FERRARI CHALLENGE DEALER TEAM GB MONZA RACE REPORT 23-24-25 MARCH 2007
26 March 2007 - Ferrari

Saturday 24 March

The Ferrari Challenge Dealer Team GB completed a successful start to the Ferrari Challenge Trofeo Pirelli season with an excellent display in Qualifying and Race 1. The team has five cars, with two cars competing under the Team Vertu Racing banner and three cars in Ferrari Challenge Dealer team GB livery, driven by Ferrari clients who are taking part in the world’s most prestigious racing series for gentleman drivers.

The Team Vertu Racing drivers, Nathan Kinch in Car 27 and Jamie Constable in Car 152 qualified in 6th and 7th places, respectively, for Race 1 on Saturday afternoon. Nathan is racing in the Trofeo Pirelli category in a strong and very competitive field of 16 cars driven by some very experienced drivers, while Jamie is competing in the Coppa Shell category which has an incredible 37 cars on the grid.

During the Trofeo Pirelli Race 1 on Saturday, Nathan maintained his position and demonstrated an excellent turn of speed, with a fastest lap of 1’55.299 which was only 8/100ths of a second off the winning speed. Finishing in 6th place in his first Ferrari Challenge Trofeo Pirelli race, Nathan was pleased to have one race under his belt in a car which ran in very distinctive livery and is confident he will soon be challenging for podium finishes for Team Vertu Racing.

In the Coppa Shell Race 1, Jamie started well and was able to maintain the same pace as the leaders for the first half of the race, but the intense traffic caused by a packed grid of 37 cars meant he slipped down the field after a couple of spins, finishing in 19th place. For Race 2 on Sunday, Jamie started in 6th place and expected to be able to push further up the field with a car that is clearly competitive and ready to challenge for the lead.

The Ferrari Challenge Dealer Team GB’s three drivers in the Coppa Shell include some new drivers to the series: Daniel Weachter and Peer Slipsager in Car 153, and Yannick Mallegol and Jean Marc Bachelier in Car 154. For Race 1, Daniel Weachter qualified 24th out of the 37, with a very respectable time of 1’57.731 on Monza’s long 5.793km circuit, and for Race 2, 28th with a time of 1’59.227. Yannick Mallegol and Jean Marc Bachelier qualified an excellent 14th for Race 1, with Jean Marc’s very quick time of 1’56.877; Yannick qualified for Race 2 in 34th in his very first Ferrari Challenge race. Peter Bamford in Car 151 is starting his second year as a Ferrari Challenge Dealer Team GB driver and aims to build on his experience which he gained in 2006 to improve on both his qualifying and, crucially, his race finishing positions during the 2007 season.

In the paddock area, the Ferrari Challenge Dealer Team GB also hosted Ferrari clients and VIP guests to the new team hospitality units which really set the standard in the pitlane. In a unique and exciting marketing collaboration with Vertu, KitchenAid and Meridian, the team’s guests were able to spend the weekend in luxury, enjoying the finest Italian hospitality – with exquisite cuisine freshly prepared by KitchenAid’s guest chef, entertained by Meridian Audio’s state-of-the-art home entertainment systems, and provided with an opportunity to see Vertu’s incredible range of luxury, handcrafted mobile phones, including the very appropriate and exclusive limited edition Racetrack Legends Series which feature engravings of historical and significant motor racing circuits – including Monza! – on the phone’s titanium casing.

Sunday 25 March

It was another early start for the Ferrari Challenge Dealer Team GB on Sunday morning, with Nathan Kinch in Car 27 starting on the third row of the Trofeo Pirelli in the distinctive Team Vertu Racing livery for Race 2 of the first weekend’s Luxury Lifestyle Racing, the Ferrari Challenge Trofeo Pirelli which started the season at the “Temple of Speed” in Milan.

In contrast to the previous day’s racing activities, Sunday morning in Milan was grey and damp, with Race 2 being declared a Wet race – meaning that the everyone’s qualifying times counted for little in the race because the qualifying sessions were conducted when the sun was shining and the track was dry. Switching to a fresh set of “wet” tyres, developed by Pirelli specifically for the Ferrari Challenge, Nathan battled with the spray caused by the front runners on a very high speed circuit but was never more than 0.5 second of the pace of the leaders, bringing the car home a very respectable 7th place in a difficult race.

