FIA GT 2003. Race in Barcelona. Round 1. (EN)
It was definitely a Ferrari day in Barcelona for the first round of the 2003 FIA GT Championship. With one of the largest and most varied grids for many years, the race was action-packed and full of excitement, a good augur for the season to come.
Practice
First Free Practice Session : BMS Scuderia Italia and Team Maranello Concessionaires.
The first practice session was the first chance to see all the 2003 FIA GT Championship cars in action. After ninety minutes of non-stop running round the 4.73 km track, the top six in the GT category included three Lister Storms, two Ferrari 550 Maranello cars and a Chrysler Viper. In N-GT, a similar selection included five Ferrari 360 Modena cars and one Porsche 996 GT3-RS.
The best time was set by the nr 22 BMS Scuderia Italia Ferrari 550 Maranello, of Fabrizio Gollin and Luca Cappellari. The two Italians, who moved to BMS this year after driving a Chrysler Viper last year, set a best time of 1:43.125, 0.424 seconds faster than the nr 14 Lister Storm of Campbell-Walter and Kinch. The second Lister, of Piccini and Deletraz, was fourth fastest, just behind the nr 1 Larbre Competition Chrysler Viper of Belloc and Bouchut. New team Creation Autosportif was fifth fastest, with the Lister Storm of Verdon-Roe and Snowdon, with the BMS Ferrari 550 Maranello of Italians Biagi and Bobbi sixth. The nr 10 JMB Racing Ferrari 550 Maranello stopped after just two laps with an engine failure, and was not able to take part in the afternoon session.
In N-GT, Team Maranello Concessionaires dominated the session, setting the two fastest times. The nr 89 Ferrari 360 Modena of Kelvin Burt and Darren Turner set the best time, 1:45.849, with the nr 88 of Davies and Mullen less than half a second slower. The nr 52 JMB Racing Ferrari Modena of Bertolini and De Simone was third fastest, ahead of the Czech MenX Ferrari of Enge and Pergl. Leading Porsche was the nr 50 Freisinger Motorsport Porsche 996 GT3-RS, driven by Lieb and Maassen, in fifth place, with a best time of 1:48.419 with the brand-new car. Newcomers Autopalace were sixth fastest, with a Ferrari 360 Modena in the hands of Frenchmen Gomez and Hiesse.
The nr 54 Cirtek Motorsport Porsche only managed four laps before an engine failure for Marco Zadra.
Second Free Practice Session : Lister and Freisinger in the lead.
After Ferrari cars led the first session, the other makes fought back in the afternoon free practice session, which was generally slower than the cooler morning track time. In the GT category, four different makes were represented in the top five. The nr 14 Lister Storm, of Jamie Campbell-Walter and Nathan Kinch, set the fastest time, with a lap of 1:43.334, ahead of the nr 22 BMS Scuderia Italia Ferrari 550 Maranello. The nr 7 Saleen S7-R of Thomas Erdos and Mike Newton set the third time, ahead of the second BMS Ferrari and the nr 1 Larbre Competition Chrysler Viper GTS-R.
In N-GT, Freisinger Motorsport set the pace, with a lap of 1:47.637, ahead of the nr 88 Team Maranello Concessionaires Ferrari 360 Modena. The nr 99 RWS Yukos Motorsport Porsche 996 GT3-RS of Stéphane Daoudi and Walter Lechner Jr. was third, with newcomers AutoPalace and MenX in fourth and firth places.
Qualifying
First Qualifying Session.
