GT Open

Autorlando Porsche wins 2007 GT Open Championship

© International GT Open

The decisive Catalunya GT Open, which closed a thrilling second GT Open season, was intense since the start, with a long period of safety-car regime in the first hour to clean oil in the track, and then took off in the second hour, with a thrilling race.

It was only in the closing laps that Richard Lietz and Joel Camathias secured the fourth place that gave them the certainty of being the 2007 International GT Open Champions. There were tears in the eyes of everybody in the Autorlando Sport team of the Redolfi family, who has brought Porsche its first GT Open title.^"It was a long, difficult and stressful season", admitted Lietz and Camathias, "but we made it. This race in Barcelona has been very tough, we had some trouble finding the right balance throughout the weekend, but we succeded. We are delighted for the team and for Porsche, we really had the best package".

It was a perfect Sunday for the GPC Corse team as well, as the Italian squad took the first two spots in the podium, with Alessandro Bonetti and Paolo Ruberti winning with authority ahead of team mates Roda-Gianamaria. Playteam Sarafree had two cars fighting for the title, but lost Busnelli-Massironi's car early in the race, while Montermini-Maceratesi, who had been virtual champions at 2/3 of the race, had to satisfy themselves with third in the race and second in the championship, but the Italian pair and the team clinch the GTA and Teams titles, respectively.

Giacomo Petrobelli and Gilles Vannelet imposed their Ferrari F430 in the GTS class, in a race that saw all regular major players out of the class points, with Riccardo Romagnoli (La Torre Viper) securing the class title. It was also a maiden win in GTB for Angelo Ciacci and Joan Lario in a Ferrari F430 Challenge, with veteran Gianni Giudici already crowned before the last race.

RACE REPORT - At the start, poleman Ruberti is fastest ahead of Maceratesi, with Lietz in the Autorlando Porsche and De Castro in the Drivex Mosler taking third and fourth, ahead of Livio (AE Ferrari), Busnelli (Playteam Ferrari) and Gené (Sun-Red).

While Euser spins the Marcos in lap 3, things change little at the top in the first laps and gaps remain extremely reduced.

In lap 10, Maceratesi overtakes Ruberti for the lead but soon after the top position goes back to Ruberti. In the meantime, in lap 11, the Ferrari of Gini blows the engine, the car catches fire at remains stuck in a dangerous position. It also lost oil on which Busnelli loses control, hitting the armco and damaginig the front left of his car. It is the first title contender to be facing trouble. The car will go back to the pits just to retire few moments after. The pace-car is out for 9 laps and when the race resumes it is time for the first driver change and handicap, with the time window extended by 15 minutes. Traffic is of course intense at this moment of the race, with so many cars on the track and the ‘recompacting' effect of the safety-car.

At the 60th minute, when the first half of the race is done and first set of points awarded, the situation is as follows:

1. Pier Guidi - Tedoldi (Playteam Ferrari 360)
2. Roda-Gianmaria (GPC Ferrari 430) - 4 sec
3. Frigerio-Gattuso (AE Ferrari 430) -19 sec
4. Sundberg-Romero (RSV Ferrari 430) - 34 sec
5. Runerti-Bonetti (GPC Ferrari 430) - 35 sec
6. Nogueira-Coimbra (Marcos LM600) - 57"
7. Montermini-Maceratesi (Playteam Ferrari 430) - 1min00sec
8. Lietz-Camathias (Autorlando Porsche 997) -1min10sec
9. Livio-Pasini (AE Ferrari 430) - 1min14sec

…13. Piccini-Cadei (Mik Lamborghini Gallardo) - 1st GTS

…33. Valero-Díaz (Roger Ferrari 430 Ch) - 1st GTB

Still, the first three, the 6th and the 9th in this list would be sanctioned at the end of the race, therefore not scoring the points awarded at the end of the first half of the race.

The second part, once all stops are completed, but one all stops done, it is Peter Sundberg on top with the RSV Ferrari ahead of Bonetti, Montermini, Roda, Camathias, Frigerio and Tedoldi. At this stage of the race, it is tyres that start to suffer and there are many spins (Torres, Frigerio, Chiminelli).

The RSV Ferrari is among the very first to stop for the second driver change, leaving the lead to the GPC Ferrari of Bonetti-Ruberti while the Ferrari of Arias-Van Zoest is stopped in the straight with fire in the back that marshals have trouble putting off.

At lap 50, with approximately 20 minutes of race left, it is the Playteam Ferrari of Montermini-Maceratesi being virtual champion, as it lies in 2nd position behind Bonetti, while the Autorlando Porsche is 7th. But the 997 has already made the second driver change (and Lietz is back in the car) while the Italian team has to stop.

Suspense is at its highest as the blue Ferrari rejoins the race after bits stop without losing the second position, while Lietz is catching and passing the drivers ahead of him: Frigerio, Beltoise (who does a brilliant race on Sofrev's Ferrari 360), Livio (who briefly stops at his box) to seize a fourth position which means the title. The last surprise in the last corner when the Playteam Ferrari slows down abruptely, losing the 2nd position to Roda-Gianmaria, who make one-two for GPC.

Following the race, the marshals penalized with one lap 10 cars for having delayed their pit stops until falling outside the allowed time window. These cars are the following: number 9, 10 (twice), 16 (twice), 21 (twice), 23, 26 and 74.

_{(International GT Open)}