The Ferrari Challenge Dealer Team GB was also represented in the Coppa Shell category, with Jamie Constable in Car 152 starting from a similar 6th place on the grid as his Team Vertu Racing team-mate, Nathan Kinch who competes in the Trofeo Pirelli. With a packed grid of 37 cars again for Race 2 on Sunday, Jamie had to contend with even greater amounts of spray, not only from the leading cars he was chasing hard, but also the slower traffic.

In only his second Ferrari Challenge race, Daniel Weachter in Car 153 showed impressive form by quickly moving up from his 28th starting position in Race 2 to finish a very credible 14th in an extremely wet race – with his lap times only 1 second off the leaders around the drenched 5.8km Monza circuit. Daniel quickly managed to get to grips with the 490hp Ferrari F430 Challenge and this bodes well for the team’s home race at Silverstone in early June, one of the fastest circuits on the calendar.

The duo of Yannick Mallegol and Jean Marc Bachelier struggled in the wet conditions but still managed to climb from a starting position of 34th to finish in 27th place and gain some valuable experience, not only on the track, but also in the pit lane as they practice driver changes during the compulsory 1 minute pit stop.

The Ferrari Challenge Dealer Team GB once again hosted several VIP Ferrari clients and guests in the new hospitality unit which was the envy of the paddock, with cookery demonstrations throughout the day from a resident Kitchen Aid chef, entertainment provided courtesy of Meridian Audio and a welcome presentation by Alberto Torres, President of Vertu, to inaugurate the new partnership of the four luxury brands working together to support the world’s most exclusive single-make championship, the Ferrari Challenge Trofeo Pirelli.

The Ferrari Challenge Trofeo Pirelli

It was in 1993 with the Ferrari 348 Berlinetta that the Ferrari Challenge first took to the race tracks of the world. With the development of the F355 and then the outstanding 360 Challenge, the series has grown to take in three championships: the USA, Europe and a dedicated Italian series. All of which offer the chance for clients to enjoy the unique sensation of being a Ferrari racing driver with the full support of factory trained technicians and race crew.

The racing follows the format of any professional race series with a three-day meeting around a weekend. There are two distinct classes within the Ferrari Challenge: the Trofeo Pirelli for the more experienced drivers and the Coppa Shell for those who are new to racing.

In the European Championship, there are seven six weekend race meetings on some of the most challenging and iconice race circuits: Monza, Misano, Silverstone, Spa, Paul Ricard, Hockenheim and at the World Finals in Italy (location TBC).

Each race weekend starts on Friday with free practice and qualifying and includes 40 minute races on both Saturday and Sunday, allowing time for the drivers to relax and enjoy the luxury of their surroundings – this is a Ferrari event after all.

The latest technology on the cars, the best pit crews with the most sophisticated equipment, the most enthusiastic Ferrari owners driving the most modern F430 Challenge cars on the finest racing circuits can only mean one thing - The Ferrari Challenge Trofeo Pirelli is in town.

Race Calendar

ROUND
DATE
CIRCUIT
COUNTRY

1
March 23,24,25
Monza
Italy

2
April 20,21,22
Misano
Italy

3
June 8,9,10
Silverstone
England

4
July 26,27,28
Spa
Belgium

5
Aug 31– Sept 1,2
Paul Ricard
France

6
September 21,22,23
Hockenheim
Germany

7
October 25,26,27,28
World Finals
Italy

Race Meeting Format

Friday

Sporting and Technical Scrutineering
Free Practice = 30 mins x 2 sessions
Qualifying 1 (for Race 1) = 30 mins
Saturday

Qualifying 2 (for Race 2) = 30 mins
Race 1 = 40 mins
Sunday

Race 2 = 40 mins

Ferrari Challenge Dealer Team GB

The team has been created to offer Ferrari clients the opportunity to participate in a competitive racing environment with the full support of the Ferrari network. The team is based at purpose-built racing premises owned by Ferrari GB at the Silverstone racing circuit.