An extremely close first qualifying session, which took place in the bright Barcelona sunshine, saw the first five cars set times within six tenths of a second, with four different makes represented in the top six. Jamie Campbell-Walter set the fastest time early in the session, with a lap of 1:40.975, at the wheel of the nr 14 Lister Storm. The two BMS Scuderia Italia Ferrari 550 Maranello cars set the second and third times, with Gollin just 0.163 seconds off Campbell-Walter’s pace, while Thomas Biagi was a further tenth of a second behind. Andrea Piccini, who is still adapting to the Lister Storm he first drove earlier this week, set the fourth-best time, with a lap of 1:41.539. The Graham Nash Saleen S7-R of Erdos and Newton was fifth, with the nr 1 Larbre Competition Chrysler Viper rounding off the top six, but over a second slower than the Saleen. In N-GT, there was a close battle between the two Team Maranello Concessionaires Ferrari 360 Modena cars and the two Porsche 996 GT3-RS of Freisinger Motorsport. Although Marc Lieb took provisional pole early on, the nr 89 Ferrari of Burt and Turner improved, setting a lap of 1:45.762 which remained fastest until the end of the 45-minute session. There were problems for JMB Racing, with the nr 9 car of Babini and Peter only completing three laps before stopping due to a leak, and the nr 10 car, driven by Terrien, Pescatori and Derichebourg, stopping out on the circuit, with its second engine failure of the weekend. Both the nr 16 Wieth Racing Ferrari 550 Marenello and the nr 75 Team Eurotech Porsche 996 GT3-RS cars had their times removed after scrutineering, due to the rear wing failing to comply with the regulations for the nr 75 Porsche, and the rear wing and front spoiler failing to comply for the Wieth Racing Ferrari.
Second Qualifying Session.
Temperatures were warmer for the second session, and as has been predicted, there were very few improvements. Fastest in the session was the nr 23 BMS Scuderia Italia Ferrari 550 Maranello of Thomas Biagi and Matteo Bobbi, setting a time of 1:44.882. The nr 7 Graham Nash Motorsport Saleen S7-R of Erdos and Newton was second fastest, with Bouchut and Belloc in the nr 1 Larbre Competition Chrysler Viper GTS-R third. The nr 9 JMB Racing Ferrari 550 Maranello was one of the few cars to improve, with a lap of 1:46.852 which placed them fourth overall, ahead of the nr 2 Konrad Motorsport Saleen S7-R. Best of the N-GT cars was the nr 99 RWS Yukos Motorsport Porsche 996 GT3-RS of Walter Lechner Jr. and Stéphane Daoudi, ahead of Lieb and Maassen in the nr 50 Freisinger Motorsport Porsche 996 GT3-R, despite a spin for Lieb which briefly brought the red flags out. The session was halted shortly before the end, after a collision when the nr 89 Team Maranello Concessionaires Ferrari 360 Modena, hit the Konrad Motorsport Saleen S7-R, which had spun into the gravel and was being attended by a towing truck. Due to this incident, the Stewards decided that the nr 89 Ferrari will start from the back of the grid tomorrow. The nr 2 Care Racing Ferrari 550 Maranello, had its times cancelled, as did the nr 51 Freisinger Motorsport Porsche 996 GT3-RS, due to failing to stop at the red light for scrutineering.
Race
It was definitely a Ferrari day in Barcelona today, for the first round of the 2003 FIA GT Championship. With one of the largest and most varied grids for many years, the race was action-packed and full of excitement, a good augur for the season to come. The sun shone, and 18000 spectators came to the Circuit de Catalunya to watch a thrilling race.
Victory in the GT category went to BMS Scuderia Italia, with the nr. 23 Ferrari 550 Maranello of young Italian drivers Thomas Biagi and Matteo Bobbi taking the chequered flag on their first visit to the Championship. Their nr. 23 Ferrari crossed the line 15.663 seconds ahead of their team-mates, Fabrizio Gollin and Luca Cappellari, in the nr. 22 car. The two Italians have moved to BMS Scuderia Italia after a year with a Chrysler Viper. Third place was taken by the nr. 21 Care Racing Ferrari 550 Maranello, also run by BMS Scuderia Italia, and which was driven by Lilian Bryner, Enzo Calderari and Stefano Livio.
In the N-GT category, JMB Racing's nr. 52 Ferrari 360 Modena Andrea Bertolini and Fabrizio De Simone gave the team its first victory since Silverstone last year, with a fine race for the two Italians. They took the lead when the nr. 89 Team Maranello Concessionaires Ferrari 550 Maranello suffered a puncture in the late stages of the race. Second place went to the nr. 88 Ferrari 360 Modena of Jamie Davies and Tim Mullen, while the nr. 89 car of Kelvin Burt and Darren Turner, which had started from the back of the grid, recovered from their puncture to take third place.
GT Story: Lister Racing lead at the start.
Starting from pole position, Jamie Campbell-Walter made an excellent start in the nr. 14 Lister, and although he was closely followed by the nr. 22 and 23 BMS Scuderia Italia Ferrari 550 Maranello cars, he kept the lead until lap 27, when Gollin took advantage of overtaking backmarkers to take the lead.
