the 2013 Rolex Sports Car Series GT champion. “We had a problem, the contact from the Prototype, that put is in a really tough position because we went down a lap. The team put in the best effort possible in a really, really challenging race with so many yellows and traffic, but I think we made the best result we could. Just as I was last year when we won the Rolex Series championship, I am very proud to be driving for Scuderia Corsa.”
Team owner Giacomo Mattioli also expressed his thoughts on the race as well as the season his team has battled through.
“This was a season where we saw our team really rise to battle against many challenges,” said Giacomo Mattioli, team owner of Scuderia Corsa. “We definitely faced our share of adversity this season, and a lot of it was out of our control, but that’s racing. Our guys never quit and never gave up. If we had a bad race, we seemed to come back better and stronger. We had a real problem with the BoP, but our engineers and our drivers got the maximum out of our Ferrari. I am happy that Ferrari secured the manufacturer’s championship for the North American Endurance Cup, with our no. 63 Scuderia Corsa Ferrari 458 Italia helping to secure the title. This makes all of us very proud, and I want to congratulate our fellow Ferrari competitors, Bill Sweedler and Townsend Bell, on their North American Endurance Cup championship.
“Our Petit Le Mans race started reasonably well, and we did have the pace to run with the leaders and be in the running in the final hour. But given the circumstances, I am happy with our top-10 and we are already looking ahead to Daytona. It has been a special year, with the celebration of the 60th Anniversary of Ferrari North America, and I am proud that Scuderia Corsa was able to deliver two victories for Ferrari this year.”
The no. 63 Scuderia Corsa Ferrari 458 Italia will be displayed during the Ferrari 60th Anniversary celebration on October 11-12 in Beverly Hills, California, near Scuderia Corsa’s base and near Ferrari of Beverly Hills.
Scuderia Corsa’s Ferrari Challenge program will compete next on September 19-21 at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas. That race will be held as part of the Formula 1 World Championship weekend.
About Me: Adam has been a race fan since the first time he went through the tunnel under the Daytona International Speedway almost 30 years ago. He has had the privilege of travelling to races all across the state of Florida (as well as one race in Ohio), watching nearly everything with a motor compete for fame and glory, as well as participating in various racing schools to get the feel of what racecar drivers go through every week. Adam has spent the last three years covering motorsports for Examiner.com., where he had the opportunity to see the racing world from behind the scenes as well as the grandstands. He invites everyone to follow him on Twitter, Facebook, and Google Plus, and looks forward to sharing his enthusiasm for all things racing with the readers of SpeedwayDigest.com.Be sure to tune in for his weekly sports talk program, Thursday Night Thunder, where he discusses the latest in motorsports news with drivers, crew members, and fans. The show takes place every Thursday at 8:00 pm EST on the Speedway Digest Radio Network.
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