#63 Scuderia Corsa Ferrari 458: Leh Keen, Alessandro Balzan
A wild race at Lime Rock Park on Saturday that brought an
end to the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series also brought a sweep of the
season’s GT-class championships to Ferrari.
When he guided the no. 63 Scuderia Corsa Ferrari 458 Italia
to the checkered flag in second position, Alessandro Balzan became the 2013
Rolex Series GT driver champion and secured the Rolex Series team championship
for Scuderia Corsa. And, for the second straight season, Ferrari won the Rolex
Series manufacturer championship – scoring two wins, four pole positions, and
13 podium finishes in the season.
Battling throughout the race for a podium position, and
surviving a heavy hit from another GT-class car, Balzan survived a chaotic
final hour and a late-race restart to finish in second position. Just behind
was the no. 64 Scuderia Corsa Ferrari 458 Italia that was driven by Jeff
Westphal and Johannes van Overbeek.
“I was never relaxed during the race since things were
always happening in front of us, behind us, or next to us,” said Balzan. “The
DP’s were passing us and sometimes it was a nightmare because you know that you
are leading the championship but you also know that you are losing so much time
in traffic.
I am very happy for the team. Everyone at Scuderia Corsa,
really deserved it. It’s really crazy to think we are champions in the first
year. I have to thank Giacomo because he believed in me, otherwise I would have
never gotten the seat. I’m a 100% Scuderia Corsa product, and it is a dream for
a little Italian driver coming from Italy that is now living in Modena.”
Giacomo Mattioli has now seen his Scuderia Corsa team, in
its first complete Rolex Series season, score its first win and win its first
championship.
“It’s an amazing, amazing experience for Scuderia Corsa to
win its first championship,” said Mattioli. “My first thought is to thank the
people behind this project, starting from Marco Mattiacci of Ferrari North
America, and my technical director Roberto Amorosi, the whole team – too many
to name – and obviously Alessandro.
Alessandro has had a fantastic season. He didn’t know any of
the tracks, didn’t know the tires, and I think he adapted so well. We decided
to bring out the no. 64 Ferrari and they did a great job. We had two great
drivers that had raced with us before – Johannes and Jeff. They were on top of
their game, and the car was very good, and they scored a great podium result.”
Mattiacci, the President and CEO of Ferrari North America,
was in attendance to see the trio of championships secured on Saturday.
“The manufacturer championship is very important for
Ferrari, because it demonstrates not only the phenomenal performance, speed,
balance, but also the reliability of the 458 Italia,” said Mattiacci. “To win
it for the second time, against the high level of competition in the Rolex
Series in the United States, is an achievement we are very proud of. This was
only possible because of the great preparation and driving of all of our teams
– AIM Autosport Team FXDD, R.Ferri/AIM Motorsport, and Scuderia Corsa.
“Alessandro Balzan and Scuderia Corsa have done an
incredible job all season, showing an impressive consistency and are very
deserving GT champions. They rightly enjoyed a lot of support from Ferrari
owners today at Lime Rock Park. Our thanks goes as well to all the team at
Corse Cliente, our sponsor and supporter Motorola and naturally to all the
GRAND-AM organization.”
Contact relegated the no. 61 R. Ferri/AIM Motorsport Ferrari
458 of Alex Tagliani and Jeff Segal to seventh position, while the no. 69 AIM
Autosport Team FXDD Ferrari 458 Italia of Emil Assentato and Anthony Lazzaro was
forced to retire with damage to the car’s radiator.
To commemorate the championship, Ferrari has launched a
website to chronicle the trio of Rolex Series GT championships which can be
seen at Ferraridoesitagain.tumblr.com.
by João Corrêa
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