However, shortly afterwards, Gollin was unable to avoid a front splitter, which had fallen off the nr. 4 Force One Chrysler Viper GTS-R. The debris damaged his own car, before flying up and landing squarely on the Lister Storm of Jamie Campbell-Walter, tearing off the roof and damaging the windscreen. From this point onwards, the Lister was out of contention, and although Campbell-Walter and Kinch continued to race, the car was undriveable and they retired.
After the first pit stops, Biagi and Bobbi in the nr. 23 Ferrari took the lead, and kept it until the end. Although damaged, the Ferrari 550 of Gollin and Cappellari remained in contention, but were unable to challenge for the lead, finishing comfortably ahead of the Care Racing car.
Fourth place went to Andrea Piccini and Jean-Denis Deletraz, in the second Lister Storm. A minor collision at the start with the nr. 7 Saleen meant that Piccini had to come back to the pits to sort out slight damage to one wheel. After that, they had to fight back up the grid.
Although a strong run for the nr. 1 Larbre Competition Chrysler Viper of Bouchut and Belloc, lying in the top four until the car stopped on the side of the track after 57 laps, two Chrysler Viper GTS-R cars finished in the points. The nr. 11 Roos-Optima Racing Team car from Sweden was sixth, while the Zwaan's Racing car from the Netherlands was seventh.
On its Championship debut, the Saleen S7-R entered into the points, with the Konrad Motorsport car of Franz Konrad and Toni Seiler taking the final point for eighth place.
N-GT Story : Ferrari takes the lead.
The nr. 50 Freisinger Motorsport Porsche 996 GT3-RS, which had inherited the pole position on the starting grid after the nr. 89 Team Maranello Concessionaires had to start from the back of the grid, made an excellent start, and it looked as if Lieb and Maassen would be able to add another win to Freisinger's 2002 tally. However, the lead passed to the Ferraris after the pit-stops, with the nr. 89 and 88 Team Maranello Concessionaires leading mid-race. On lap 53, the front of the N-GT field was involved in a spectacular case of simultaneous spinning, with first the Autopalace, nr. 50 Freisinger Porsche and nr. 88 Team Maranello cars all losing control at the same place. The nr. 52 JMB car managed to thread through the cars to take the lead of the class. Shortly afterwards, the nr. 50 retired with a radiator leak. After the final stops, the nr. 89 Ferrari of Burt and Turner appeared firmly in control, until a puncture dropped them back in the final stages, leaving JMB to take the win. A splash and dash for Autopalace, in an excellent third place, elevated the nr. 89 Team Maranello Ferrari to third on the final lap. Team Autopalace, new to the Championship, finished in a fine fourth place, with French drivers Guillaume Gomez and Steeve Hiesse.
The best of the Porsche cars today was the nr 99 RWS Yukos Porsche 996 GT3-RS of Walter Lechner Jr and Stéphane Daoudi. The team's other car, driven by Fomenko and Vasiliev, finished seventh, bringing the team’s score up to six.
The MenX Ferrari 360 Modena finished in sixth place for their first race, with Tomas Enge and Robert Pergl at the wheel.
The final point, for eighth place, went to Cirtek Motorsport, with the nr. 54 car of Mark Mayall and Marco Zadra.
Results.
After Ferrari cars led the first session, the other makes fought back in the afternoon free practice session, which was generally slower than the cooler morning track time. In the GT category, four different makes were represented in the top five. The nr 14 Lister Storm, of Jamie Campbell-Walter and Nathan Kinch, set the fastest time, with a lap of 1:43.334, ahead of the nr 22 BMS Scuderia Italia Ferrari 550 Maranello. The nr 7 Saleen S7-R of Thomas Erdos and Mike Newton set the third time, ahead of the second BMS Ferrari and the nr 1 Larbre Competition Chrysler Viper GTS-R.
In N-GT, Freisinger Motorsport set the pace, with a lap of 1:47.637, ahead of the nr 88 Team Maranello Concessionaires Ferrari 360 Modena. The nr 99 RWS Yukos Motorsport Porsche 996 GT3-RS of Stéphane Daoudi and Walter Lechner Jr. was third, with newcomers AutoPalace and MenX in fourth and firth places.