There are three official Ferrari dealers who have combined with Ferrari GB to create the team:

Graypaul is the official Ferrari dealer based in Nottingham and is geographically the closest dealer to Silverstone, bringing strong links with Challenge racing

H R Owen operates from premises in central London and brings a new range of customers keen to explore the performance offered by the F430 Challenge.

Maranello Sales Limited located in Egham at the famous Tower Garage also has a strong racing heritage with previous victories in the Challenge series.
Ferrari Challenge Dealer Team GB – Partners

Every successful racing team in the world achieves its victories through teamwork. The Ferrari Challenge Dealer Team GB aims to do the same and is working with the leading brands in their fields to support the team in that goal.

Black & Decker is a leading global manufacturer and innovator of power tools and accessories, hardware and home improvement products, and technology- based fastening systems. Employing approximately 26000 people in five core operating regions around the world marketing products to 100 countries. Being a visionary, customer focused brand, Black & Decker aims to empower people with intelligent solutions for everyday life, ensuring great results every time. The company stands for the values of integrity, leadership, teamwork and results.

Vertu is the leading manufacturer of handcrafted mobile phones for the luxury market. Born from an obsession to create a handset that deployed craftsmanship and technology in a way that had never been achieved before, Vertu looked beyond the world of mobile phones. Its inspiration came from the finest watches, exquisite jewellery and the most exhilarating cars. A Vertu is the antithesis of mass production. It is hand-assembled, original and unique. Vertu phones are hand assembled at the company''s headquarters in the United Kingdom and are available in Vertu''s own stores and some of the finest watch, jewellery and department stores worldwide.

KitchenAid has been creating innovative products for the well-equipped kitchen for almost a century. A cult brand in the United States, KitchenAid arrives in Europe to enjoy similar demand. KitchenAid offers a complete range of appliances and culinary utensils that supports every step of the cooking process. Each product is crafted with singular design, great versatility, extremely high-quality materials and professional-like performance. Passion, quality and technology: the mix of ingredients that creates the history of a truly unique brand. KitchenAid supports the Ferrari Challenge Dealer Team GB’s activities while at race locations by providing exclusive culinary experiences to the team’s VIP guests by managing and running custom-made KitchenAid-equipped interactive kitchen services at every race.

Meridian Audio have been designing and manufacturing the world’s most desirable home entertainment systems for 30 years. Founded in 1977 by Bob Stuart and Allen Boothroyd, the Cambridgeshire company has won numerous accolades for product performance and design, including an unprecedented 3 British Design awards. Today, Meridian’s range of products includes CD and DVD players, amplifiers, surround-sound decoders and loudspeakers, and Meridian products are sold in over 50 countries world-wide. In February 2007, Meridian and Ferrari launched the F80 – a complete transportable home entertainment system that combines superb performance with stylish design.

Iveco is an international firm, part of the FIAT Group, offering a complete range of transport vehicles and engines. It manufactures and sells over 160,000 commercial vehicles and 430,000 engines worldwide each year. In income terms this translates into around €9 billion. Iveco has 49 factories in 19 countries as well as 15 R&D centres, 31,000 employees and 844 dealerships.

Sabelt was founded in 1972 and developed the first 6-point harnesses with quick-release buckles specifically for motor racing. The first cars to use these Sabelt belts were Munari''s glorious Lancia Stratos, in rallying, and Giacomelli''s Alfa Romeo, in F1. Today Sabelt researches, develops and manufactures racing car seat belts at the forefront of technology, supplying the main racing car teams worldwide. In 1998, Sabelt began distributing a whole range of accessories, all approved according to FIA standards: seats, suits, gloves, special technical clothing for drivers and mechanics, shoes, steering wheels, helmets, pedals, strut bars and springs.

Autosport is the UK''s best-selling weekly motorsport magazine. Seen by fans and industry alike as the bible for motorsport news analysis, Autosport''s editorial remit covers all aspects of the sport, from the major international series such as Formula 1, IndyCar and World Rally to grass roots UK club motorsport.

www.ferrari.co.uk

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