Qualifying
First Qualifying Session.
An extremely close first qualifying session, which took place in the bright Barcelona sunshine, saw the first five cars set times within six tenths of a second, with four different makes represented in the top six. Jamie Campbell-Walter set the fastest time early in the session, with a lap of 1:40.975, at the wheel of the nr 14 Lister Storm. The two BMS Scuderia Italia Ferrari 550 Maranello cars set the second and third times, with Gollin just 0.163 seconds off Campbell-Walter’s pace, while Thomas Biagi was a further tenth of a second behind. Andrea Piccini, who is still adapting to the Lister Storm he first drove earlier this week, set the fourth-best time, with a lap of 1:41.539. The Graham Nash Saleen S7-R of Erdos and Newton was fifth, with the nr 1 Larbre Competition Chrysler Viper rounding off the top six, but over a second slower than the Saleen. In N-GT, there was a close battle between the two Team Maranello Concessionaires Ferrari 360 Modena cars and the two Porsche 996 GT3-RS of Freisinger Motorsport. Although Marc Lieb took provisional pole early on, the nr 89 Ferrari of Burt and Turner improved, setting a lap of 1:45.762 which remained fastest until the end of the 45-minute session. There were problems for JMB Racing, with the nr 9 car of Babini and Peter only completing three laps before stopping due to a leak, and the nr 10 car, driven by Terrien, Pescatori and Derichebourg, stopping out on the circuit, with its second engine failure of the weekend. Both the nr 16 Wieth Racing Ferrari 550 Marenello and the nr 75 Team Eurotech Porsche 996 GT3-RS cars had their times removed after scrutineering, due to the rear wing failing to comply with the regulations for the nr 75 Porsche, and the rear wing and front spoiler failing to comply for the Wieth Racing Ferrari.
Second Qualifying Session.
Temperatures were warmer for the second session, and as has been predicted, there were very few improvements. Fastest in the session was the nr 23 BMS Scuderia Italia Ferrari 550 Maranello of Thomas Biagi and Matteo Bobbi, setting a time of 1:44.882. The nr 7 Graham Nash Motorsport Saleen S7-R of Erdos and Newton was second fastest, with Bouchut and Belloc in the nr 1 Larbre Competition Chrysler Viper GTS-R third. The nr 9 JMB Racing Ferrari 550 Maranello was one of the few cars to improve, with a lap of 1:46.852 which placed them fourth overall, ahead of the nr 2 Konrad Motorsport Saleen S7-R. Best of the N-GT cars was the nr 99 RWS Yukos Motorsport Porsche 996 GT3-RS of Walter Lechner Jr. and Stéphane Daoudi, ahead of Lieb and Maassen in the nr 50 Freisinger Motorsport Porsche 996 GT3-R, despite a spin for Lieb which briefly brought the red flags out. The session was halted shortly before the end, after a collision when the nr 89 Team Maranello Concessionaires Ferrari 360 Modena, hit the Konrad Motorsport Saleen S7-R, which had spun into the gravel and was being attended by a towing truck. Due to this incident, the Stewards decided that the nr 89 Ferrari will start from the back of the grid tomorrow. The nr 2 Care Racing Ferrari 550 Maranello, had its times cancelled, as did the nr 51 Freisinger Motorsport Porsche 996 GT3-RS, due to failing to stop at the red light for scrutineering.
Race
It was definitely a Ferrari day in Barcelona today, for the first round of the 2003 FIA GT Championship. With one of the largest and most varied grids for many years, the race was action-packed and full of excitement, a good augur for the season to come. The sun shone, and 18000 spectators came to the Circuit de Catalunya to watch a thrilling race.
Victory in the GT category went to BMS Scuderia Italia, with the nr. 23 Ferrari 550 Maranello of young Italian drivers Thomas Biagi and Matteo Bobbi taking the chequered flag on their first visit to the Championship. Their nr. 23 Ferrari crossed the line 15.663 seconds ahead of their team-mates, Fabrizio Gollin and Luca Cappellari, in the nr. 22 car. The two Italians have moved to BMS Scuderia Italia after a year with a Chrysler Viper. Third place was taken by the nr. 21 Care Racing Ferrari 550 Maranello, also run by BMS Scuderia Italia, and which was driven by Lilian Bryner, Enzo Calderari and Stefano Livio.
In the N-GT category, JMB Racing's nr. 52 Ferrari 360 Modena Andrea Bertolini and Fabrizio De Simone gave the team its first victory since Silverstone last year, with a fine race for the two Italians. They took the lead when the nr. 89 Team Maranello Concessionaires Ferrari 550 Maranello suffered a puncture in the late stages of the race. Second place went to the nr. 88 Ferrari 360 Modena of Jamie Davies and Tim Mullen, while the nr. 89 car of Kelvin Burt and Darren Turner, which had started from the back of the grid, recovered from their puncture to take third place.
GT Story: Lister Racing lead at the start.
Starting from pole position, Jamie Campbell-Walter made an excellent start in the nr. 14 Lister, and although he was closely followed by the nr. 22 and 23 BMS Scuderia Italia Ferrari 550 Maranello cars, he kept the lead until lap 27, when Gollin took advantage of overtaking backmarkers to take the lead.
However, shortly afterwards, Gollin was unable to avoid a front splitter, which had fallen off the nr. 4 Force One Chrysler Viper GTS-R. The debris damaged his own car, before flying up and landing squarely on the Lister Storm of Jamie Campbell-Walter, tearing off the roof and damaging the windscreen. From this point onwards, the Lister was out of contention, and although Campbell-Walter and Kinch continued to race, the car was undriveable and they retired.
After the first pit stops, Biagi and Bobbi in the nr. 23 Ferrari took the lead, and kept it until the end. Although damaged, the Ferrari 550 of Gollin and Cappellari remained in contention, but were unable to challenge for the lead, finishing comfortably ahead of the Care Racing car.
Fourth place went to Andrea Piccini and Jean-Denis Deletraz, in the second Lister Storm. A minor collision at the start with the nr. 7 Saleen meant that Piccini had to come back to the pits to sort out slight damage to one wheel. After that, they had to fight back up the grid.
Although a strong run for the nr. 1 Larbre Competition Chrysler Viper of Bouchut and Belloc, lying in the top four until the car stopped on the side of the track after 57 laps, two Chrysler Viper GTS-R cars finished in the points. The nr. 11 Roos-Optima Racing Team car from Sweden was sixth, while the Zwaan's Racing car from the Netherlands was seventh.
On its Championship debut, the Saleen S7-R entered into the points, with the Konrad Motorsport car of Franz Konrad and Toni Seiler taking the final point for eighth place.
N-GT Story : Ferrari takes the lead.
The nr. 50 Freisinger Motorsport Porsche 996 GT3-RS, which had inherited the pole position on the starting grid after the nr. 89 Team Maranello Concessionaires had to start from the back of the grid, made an excellent start, and it looked as if Lieb and Maassen would be able to add another win to Freisinger's 2002 tally. However, the lead passed to the Ferraris after the pit-stops, with the nr. 89 and 88 Team Maranello Concessionaires leading mid-race. On lap 53, the front of the N-GT field was involved in a spectacular case of simultaneous spinning, with first the Autopalace, nr. 50 Freisinger Porsche and nr. 88 Team Maranello cars all losing control at the same place. The nr. 52 JMB car managed to thread through the cars to take the lead of the class. Shortly afterwards, the nr. 50 retired with a radiator leak. After the final stops, the nr. 89 Ferrari of Burt and Turner appeared firmly in control, until a puncture dropped them back in the final stages, leaving JMB to take the win. A splash and dash for Autopalace, in an excellent third place, elevated the nr. 89 Team Maranello Ferrari to third on the final lap. Team Autopalace, new to the Championship, finished in a fine fourth place, with French drivers Guillaume Gomez and Steeve Hiesse.
The best of the Porsche cars today was the nr 99 RWS Yukos Porsche 996 GT3-RS of Walter Lechner Jr and Stéphane Daoudi. The team's other car, driven by Fomenko and Vasiliev, finished seventh, bringing the team’s score up to six.
The MenX Ferrari 360 Modena finished in sixth place for their first race, with Tomas Enge and Robert Pergl at the wheel.
The final point, for eighth place, went to Cirtek Motorsport, with the nr. 54 car of Mark Mayall and Marco Zadra.
Results.
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